Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Batteries for Solar Power: Do we need technicians?


When I was a young boy, I thought the only places where batteries were needed were in flashlights. Then I learned that we had one in our car to get it started. As a young adult, I knew we needed lots of batteries to operate our children’s toys. Now we need them for laptops. Batteries continuously get more important in my life; now they’re vital to the future of alternative energy—particularly wind energy and solar voltaics. Actually, I think they’re absolutely critical to the practical use of these two forms of “green energy”.

Solar voltaic cells and windmills convert these two forms of free, available, natural energy directly to electricity—and only at the times when they are available (i.e., when the sun is shining or the wind is blowing.) So, the problem is that we have to use their electric energy at the precise time when it is available, or we have to be able to store it until it is needed. We will probably need to store the energy from solar voltaics for at least 6-8 hours; that’s a pretty large supply to store.

I can easily think of two possible ways to store this energy:

1. Hydraulically—Use the electricity to pump water up to the front of a dam, and release it, when it is needed, through turbines to drive electric generators (i.e., hydroelectric power.) The problem with this approach is that there aren’t enough dams available to make this approach more than a “drop in the bucket.”

2. Chemically—This is where we need to go. Use the electricity to “charge large batteries” and discharge them when we need it.

From an energy perspective, we are developing batteries for two purposes. To power hybrid-electric, or all-electric cars and to store alternative energy supplies. We’re not ready for either of these applications yet, but we’re working on it. When we are ready, will we need technicians? And where will they come from?

In the March 2, 2009 edition of Newsweek, there is an article on the future of batteries, entitled “To Pack a Real Punch”, which is an interview with Alex Molinaroli, the president of Power Solutions at Johnson Control. Molinaroli says that batteries are the key to our energy future, “You have to match energy production with the demand. That’s easy to do when you have oil or coal in the ground that you can pile up, but you can’t do that with electricity. You have to be able to store it somehow”. Molinaroli is confident that appropriate battery technology can be developed quickly, now that the demand is evident.

If we can practically develop very large battery systems, then we can use “solar parks”; if not, we’ll have to generate and store solar energy “one building at a time”.

Today, the leading technology in battery development is in lithium-ion batteries; the technology is concentrated in Korea and Japan, and some in China. This development has been driven by the needs in electric car development. Other materials for batteries are also being investigated to reduce cost, charging/recharging time and weight/volume. New breakthroughs in battery technology are likely, and they could emerge in the U.S.

The urgency for U.S. battery technology development has emerged rapidly in recent months. We can still be first in this race (and we need to be). But if we want to keep the products from this new technology in the U.S. we will have to prepare for this race—and part of this preparation is to have the appropriate technical workforce to support it.

What areas of technical education are best suited for preparing the workforce in battery development and production? What are the knowledge and skills required for cutting-edge workers in this field? A few weeks ago, I wrote a few blogs about the potential for optics and electro-optics in solar voltaic development, production and use. Battery storage of solar energy will also be critical.

As technical educators we need to think “outside the box” as we anticipate the knowledge and skills for techs in emerging fields such as solar voltaics. From OP-TEC’s view, we are interested in solar voltaics because of the skills required in optics and electro-optics. But Solar Voltaic Techs (if there are to be such workers) will probably need a combination of knowledge/skills that include optics & electro-optics; but also may include technologies related to new batteries—and possibly other technologies.

Labels: batteries, renewable energy, green energy, solar energy, solar voltaics, optics, photonics, technicians

Monday, March 9, 2009

Central Carolina Community College: An OP-TEC Partner College

OP-TEC is a consortium of two year colleges that have well-established photonics programs. These “Partner Colleges” are the models for OP-TEC curricula; they develop and test instructional modules, guides, innovative courses and teaching strategies; and they provide technical assistance to colleges that are planning and initiating new offerings in photonics.

The Laser & Photonics Technology (LPT) program is located at the Harnett County Campus of Central Carolina Community College (CCCC) in Lillington, NC. It is a 74 hour, two year associate degree program, with five photonics courses building from the electronics core curriculum. The first year of the program, students’ core classes consist of mainly electronics. The following photonics courses are offered during the second year:
  • Lasers and Applications
  • Photonics Technology
  • Photonics Applications
  • Photonics Project
  • Fiber Optics

Upon graduation, students earn an AAS degree in Laser & Photonics Technology as well as a certificate in Electronics Engineering Technology. Placement rate of CCCC LPT graduates has recently been near 100%, with laser systems and communications companies in the Carolinas and in surrounding states. Feedback from employers about the knowledge, skills and work ethics of LPT grads is very positive. A company who hires many of the graduates commented that, in a recent test given to 600 laser technicians “…all of the CCCC graduates scored in the 90 percentile.”

The LPT program was initiated at CCCC in 1987 by Steve Lympany; today it is led by Gary Beasley. The program facilities include two main classrooms and 7 labs. One lab is for electronics, one lab is for electronics and low power lasers/photonics, four labs are for high power lasers, and one lab is dedicated to fiber optics. Since its inception, several hundred students have graduated and are employed in photonics companies throughout the country. Many graduates have also taken advantage of articulation agreements with several universities, which provide a path for students from the LPT program to continue their education, earning a four year degree with only two additional years.

Recruitment and retention of students are the greatest challenge for the LPT program. Recruitment has improved in recent years due to implementing of OP-TEC strategies to “build the high school pipeline”. Retention has also improved due to the use of the supplemental Math for Photonics materials, developed by OP-TEC and tested by CCCC. (See Dec. 18, 2008 blog post.)

In addition to his role as an OP-TEC model, college mentor, and provider of technical assistance CCCC lead instructor, Gary Beasley, has assisted OP-TEC in the following ways:

  • Reviewed and pilot tested OP-TEC instructional modules.
  • Hosted an OP-TEC Information Workshop last spring.
  • Developed and conducted “Laser Workshops” at CCCC for high school, and middle school, students.
  • Developed and tested lab activities and prepared equipment specifications to support OP-TEC instructional modules.

CCCC’s participation as a Partner College in OP-TEC has provided professional development opportunities for Gary, a leadership role for CCCC in photonics education and has strengthened CCCC’s outreach to high schools through recruitment efforts and on-campus student experiences.

Are you a graduate of CCCC? Tell me about your experience at CCCC. Where are you working now? How did your education at CCCC prepare you for your career?

Contact information for CCCC's LPT Program:
Mr. Gary Beasley
Lead Instructor
gbeasley@cccc.edu
(910) 814-8828
www.cccc.edu/curriculum/majors/lasersphotonics/

Monday, March 2, 2009

Indiana University of Pennsylvania: An OP-TEC Partner College

OP-TEC is a consortium of two year colleges that have well-established photonics programs. These “Partner Colleges” are the models for OP-TEC curricula; they develop and test instructional modules, guides, innovative courses and teaching strategies; and they provide technical assistance to colleges that are planning and initiating new offerings in photonics.


Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) has a two-year campus in Freeport, PA (northwest of Pittsburgh), that offers AAS degrees and transfer opportunities to its baccalaureate programs. A growing photonics industry is emerging in this region, including companies such as II-VI Incorporated, a world leader in laser and optical crystal growth and manufacturing technology; Optical Systems Technology, Inc., a manufacturer of night vision productsoptical instruments and lenses; and Sabeus, Inc., a leading independent developer of fiber optic systems for acoustic sensing, intrusion detection and surveillance applications.

In 2002, IUP launched a comprehensive degree program in Electro-Optics (EO) which offers education/training in EO from associate’s degrees to bachelor’s degrees. The multiple entrance and exit points provide considerable flexibility for young people to pursue technical and academic education in photonics. The first level of the program allows students to complete the 64 credits needed for the associate degrees in EO. After earning an associate’s degree, students are prepared for employment as technicians in the photonics industry.

Students may exit the program at this point or continue to the second level of the program which allows them to transfer the entire 64 credits from their associate degree toward a Bachelor of Science degree in Applied Physics (Electro-Optics Track). After completing their BS Physics, the graduates can enter the workforce into highly-skilled positions in the electro-optics industry.

IUP has signed articulation agreements with local high schools which allow their students to earn up to 15 credits toward the associate degree in EO. IUP is also working with local school districts to expand their dual enrollment opportunities with other high schools.

In addition to his role as an OP-TEC model, college mentor, and provider of technical assistance IUP’s lead EO professor, Dr. Feng Zhou, has assisted OP-TEC in the following ways:

  • Reviewed and pilot tested OP-TEC instructional modules.
  • Tracked the emergence of new technology developments in solid state lighting and solar energy photovoltaics.
  • Developed and conducted summer camps for recruiting high school students; prepared a monograph to describe the program outreach activities and its successes.
  • Designed graphics for use in revising/updating Laser Electro-Optics Technology (LEOT) instructional modules.
  • Served an internship at OP-TEC in the summer of 2008, to develop labs and equipment lists for OP-TEC photonics courses.

IUP’s participation as a Partner College in OP-TEC has provided professional development opportunities for Dr. Zhou, a leadership role for IUP in photonics education and has strengthened IUP’s outreach to high schools through recruitment efforts, on-campus student experiences and summer camps.

Are you a graduate of IUP? Tell me about your experience at IUP. Where are you working now? How did your education at IUP prepare you for your career?

Contact information for IUP EO Program:
Dr. Feng Zhou
Professor of EO
fzhou@iup.edu
ph 724-294-3300 x27

www.iup.edu/physics/