I-Corps L: Interactive Educational Tools for STEM Students to Increase the Understanding of Energy Conversion Devices

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Through the NSF Innovation Corps for Learning Program (I-Corps L), this project will develop ways to increase the scale and impact of educational software for teaching and learning about fuel cells. Fuel cells are very efficient energy conversion devices which could significantly improve the use of clean energy sources. Interactive educational modules were designed, developed, and tested in earlier work at the University of Central Florida. These modules are optimized to educate and train a broad audience which includes K-12, undergraduate and graduate students, as well as engineering professionals to become familiar and better understand the principles of operation of fuel cells. The goal of the proposed scaling and sustaining of educational innovation efforts is to receive and use the support provided by I-Corps Learning program to accelerate the transition of the developed interactive educational software into emerging learning tools; and to increase the impact of this work among different educational institutions and industrial entities.The proposed efforts and development of the software disposition pathways will be built on previously developed educational modules. These modules were tested in a variety of settings including introductory engineering courses, undergraduate engineering thermodynamics and a advance fuel cell systems course. In the I-Corps program, additional end users and potential adopters will be sought among both education entities, such as high schools, charter schools, community colleges, four year undergraduate institutions, as well as universities across the country. With the help of the proposed I-Corps project the educational software will receive additional review and a path that could potentially lead to more widespread adoption will be formulated. Given the important role fuel cells are already playing in global energy systems, the project has the potential to help US students to be well-informed about the opportunities presented by this technology.