Power and Process Engineering

This course familiarizes students with the actual operation of auxiliary equipment such as turbines, pumps and boilers found in a typical small heating or industrial steam plant. As part of their course work, students will trace out the steam, water and condensate lines in the steam lab area, and familiarize themselves with the boiler layouts. As a group, students will start up boilers and auxiliary equipment including deaerators, pumps, turbines and generators. The course includes various plant tours.
Prerequisite(s):

• No prerequisites are required for this course.

This course provides the theoretical knowledge of processes that make up systems in various types of power plants. Topics in this course include chemistry terminology as related to power plants, and the principles and types of combustion.
Prerequisite(s):

• No prerequisites are required for this course.

This course provides students with fundamental knowledge and skill in drafting. Learning activities include applying basic drafting skills, including creating piping drawings.
Prerequisite(s):

• No prerequisites are required for this course.

This course introduces boiler design, development, and operation, including boiler types, terminology and components. Students will become familiar with the operating processes of typical power plants and other aspects of operation such as plant safety and WHMIS, high pressure boiler parts and fittings, and the high pressure boiler operation Act & Regulations.
Prerequisite(s):

• No prerequisites are required for this course.

This course teaches the basic skills necessary to carry out common maintenance tasks in a power plant. This course takes a very hands-on approach with plenty of time devoted to completing shop projects, including welding, lathe operation, drilling and tapping holes, soldering, electrical wiring, precision measurements, and pump maintenance.
Prerequisite(s):

• No prerequisites are required for this course.

This course is designed to give students an understanding of power plant controls and measuring instruments. The course covers pneumatic, electrical, electronic and computer control. Students will become familiar with theoretical foundations of instrumentation and control principles such as pressure, flow, level and temperature sensing and control, boiler burner management, boiler combustion and water level control. Through various learning activities, students will have the opportunity to apply their knowledge to computerized control operations as they relate to power plant operation.
Prerequisite(s):

• No prerequisites are required for this course.

This course is designed to give students the electrical skills needed to work as a Power Engineer. The course will cover basic electricity, and electrical problem solving. It also prepares the students for POWR 2220 (Technical Electricity 2). Course topics include atomic theory, electrical circuit fundamentals, and circuit analysis.
Prerequisite(s):

• No prerequisites are required for this course.

This course is designed to give students the mathematical skills needed for their studies in Power Engineering. The course provides a foundation of math knowledge that students will carry over to POWR 2221. The course topics include a review of fundamental algebra, basic geometry, and an introduction to trigonometry.
Prerequisite(s):

• No prerequisites are required for this course.

POWR 1122 introduces applied mechanics and thermodynamics and establishes their relevance in the field of power engineering. The course is divided into two sections: Applied Mechanics, and Thermodynamics. Topics in Mechanics include units, accuracy & precision, trigonometry, and statics. Topics in Thermodynamics include thermodynamic properties, the energy equation, and working fluid. This course prepares students for Applied Physics 2.
Prerequisite(s):

• No prerequisites are required for this course.

This course continues from POWR 1100, and familiarizes students with the actual operation oand maintenance of auxiliary equipment such as blow down tanks, soot blowers, heat exchangers, and water softeners found in a typical small heating or industrial steam plant. As part of their course work, students will perform start-up procedures for feed water systems, boilers, and associated equipment. Students will also apply safety practices to these procedures. The course includes plant tours.
Prerequisite(s):

• 50% in POWR 1100

This course continues from POWR 1101 and discusses the theoretical knowledge of processes that make up systems in various types of power plants. Discussion of the processes involved in the operation of typical power plants includes: water treatment, waste water, treatment, and pollution abatement.
Prerequisite(s):

• 50% in POWR 1101

POWR 2203 focusses on the processes and systems used in various types of power plants. The course continues from Power Plant Theory 1. Topics covered include pumps and air compressors, refrigeration, engines such as steam and gas turbines as well as internal combustion engines, and all components of heating boilers such as heating systems, fittings and burners. Students will consider both the set up and the operation of different heating systems.
Prerequisite(s):

• 50% in POWR 1103

This course is a continuation of POWR 1105. It prepares students to carry out the routine maintenance duties expected of a Fourth Class Power Engineer.This course takes a very hands-on approach with plenty of time devoted to completing shop projects. Topics include braze and arc welding, methods used to control the distortion of steel, bearings, and Babbitts. Hands-on projects started in POWR 1105 are completed in POWR 2205.
Prerequisite(s):

• 50% in POWR 1105

This course continues from POWR 1106, and is designed to deepen students' understanding of power plant controls and measuring instruments. The course covers pneumatic, electrical, electronic and computer control. Students will become familiar with theoretical foundations of instrumentation and control principles such as pressure, flow, level and temperature sensing and control, boiler burner management, boiler combustion and water level control. Through various learning activities, students will have the opportunity to apply their knowledge to computerized control operations as they relate to power plant operation.
Prerequisite(s):

• 60% in POWR 1106

This course teaches skills needed to write all types of business correspondence. Students consider the principles and strategies that underpin effective workplace communication, such as clarity of purpose, meeting of readers' needs, and the appropriateness of context. Students gain practice planning, drafting and revising emails, memos and letters, as well as job applications and resumes, the use of graphics and the writing of procedures and instructions.
Prerequisite(s):

• No prerequisites are required for this course.

This course is designed to give students the electrical skills needed to work as a Power Engineer. The course will cover electrical problem-solving and introduce electrical machines and devices found in industrial plants. Course topics include work, energy and power, batteries, and conductors and insulation.
Prerequisite(s):

• 60% in POWR 1120

This course is designed to continue developing students' mathematical skills for their studies in Power Engineering. The course topics include trigonometry, factors and factoring, exponents and radicals, systems of linear equations, exponential and logarithmic functions, and complex numbers.
Prerequisite(s):

• 60% in POWR 1121

The course will introduce applied mechanics and thermodynamics and establish their relevance in the field of power engineering. Topics in Mechanics include dynamics and the strength of materials. Topics in thermodynamics include steam power plants, efficiency, heat exchangers, perfect gases, and combustion.
Prerequisite(s):

• 60% in POWR 1122

This course builds on the foundational knowledge covered in POWR 1120. The course covers solid state devices, electronic circuits and vacuum tubes as used in industry today. Students will encounter such topics as diodes, filter circuits, resistors, transistors, and electron tubes.
Prerequisite(s):

• POWR 1120

This course teaches practical techniques for planning, selecting, organizing and presenting information for readers in the workplace. It covers audience analysis, information gathering and manipulation, and the structure, style and format elements of documents.
Prerequisite(s):

• No prerequisites are required for this course.

This course introduces students to the fundamental principles of thermodynamics and demonstrates how the theory is applied in power engineering practice. Some exercises require students to use a calculator. Topics covered include heat, work and systems; laws of thermodynamics; energy conservation; fluid flow; liquids, vapour and gases; reversibility of some processes; and the heat engine cycle.
Prerequisite(s):

• No prerequisites are required for this course.

This course covers theoretical knowledge required to understand the systems, processes and operation of various types of power plants, and prepares the student for the certification examination. Topics covered include plant safety, safety legislation and codes (WHMIS); administration; combustion; piping; types of plants; instrumentation; boiler construction, parts and fittings; boiler operation and control, including legislation and regulations.
Prerequisite(s):

• 60% in POWR 2203

This course is an introduction to fluid mechanics and its relevance in power engineering. The course covers the fundamental principles of fluid mechanics and shows the student how these principles are used to design simple hydraulic components. Classes present concepts, theory and application, and students work with practical examples that require the use of a calculator. Two laboratory sessions examine how well the theoretical analysis of fluid dynamics describes what is observed in practice. Topics included are fluid properties, fluid statics, fluid dynamics, energy losses, and flow measurement.
Prerequisite(s):

• No prerequisites are required for this course.

This course teaches the skills necessary to carry out the common maintenance tasks in a power plant. This course is an extension of the basic skills taught in Power Engineer Plant Maintenance courses (POWR 1105/2205). Topics covered include a safety refresher and the use of hand tools to disassemble and rebuild various types of equipment.
Prerequisite(s):

• POWR 2205

The course introduces relevant metallurgy subjects to power engineering students. The lectures cover topics dealing with properties and applications of metallic and non-metallic materials, metal structures, metal specifications, methods used to monitor and control corrosion, and procedures for weld inspection.
Prerequisite(s):

• No prerequisites are required for this course.

​POWR 3307 is designed to train 2nd Year Power and Process Engineering students in simulated thermal power plant operations and Distributed Control Systems. This includes plant start-up, shutdown, emergency operation, troubleshooting, and energy conservation. As stated in the Application for Third Class Power Engineer’s certificate of qualification (B.C. Safety Standards Act): ​“A one-time, three-month credit towards the qualifying time requirement will be granted to you, if you have received boiler plant computer simulation training at an educational facility approved by a provincial safety manager.”​
Prerequisite(s):

• 60% in POWR 2200 and 60% in POWR 2203 and 60% in POWR 2206
• or 4th Class Power Engineering Certification.

This course is an introduction to applied mechanics and its relevance in power engineering. The course covers the fundamental principles of applied mechanics and shows the student how these principles are used to design simple mechanical components. Topics covered include problems in applied mechanics, basic principles of statics, coplanar concurrent and nonconcurrent force systems, friction, and rectilinear and curvilinear motion. Students work with practical examples that require the use of a calculator.
Prerequisite(s):

• No prerequisites are required for this course.

On this practicum, power engineering students become familiar with the actual operation of boilers, turbines, pumps, air compressors, and other auxiliary and pressure vessel equipment typically found in heating plant or industrial steam plants. This course teaches in greater depth the material taught in the Power Engineer Plant Training courses (POWR 1100/2200). Students will go on various field trips to relevant industrial and commercial plants in the local area, and complete assignments that discuss the operation and maintenance of steam plant lab equipment.
Prerequisite(s):

• POWR 2200

This course introduces the power engineering student to AC and DC electrical machines and devices found in industrial plants. This course is an extension of the basic skills taught in 4th Class Power Engineer Technical Electricity courses (POWR 1120/2220). Topics covered include DC generators and motors, AC theory and circuits, transformers, and 3-phase induction motors.
Prerequisite(s):

• 60% in POWR 2220

This course builds on the information covered in POWR 3301 (Technical Communication 1). Hands-on methods give students skills in writing and presenting technical information, including descriptions, specifications, instructions and procedures for personnel in the workplace.
Prerequisite(s):

• 60% in POWR 3301

This course is divided into 2 modules: Thermal Engineering and Heat Transfer. Module 1 - Thermal Engineering: A continuation of POWR 3302, this module shows how thermodynamic principles are relevant in power engineering, and demonstrates how the theory is applied in power engineering practice. Some exercises require students to use a calculator. Topics covered include steam cycles, nozzles, rotodynamic machinery, combustion, positive displacement machines, refrigeration and psychrometry. Module 2 - Heat Transfer: This module introduces students to the fundamentals of heat transfer and provides the necessary theoretical and practical tools to solve related engineering problems. Topics covered include heat conduction, heat convection, heat flow dynamics and heat exchangers.
Prerequisite(s):

• 60% in POWR 3302

As a continuation of POWR 3303, Power Plant Theory 3, this course prepares the power engineering student to operate power plant equipment within the scope of the Third Class Power Engineer's Certificate. Topics covered include: heating and air conditioning; lubrication and bearings; steam turbines, gas turbines, and gas combustion engines; air compression and refrigeration; pumps, welding, and water treatment.
Prerequisite(s):

• 60% in POWR 3303

This course prepares power engineering students for a management role in a small to medium size power plant. Topics covered include plant organization, training, and safety; administration techniques; records, supervision, and personnel; scheduling, estimating, and report writing; interest, equivalence, and present worth methods; economy studies; and budgeting and labour relations.
Prerequisite(s):

• No prerequisites are required for this course.

As a continuation of POWR 3305, Power Plant Maintenance 3, this course gives students opportunity to demonstrate the skills necessary to carry out the routine maintenance duties expected of a Third Class Power Engineer. Topics covered include identifying tools that a proper power house tool crib should hold, auditing and rebuilding traps, and maintaining the parts inventory. The course includes a one week (30 hr) intensive session in the use of arc welding, cutting torch and brazing equipment.
Prerequisite(s):

• 60% in POWR 3305

This course introduces the subject of stress and its effect on material. Students develop a working knowledge of the results of applying loads to non-rigid bodies, and develop analysis and problem-solving skills by applying fundamental principles of the mechanics of materials. Exercises include constructing free body diagrams and solving stress analysis problems using a calculator. Topics covered include design properties, design of members under direct stress, axial deformation and thermal stress, torsional shear stress and torsional deformation, shearing forces and bending moments in beams, centriodes and moments of inertia of areas, stress due to bending, and shearing stress in beams, pressure vessels and connections.
Prerequisite(s):

• POWR 3308

​POWR 4407 is designed to train 2nd Year Power and Process Engineering students in simulated thermal power plant operations and Distributed Control Systems. This includes plant start-up, shutdown, emergency operation, troubleshooting, and energy conservation. As stated in the Application for Third Class Power Engineer’s certificate of qualification (B.C. Safety Standards Act): “A one-time, three-month credit towards the qualifying time requirement will be granted to you, if you have received boiler plant computer simulation training at an educational facility approved by a provincial safety manager.”​
Prerequisite(s):

• 60% in POWR 3307

This course prepares power engineering students to maintain mechanical heating/ventilation systems. Topics covered include HVAC system safety, psychrometrics, forced air heating systems, hydronic heating systems, compression systems, air conditioning systems, and refrigeration auxiliaries.
Prerequisite(s):

• No prerequisites are required for this course.

This course prepares power engineering students to maintain mechanical heating/ventilation systems. Topics covered include HVAC system safety, psychrometrics, forced air heating systems, hydronic heating systems, compression systems, air conditioning systems, and refrigeration auxiliaries.
Prerequisite(s):

• No prerequisites are required for this course.

This practicum continues from POWR 3309. In this practicum, students gain greater familiarity with the actual operation of boilers, turbines, pumps, air compressors, and other auxiliary and pressure vessel equipment typically found in heating plant or industrial steam plants. This practical knowledge allows students to begin troubleshooting problems that occur in these settings. Students go on various field trips to relevant industrial and commercial plants in the local area, and complete assignments related to operation and maintenance of steam plant lab equipment.
Prerequisite(s):

• POWR 3309

This course follows POWR 3320 and covers 3-phase AC circuits and 3-phase electrical machines and devices found in industrial plants. Topics covered include 3-phase induction motors, alternators, synchronous motors, single phase motors, maintenance of rotating AC machinery, and motor control centres.
Prerequisite(s):

• 60% in POWR 3320