Module Review: EE2022/EE2029/EE3506C Intro to Electrical Energy Systems

Introduction 

It is a 3 MC core module (EE2029) and wasn't mandatory for previous batches. The syllabus should be similar but with a slight reduction in content and its always conducted by either Prof Jimmy, Sahoo or Sangit. Given that the coronavirus measures will probably apply to 20/21 Sem 1 students, same parts pertaining to it maybe useful. 

Coronavirus changes and lesson format

Compared to other EE outercores, this module has the best lesson format. The pre-COVID-19 format is 3 hours of lectures cum tutorials once every week. And it's recorded too. Due to the coronavirus, the format of the module changed drastically. The original midterm and the two class tests were converted to Luminus quizzes (20%) and one homework assignment (5%) respectively. A lecture test (5%) did take place though. The final paper became an open book MCQ exam (50%). The laboratory component (10%) and the research paper on renewable energy (10%) still stands. I think we are kinda lucky as this module does not usually allow cheatsheet and have many formulas to memorise. Thanks to the open book format, it made our lives significantly easier. I must admit, I partially neglected this module because lessons were recorded and HBL really does make me lazy. I left everything to the last few days but managed to pull through. I will say this module is probably the easiest out of all the level 3000 outer core modules offered and majority of EE students will take it. One interesting history is it was previously a core module as EE2022 for many years and became optional with my batch. And now it's going to be a core module again and re-branded as EE2029. 

Part 1: Dr Sangit

There are two parts to this module. Part one is taught by Dr Sangit. He practices flipped classroom format, so you have to watch pre-recorded videos before attending the live lectures. The first topic is an introduction of how Singapore's energy market work (i.e. open electricity market etc) and how electricity bills are calculated. This may seem trivial, but these has appeared in past exams. After that is where the real fun begins. You learn about reactive and complex power, AC power, three phase systems and renewable energy systems. The topic on power will be confusing as there are many twists and they all seems similar. The rest were manageable as long you practice in tutorials. You will have to write a short paper on either wind or solar power and its peer graded. 

We had a class test (5%) that took place before the coronavirus pandemic exploded. The test covered the first three topics. Regrettably, I did not revise much and blanked out during the test, so I wrote off the 5% as a donation. :( There was another class test scheduled, but thanks to the coronavirus, it was converted to a take home assignment (5%). There were two questions which was randomised based on the matriculation number so no two students will have the same answers.

Part 2: Dr Sahoo

The second part is taught by Dr Sahoo and the content is easier. He took last year's physical lecture recordings and repackaged it as video lessons. There are live QnA and tutorial sessions where students can attend to clear doubts. Topics include transmission lines, transformers and induction motor. Transformers and induction motors are analogous in nature, so they are kind of similar.

The lab (10%) was on transformers and it was a mad rush as we were required to submit the report on the spot. Due to the time constrains, none of us could finish it on time. But again, thanks to coronavirus, the lab format was changed midway to reading the measurement data and leaving the lab ASAP due to the small lab size and safe distancing measures in place. We were allowed to submit our lab report online. 

Final exam

For finals, there are many formulas out there, so you need to be clear on which ones to use. Under normal circumstances, no cheat sheets are allowed and no formula list is provided, so according to seniors, a lot of memory work is required. But due to the coronavirus, everything is now open book, open internet. Though finals were MCQs, you need to write your workings down and upload it online. For True/False questions, you need provided an explanation for your answers. Despite being MCQs, some questions were challenging given the time constraint. I randomly chose answers for difficult questions. Many of my friends also struggled to finish everything. However, results day was a pleasant surprise. The bell curve wasn't as steep I guess and was very satisfied with my final grade. :) 

My rating:

Difficulty: 2.5/5

Workload: 2/5

Teaching staff: 4/5 

Overall: 4/5

Expected grade: B+

Final grade: Above B+