[NUS Module Review] CM4282: Energy Resources

(INTRODUCTION)

If I'm not wrong, this is the only level 4k module in Chemistry that was oversubscribed and high in demand. And when you see the name of the module, it is pretty much self explanatory as to why this module is popular among students. Sounds simple right? Seems like it's an easy module to coast through without much effort right? Meh, so wrong. I rather be taking CM4212 to be honest, but hey, this module isn't so bad to me so give me a chance to let you see why this module is generally a good module for you to take.

(LECTURERS)

Dr Foo Maw Lin is in charge of this module. Hate him or like him, you cannot doubt how much he does care for this module, the growth of his students and the extra work he put in to help his students understand the concepts. Because he taught this module for 5-6 years, he has adapted his teaching to allow the students to better understand concepts and the applications of the resources of energy. He also encourages students to be independent in their learning and to ask around whenever they have doubts in their mind.

Even though his teaching style doesn't suit my learning style, he is still way better than a lot of Chemistry lecturers, especially in tutorials. His jokes really cuts through the heavy workload during tutorials, thus making the lessons less heavy. Furthermore, I think he makes a huge effort in interacting and getting to know his students. I can safely say that he is one of my favorite Chemistry lecturers.

(EXPANSION OF TOPICS COVERED)

The topics covered include:

• Lithium Ion Battery - Gravimetric/Volumetric Density, Battery Materials, SEI and Safety
• Supercapacitors - Types, Parameters and Materials
• Hydrogen Economy - Pros and Cons, Production, Storage, Alternative Source of Fuel
• Fuel Cells - Types and Properties
• Electricity Generation - Steam/Gas Turbines, Combustion, Nuclear, Wind, Hydro, Tidal and Wave
• Solar Thermal and Photovoltaics - Types and Materials
• Electricity Grid - AC/DC, Transformers and Demand for Electricity
• Biomass - Energy from Biomass, Fatty Acid Methyl Esters and Biofuels
• Cost-Benefit Analysis - Net Present Value and Internal Rate of Returns

Dr Foo Maw Lin will tell you that Energy Resources aren't specifically Organic, Inorganic, Physical or Analytical. It is literally a combination of everything, taking the knowledge and contents taught in CM1111, CM1131 and CM1121 and fitting it into this module. Just by looking at the topics covered, it may seem like its only a few topics. But for me, the depth of each topic is insanely deep, especially the chapters from Lithium Ion Battery to Electricity Generation. Given how deep the topics are, there are lots of things to study and hence lots of time is required to be invested in this module. Nonetheless, the concepts taught are not that tough, so studying these topics are pretty easy. 

(PASSING THE ASSESSMENT)

The grading for the assessments in this module are as follows:

• CA/Mid-terms - 30%
• Finals - 20%
• Newsfeed - 15%
• Poster - 15%
• Presentation - 20%

This year, because of COVID-19, every scheduled test, as well as its weightage, just kept on changing to the point that even I felt so lost in what the actual weightage actually is. The reason why the mid-term weightage was so high was because it was tested before the COVID-19 situation struck hard. The finals eventually became a MCQ quiz and thus the low weightage for finals. Without COVID-19, the finals would have a higher weightage and it will definitely not be a MCQ kind of test. 

You must be wondering what are newsfeeds all about. It is basically selecting a scientific article and commenting about it. Groups are required to select a topic to research about and the Newsfeed articles must be based on the chosen topic. The presentation would be based on the Newsfeed articles and the poster would be based on the presentation done. And perhaps the reason why this module is a lot of work is because of the different components that you are required to work on. Nonetheless, it;s certainly doable if you put your mind into it. It's certainly less tedious than writing a 3000 word essay commenting on a literature article.

(SCHEDULE)

Similar to all Chemistry modules, there will be two two-hour lectures per week. Dr Foo usually exceeds past the 1.5 hour mark due to the heavy content taught during lessons. So be warned that lessons can end at the 1 hour 45 minute mark at best. There will also be a one-hour tutorial per week. Dr Foo will break the students up into smaller groups so that he can assign the tutorial questions to the group for them to present during the lessons. 

(EXPERIENCE AND FINAL GRADING)

Talk about tiring; this module was at 8am and waking up was no easy feat for me. But for the earlier part of the year, when COVID have not struck yet, live lectures were carried out and I'm usually not a fan of webcasted lectures due to my "fast game" mentality. So I sucked it up and dragged myself to school for this. 

The lecture hall was pretty much filled with students, with little to no seats that are left unfilled. Sigh, the good old times when COVID didn't strike yet. But anyways, lessons were pretty much taught well by Dr Foo. I wouldn't say that they were the most interesting content that I've ever learnt, but they were certainly an insight that I've never explored in Chemistry that I would like to know more; hence I took this module. That kinda created the drive for me to focus and not sleep (as much) during lectures. 

We were eventually asked to group ourselves for the upcoming project that we were required to do. This included the Newsfeed, Poster and Presentation. Have to say that we kinda left everything to the last minute to accomplish, but when it mattered we delivered. Thankfully, the presentation happened after COVID struck so we ended up recording and sending it to Dr Foo.

The first CA was literally a good and bad CA for me. It was a good CA because most of the stuff was manageable/easy to do. I was pretty confident of doing well in it, until I realised that I failed to do a simple task properly that potentially cost me more marks than I could've ever imagined; balancing an equation properly. I felt like an absolute failure after realising that improper balancing of the chemical equation would result in me losing a bombshell of marks that would've secured a possible stellar result at the end. Alas, it was not meant to be, but I still managed to score decently well hah!

The finals was a pain; 20 MCQs in 1 hour. Sounds doable right? The options were so close to one another that either one of it could be the answer. Hence, to say, the MCQs were very tricky all round. Nonetheless, I did pretty decent in it yet again. Sadly, there was barely any tea to talk about for this module.

Oh, Dr Foo thought that my presentation was delivered pretty impressively. I guess GET1008 paid off pretty well eh! Hehe...

(CONCLUSION AND TIPS)

I think this module is generally a very popular module that is taken by people who are interested in clean energy or the environment in general or because the module title seems less daunting than the others. Nonetheless, you are likely to face a batch of fierce competition. So ideally, it is highly recommended by me that you take this only if you have  a strong interest in it.

Otherwise, be ready for the rigor of this content-packed module. Study the contents often and make your own simplified notes for this. It will definitely help in the studying process. Knowing Dr Foo, he will like to set questions involving weird content found in the corners of your notes. So study everything and leave nothing out even if he tells you that a certain part isn't important, because usually it is.

Ratings out of 5⭐:

• Should you take this module - Take this module if you are interested in clean energy and the environment, If not, let other people who are more interested in energy to take this module due to its usual over-subscription. Do also note that this module requires lots of effort and NOT a "free pass" module despite its name
• Degree of Difficulty - ⭐⭐
• Effort Required - ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Timetable Impact - ⭐⭐⭐

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