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Sustainable Energy Transition through STEM

Resource Type: Hands-on Activity
Collection: ComSoc

 TryEngineering Hands-on Activity

Sustainable Energy Transition through STEM

Hey, your cell phone helps you make cool TikTok videos and Instagram stories. But do you know you can also use it to save the world? You ask me how? Let us learn about Sustainable Energy Transition then.

Sustainable Energy Transition aims to reduce gas emissions, and to enhance electrification by expanding the use of clean and renewable energy sources such as solar and wind. The use of renewable energy has evolved in recent years due to worldwide efforts to reduce gas emission through government agreements like The Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Governments agreed to provide affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for all. 

The COVID19 pandemic, and the war in Ukraine affected access to energy and so governments started to take steps to end dependence on unreliable energy production. All of us can play a role to ensure access to clean energy through smart technologies. 

Smart Technologies are key players in energy production and consumption. In production, IoT sensors gather data over the current, voltage and power as well as the temperature and humidity of the physical environment surrounding power plants. The management system uses this data to generate information, insights and inferences to maximize their efficiency. For example, they help maintain proper temperature and humidity around transformers, solar cells, and batteries, which increases their lifetimes, and reduces the unnecessary and costly replacements.

Consumers can plays a key role in energy transition by shifting their energy consumption from peak hours. Mostly, during the peak hours the electricity company switches to fossil fuels to cover high demand. By switching-off some home appliances while being in school or office, we as consumers can flatten the energy curve and reduce fossil fuel use. Further, we can shift some of our activities that require electricity to off-peak hours. Electricity companies can provide incentives by reducing the tariffs during the off-peak hours. Smart technologies like IoT provide the consumer with insights on off-peak hours based upon the data gathered on the production and demand sides. The consumer controls their home appliances by switching them on or off.

IoT is a network of smart devices connected to the internet. These smart devices, called microcontrollers, are mostly affordable and consume low power due to their processing units. Microcontrollers can gather data and control other devices. These devices are connected to general inputs/outputs called the GPIO pins. To perform this task, the GPIO pins work in two modes. The input mode gathers data from the directly connected sensors. The output mode controls the connected device, called the actuators, such as a lamps and motors.

Some microcontrollers, such as ESP8266 supersede other microcontrollers due to the embedded WiFi communication module which is the commercial name for the IEEE802.11 standard. Compared to the other communications technologies, WiFi is affordable, easy to deploy and easy to upgrade. ESP6288 sends data through the WiFi to the web server, cloud platform or a mobile app in this demonstration. The consumer can use this setup to remotely control their home appliances.

Topic Areas

  • Wireless
  • Internet of Things (IoT)

Age Range of Students

  • 14-18 years

  • Objective of the Activity

    To introduce high-school students, especially girls, to the social life of technology and to the ways it is related to their daily lives. The exercise will induce student curiosity and interest in STEM, and will help them reimagine other uses of WiFi in an informative but straightforward manner. Students who are already aware of and active in the area of climate change-related issues will find a connection between STEM and their passion. Importantly, students will find ways to contribute to halting climate change.

    They will learn how tasks like switching off a lamp remotely and using a mobile phone could have a huge impact on energy security and ensuring a carbon neutral environment. 

  • Resources/Materials Required

    All the materials are available online on Amazon and the other commercial websites.

    •       ESP8266 Wifi Microchip
    •       Bread Board
    •       Jumper wires, male to male
    •       Resistor 180- 330 ohm is the best choice.
    •       Lamp LED
    •       Mobile phone/computer and WiFi network.

    Video Link

  • Instructions

    1. Create a user account on Blynk: The participants need valid email addresses. Go to the url https://blynk.io/ and click on START FREE. Enter your email address and click on the terms and conditions. The website will send an email. Go to your email box and verify by clicking on the provided link. Then, set your password and click on continue. Then fill with your First and Last name. 
    2. In the bar at the right click on templates > new template > fill the Name of the project  and Hardware ESP8266 then click on Done. Do not forget to save your project by clicking on save on the top right. 
    3. Then click on Data Stream > Virtual pin > fill with the name e.g V0 and click on Create. 
    4. Then Click on Web Dashboard >  drag the Switch from the right side >  click on the setting icon > choose the same Data Stream e.g. V0 > click on show on/off label and write ON and OFF in their corresponding fields and hide widget name to ON. Click on save, and then save in the main Dash Board.
    5. From the Device Info copy the firmware information. It will look like these two lines, #define BLYNK_TEMPLATE_ID “TMPL-Zlz2zpD” #define BLYNK_DEVICE_NAME “LED controlled using ESP”
    6. Download Arduino IDE from the url https://www.arduino.cc/en/software  > from the download options choose the software package depending on your operating system. Click on your .exe file > install > next  > finish. From your search bar write Arduino and you get into the IDE. 
    7. Connect your circuit as in the video. Using the jumper wires connect D4 to the resistor and from the resistor to the anode (long Pin) of the LED. Connect the cathode (short pin) to the GND. Plug ESP8266 using the micro usb and connect the other usb side to the computer.
    8. ESPT8266 board manager installation: Go to the Arduino IDE > file > preferences and paste this url https://arduino.esp8266.com/stable/package_esp8266com_index.json  on the Other Boards > OK. 
    9. Arduino code: go to file > examples > Blynk > Blynk.Edgent > Edgent_ESP8266. Go to https://github.com/nnmali/IEEESTEM from the repository copy the code in the .ino file and paste it in your Arduino code. Then paste the firmware information  instead of the two lines 
    10. Go to tools > board > board manager > write ESP8266 on the search field and click on install. Then go to board >  ESP8266 > NodeMCU 1.0 (ESP-12E Module). From tools > ports > check the port. From tools > serial monitor > from the baud rate choose 115200 to be compatible with the value in the code. Click on upload and wait till the ESP8266 loads to 100, then hard reset the board from the reset button in the board.
    11. Download BlynkIot from the APP store: From the APP store, download Blynk IoT on your mobile phone and sign up using the same procedure as in your computer. Click on the developer mode and create template >  dashboard >  choose switch and follow the same steps as in your computer. Then click on add device > nearby devices and wait till you see the ESP8266 board > click and connect with the device and provide the SSID and Password of the WiFi network in case needed. Enjoy switching the LED ON/OFF from your mobile phone. 
    12. On the computer, go to your Blynk account and go to search, you will see your template > click on it and you can control your LED using the computer. 

  • Acknowledgements

    Thanks to the IEEE Communications Society (ComSoc) and its members who created this hands-on activity.

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