AIMS AND CONTENT

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Il corso ha l'obiettivo di fornire una solida conoscenza dei processi fluido-meccanici che possono essere sfruttati per la produzione di energia rinnovabile. Verranno affrontate in particolare la valutazione e la conversione dell'energia potenziale disponible nei corsi d'acqua, negli oceani e in atmosfera

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

Participation in the proposed training activities (lectures, exercises, seminars, workshops, educational visits), individual study and group discussion will allow students to:

- Orient themselves in the current panorama of possible processes of energy production from renewable sources;

- Know the main types of wind turbines in relation to the windiness of the site, assessing the technological and structural features as well as the energy production, and analyze the effectiveness of the installation through the definition of the power curve and the overall production;

- Know how to produce energy from surface water, the main components of hydroelectric plants, the potential for residual exploitation, the opportunities of small plants (mini-hydroelectric) and develop the ability to analyze the potential of a plant based on the hydrological and hydraulic characteristics of a site (flow duration curve, hydraulic jump, etc.) for design purposes.

- Know renewable energy sources related to marine environment such as currents, waves, tides and temperature gradients. To develop the knowledge to carry out assessments of resource availability and usability and for the preliminary design of individual or combined offshore exploitation plants.

- Apply the acquired skills to specific contexts of environmental engineering, discussing the advantages and disadvantages of the applicable solutions.

- Gather and interpret relevant data for the design and management of system for renewable energy production (e.g., data deriving from rain gauge, flow gauge and anemometric measurements) and their processing and interpretation;

- Gather and communicate information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialist and non-specialist audiences, with reference to environmental and socio-economic issues linked with the course topics and having a relevant impact on the territory;

- Develop a collaborative attitude towards working in groups and acquire awareness of their personal learning strategies.

TEACHING METHODS

The module is organised in a series of frontal teaching lectures which include a few practical exercises about the design of sample hydro-power and wind-power production plants. The main notions about the dimensioning methods will be illustrated to the students during the frontal lectures, and detailed course material will be distributed about each part.

For part of the course, groups of students will be formed and the dimensioning of a small-size hydro-power plant will be assigned to each group. Each member of the group will have the time to elaborate individually the given assignment and will then have the possibility to compare the solution with the other members of the same group. At the end of the dimensioning exercise, a representative student per each group will illustrate to the whole class the work done and the obtained results.

The multidisciplinary nature of the teaching module and the fact that it deals with different lecturers encourage dynamic learning that also promotes the acquisition of transversal skills in terms of communication skills, management and integration of skills.

Students who have valid certification of physical or learning disabilities on file with the University and who wish to discuss possible accommodations or other circumstances regarding lectures, coursework and exams, should speak both with the instructor and with Professor Federico Scarpa (federico.scarpa@unige.it  ), the Polytechnic School's disability liaison.

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

The program of the module includes the presentation of the following topics by experienced teachers in the field:

1. Introduction (prof. Lanza, 2 hours)

Course didactic structure, examination modalities, contextualization of contents, overview on environmental issues.

2. Wind potential assessment (prof. Mazzino, 10 hours)

4. Wind turbines  (prof.ssa Pagnini, 16 hours)

Wind turbine typologies, technology, optimal production, estimation of windiness at the site and energy production.

5. Hydropower production (prof. Lanza, 10 hours)

Plant types, hydrological and hydraulic assessment, potential hydropower production and preliminary design.

6. Marine resources (prof. Besio, 12 hours)

Evaluation and exploitation of the resource. Preliminary design of single or combined offshore plants.

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

The teaching material used during the classes will be available on the Aulaweb site. The notes taken during the lessons and the material available on Aulaweb are sufficient for the preparation of the exam.

Examples of additional textbooks to be used as a support and in-depth learning are as follows

- Magela Pereira, G. (2021). Design of Hydroelectric Power Plants – Step by Step (1st ed.). CRC Press. https://doi.org/10.1201/9781003161325

-  “Guidelines for Design of Wind Turbines”. Det Norske Veritas, Copenhagen and Wind Energy Department, Risø National Laboratory, 2002.

- “Le energie rinnovabili”, Andrea Bartolazzi. Hoepli, Milano, 2010.

- “Fundamentals of Ocean Renewable Energy”, Simon Neill & Reza Hashemi, Elsevier, pp. 336-

- “Offshore Energy and Marine Spatial Planning”, Katherine L. Yates & Corey J. A. Bradshaw, CRC Press, pp. 300

TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

Exam Board

GIOVANNI BESIO (President)

DARIO BOVE (President)

FEDERICO CANEPA (President)

LUCA GIOVANNI LANZA (President)

ANDREA MAZZINO (President)

CRISTINA ELIA MOLINER ESTOPIÑAN (President)

LUISA PAGNINI (President)

OMBRETTA PALADINO (President)

LESSONS

LESSONS START

 https://corsi.unige.it/corsi/10720/studenti-orario

Class schedule

The timetable for this course is available here: Portale EasyAcademy

EXAMS

EXAM DESCRIPTION

The final exam consists of a written test with open questions or problems, one per each of the four main topics addressed in the course (assessment of wind production potential, wind turbines, inland hydropower plants, marine hydropower production).

There are 3 exam dates for the 'summer' session (June, July, September) and 2 exam dates for the 'winter' session (January and February). No extraordinary dates are granted outside the periods indicated by the Scuola Politecnica, with the exception of students who have not included educational activities in the curriculum during the current academic year.

ASSESSMENT METHODS

The exam aims to ascertain the ability to analyse specific problems, the skills acquired and the ability to use them to orient oneself in the real-world application.