eering of Engin College Turning ideas into reality
electrical and biomedical engineering
Chair’s Message In many areas of the United States, the electricity delivery system is aging and is reaching the limits of its operational capability due to load increases. Over the last 27 years, the department has kept an active undergraduate and graduate program in the field of power systems. The department is proud of its four specialized labs in the field of power systems operation, analysis, protection and power conversions which are operated by five faculty members who specialize in this area. The department currently offers 12 courses in power systems, energy conversion, renewable energy and smart grid applications. The EBME department has established a new undergraduate EE program with an emphasis on renewable energy. In additions to courses covering the fundamentals of electrical engineering, students have the choice to take courses on power systems, renewable energy and the smart grid. These courses will cover solar, wind, geothermal energy, the economics of renewable energy, as well as smart grid applications. The basic concept of a smart grid is to add monitoring, analysis, control, coordination, and communication systems to the electrical power system in order to improve its efficiency and reduce energy consumption. As part of the smart grid, utilities will install smart meters for remotely measuring and recording the amount of electricity used by customers on a daily basis. The department has recently received funding from NV Energy for a project titled “Smart Meter Testing.” The project enables students to test the latest generation of smart meters and evaluate their performance under a variety of test loads. These advanced meters are yet to be placed into service in Nevada. The technology provides consumer flexibility to economically manage electrical energy use and has the potential to increase the efficiency, reliability, and maintenance of the power system. Dr. Mehdi Etezadi, Chair
The department is also involved with several other renewable energy activities that include three NVREC/DOE funded collaborative projects with UNLV and DRI. A new and exciting senior level course titled “Machine Intelligence and Embedded Design” has been offered in the fall of 2010. Topics will include hardware design of chassis, sensors, motors, motor control and printed circuit board layout, design and fabrication. Additional topics include embedded microprocessor interfacing, implementation and programming algorithms for intelligent autonomous goal seeking. Students will design, construct, program and test a micromouse for the IEEE Region 6 competition.
Recruiting high school students for renewable energy research Through an announcement at various local high schools regarding summer research work at the EBME departments and consultation with advisors at these high schools, professor Mehdi Etezadi and his research team have screened and interviewed several candidates to work on the NVREC/DOE funded research project tilted “Matching Renewable Resources with HVAC Loads”. The two selected students were Niraj Gandhi of McQueen and Jake Enos of Spanish Springs high schools. Jake Enos is a junior at Spanish Springs High School this semester. His chemistry teacher recommended him for this program because of his excellent performance in her class. “I am not sure what I want to study in college, which is why I thought this summer internship would be a great opportunity to learn about all the different things dealt with in electrical engineering, and also what the field of engineering is all about. This program has taught me many things which I am very thankful for. I hope to get more opportunities like this in the future and anyone interested in engineering would be very lucky to have a chance in this program.” Niraj Gandhi is a senior at Robert McQueen High School this semester. His math teacher recommended him for this program for his ability and interests in the math and science field. “I really enjoyed working at the summer internship at UNR. Before this opportunity I had no idea what electrical engineers do, but now after completing this summer internship, I have more knowledge about electrical engineering and with what it entails. For this I am very grateful for the opportunity given to me.”
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Nevada Engineering • Winter 2011