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Sustainable Systems Engineering
300
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Introduction to Sustainable Systems Design
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Introduction to the fundamentals of sustainable systems engineering design. Projects focus on design for justice, centering on the voices and habitats of those who are directly impacted by the outcomes of the design process. Critical thinking and problem-solving skills development; systems thinking, sustainability metrics and assessment tools including introductions to material flow analysis and material budget, carbon footprint analysis, LCA, environmental health risk assessment, and product development for a circular economy.
Course Hours:
3 units; (2-4)
Prerequisite(s):
Engineering 200 and Sustainable Systems Engineering 301.
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Sustainable Systems Engineering
301
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Sustainable Systems Ecology
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Introduction to macroecology for sustainable systems, including theory, tools, and techniques. An introduction to systems thinking and program theme areas through design projects and campus as a learning lab workshops. Topics may include use of digital tools such as computer aided design, data visualization and 3D printing, field notes and mapping, and graphic, oral and written communication for technical reporting.
Course Hours:
1.5 units; 18 hours
Prerequisite(s):
Engineering 200.
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Sustainable Systems Engineering
303
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Signals, Instrumentation, and Data
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An introduction to essentials of instrumentation, measurement, and data analysis in sustainable systems. Continuous and discontinuous signals, analog and digital measurements, sampling, and analog to digital conversion. Introduction to data collection using embedded systems and data analysis techniques. Topics will be reinforced through weekly hands-on labs with examples in relevant areas of sustainable systems.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-3)
Prerequisite(s):
Engineering 200, 225 and Digital Engineering 233.
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Sustainable Systems Engineering
307
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Numerical Methods and Computing Tools for Sustainable Systems Engineering
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The theory and use of numerical computational procedures to develop sustainable engineering solutions. Introduction to computing tools in engineering. Methods for solving engineering problems using computing tools for the solution of multi-variable linear and non-linear equations; polynomial curve-fitting; single and multi-variable integration; function optimization; differential equations. Data representation and visualization.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-2T)
Prerequisite(s):
Engineering 233 or Digital Engineering 233.
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Sustainable Systems Engineering
311
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Engineering Thermodynamics and Fluid Mechanics
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The fundamentals of fluid mechanics, thermodynamics, and heat transfer required to analyze energy systems, including wind and hydro turbines, solar thermal processes, and power cycles. The first and second laws of thermodynamics with emphasis on efficiency measures along with the interaction between heat flow and second law efficiency are considered. Fluid mechanics topics include control volume analysis of typical fluid systems, the application of the conservation equations of axial and angular momentum and energy and application to wind and hydro turbines and pumping systems. Laminar and turbulent flow and their effects on fluid forces and important concepts like boundary layers are covered and a brief introduction to fluid measurements is given.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-1.5T-3/2)
Prerequisite(s):
Engineering 201 or 212; and Mathematics 275 or Applied Mathematics 217.
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Sustainable Systems Engineering
315
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Engineering Economics and Decision Making for Sustainability
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Knowledge and tools to assess broader performance of engineered systems; evaluation of trade-offs among economic, environmental, and social criteria; concept of cost benefit analysis beyond financial analysis; social discount rate; valuation of externalities; market failure; input-output analysis including material and environmental impact extensions; valuation of ecosystem services and natural capital; limits to growth; efficiency and equity.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-1.5T)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Sustainable Systems Engineering 315 and Engineering 209 will not be allowed.
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Sustainable Systems Engineering
400
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Design of Sustainable Systems
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Team-based design applying conceptual and preliminary design principles to sustainable systems engineering projects. Use of quantitative tools to support the design. Application of the design process to open-ended projects that encompass the subdisciplines of sustainable systems engineering. Effective oral and written communication of the design proposal through engineering visualizations, technical reports and models.
Course Hours:
3 units; (2-3)
Prerequisite(s):
Sustainable Systems Engineering 300 and 301.
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Sustainable Systems Engineering
401
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Remote Northern Sustainable Systems
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Learn key ideas and strategies related to environmentally sustainable community development with a focus on food, water, and energy. Through pattern and data mapping, research and data analysis, and site visits, the course explores community needs and the challenges of environmentally conscious living. The renewable energy systems at the field station will be investigated along with energy usage. Learners delve into the common misconceptions that lead to unsustainable social practices and how to counteract these fallacies through community education and engagement.
Course Hours:
3 units; (100 hours)
Prerequisite(s):
Sustainable Systems Engineering 300.
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Sustainable Systems Engineering 401 and 403 will not be allowed.
Notes:
This is a two-week field camp held at the Arctic Institute of North America’s Kluane Lake Research Station. Students will be assessed a supplementary fee to cover the costs of the field camp.
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Sustainable Systems Engineering
403
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Northern Sustainable Systems
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Learn key ideas and strategies related to environmentally sustainable community development with a focus on net zero communities and geo-powered communities. Through pattern and data mapping, research and data analysis, and site visits, the course explores community needs and the challenges of environmentally conscious living. The renewable energy systems at various sites and integration into local and community energy networks will be explored.
Course Hours:
3 units; (100 hours)
Prerequisite(s):
Sustainable Systems Engineering 300.
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Sustainable Systems Engineering 403 and 401 will not be allowed.
Notes:
This is a two-week field-based course. Students will be assessed a supplementary fee to cover the costs of various field excursions.
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Sustainable Systems Engineering
409
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Regenerative Design Principles and Indigenous Knowledge Systems
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Explores principles of regenerative design and systems thinking through an Indigenous Knowledge Systems lens, whole systems thinking to create resilient and equitable systems that integrate the needs of society with the integrity of nature. Topics explored are grounded in Indigenous methodologies and epistemologies and explore Indigenous Knowledge and the intersection of sustainability science.
Course Hours:
1.5 units; 18 hours
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Sustainable Systems Engineering
463
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Systems Modelling, Simulation, and Analysis
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Introduces a systems thinking approach for modelling engineering and urban systems with an emphasis on sustainability. With the complex, interdependent, and non-linear nature of real-world problems, this course presents dynamics modelling techniques from societal, environmental, and economical perspectives. The course will also enable students to perform modelling and simulation of complex systems applied to climate change, energy and environment, transportation policy, infectious disease modelling, natural resource management, and urban dynamics. Complex systems characterized by feedback structure and accumulation effects, causal loop diagrams, stock and flows, delay loops, systems behaviour, instability and oscillation will be discussed. Students will learn to use simulation models on case studies to develop conceptual and modelling skills for the design and analysis of engineering and sustainability systems in a dynamic world.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-2)
Prerequisite(s):
Engineering 225 and 349.
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Sustainable Systems Engineering
511
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Food, Agriculture, and Biomass Systems
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Resource requirements, ecological impacts, and sustainability for food, agriculture, and biomass systems. Methods of modelling and analysis: food production capacity, foodshed analyses, life cycle assessment, and system dynamics and integrated modelling. Topics may also include policy-related modelling, renewable sources and thermodynamics of biomass, ecological, social, health, political, legal, and economic dimensions of food, agriculture, and biomass.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-2)
Prerequisite(s):
Sustainable Systems Engineering 463.
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Sustainable Systems Engineering
519
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Special Topics in Sustainable Systems Engineering
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Advanced topics in Sustainable Systems Engineering.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-2)
Prerequisite(s):
Consent of the Department.
MAY BE REPEATED FOR CREDIT
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Sustainable Systems Engineering
579
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Distributed Energy Sources/Remote Systems
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An introduction to distributed small energy systems, such as hydropower, marine and wind turbines, and photovoltaics, as components of remote systems providing power for communities and other applications too far from the electricity grid to be easily connected. The design of these systems will be considered through the need for storage to ensure continuity of supply and will use specialized software developed for this purpose. System control will be investigated, along with modelling of the electrical and additional loads, such as greenhouses or containerized hydroponics systems, water, and wastewater treatment.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-2)
Prerequisite(s):
Energy and Environment Engineering 575.
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Sustainable Systems Engineering
581
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Energy Systems Modelling
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The complexity of modern energy systems driven by rapid changes in the underlying cost of resources, advances in technology, and environmental pressures. Students will be introduced to practical tools to model and optimize energy systems from technical, social, and policy perspectives. Systems considered in the course will range in scale from regional to national and involve a range of energy vectors. We will examine couplings between different sectors of the energy system, including impacts of electrification of transportation and residential heating. The evolving interaction between electricity systems and more general energy use will be highlighted.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-2)
Prerequisite(s):
Sustainable Systems Engineering 463 and Electrical Engineering 487.
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Sustainable Systems Engineering
589
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Industrial Ecology
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The philosophy behind the concept of Industrial Ecology is the focus on the understanding of interactions between technical, economic, social, and ecological systems and processes. The course aims at presenting the developments in research and application in the field of Industrial Ecology and discussing its role in strategic sustainable development both at the local and global scale with a focus on urban and industrial systems. This course equips students with systems perspective of understanding the implications of the decisions they make at different levels in practicing their profession and acting as consumers. Emphasis is given to understanding how environmental assessment and improvements are carried out with support from systems analytical methods such as material flow analysis, risk analysis, life cycle analysis, energy analysis, cost benefit analysis, and eco-efficiency analysis.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-2)
Prerequisite(s):
Sustainable Systems Engineering 463 and Energy and Environment, Engineering 503.
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Sustainable Systems Engineering
591
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Advanced Renewable Energy Systems
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Non-carbon energy generation technologies: solar-thermal and concentrated solar power, geothermal, and biomass, and their integration with wind and solar-photovoltaics in electricity systems that may have significant storage. Technologies using a heated working fluid working in cycles whose optimum performance is studied. Consideration is given to the resources needed for these technologies, their planning, their technical status, and future development. The use of geothermal and other technologies for space heating will also be studied.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-2)
Prerequisite(s):
Energy and Environment Engineering 575.
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Sustainable Systems Engineering
595
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Sustainable Materials
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Comprehensive, systems-focused basis for selecting materials in new uses or as more sustainable alternatives; more eco-efficient alternatives, including technologies to reduce material intensity, renewably sourced materials, CO2 absorbing materials, nanotechnology applications for sustainable materials, recyclable materials and material solutions inspired by nature (biomimetic).
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-2)
Prerequisite(s):
3 units from Engineering 317, Mechanical Engineering 317 or Civil Engineering 317.
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COURSES OF INSTRUCTION