<p>I'm very interested in renewable energy, and was wondering what field of engineering I should major in - Chemical? Material engineering? I'm a rising freshman btw.</p>
<p>Thanks</p>
<p>Yes, Chemical.</p>
<p>Chemical engineering and Materials Engineering both have tons of opportunities in renewable energy. You'll find both working on solar cells, though I imagine you'd find more materials people working on alternative sources like thermoelectrics.</p>
<p>Are those two the prime majors for working with renewable energy? What about ElectricalE/MechE?</p>
<p>MatSci, EE, ChemE, MechE, Physics are all applicable to renewable energy. It really depends on which energy technology you want to work on. If you want to work on Biofuels, do biology. If you want to work on solar cells, do materials science or EE (or chemE?). If you want to do wind, MechE might be best. Physics will provide a good background for all of these fields. EE might be particularly good, because you will have a better understanding of how energy systems hook up to the grid.</p>
<p>For what it’s worth, I work on solar cells, and I’m majoring in engineering physics (a hybrid of EE and physics).</p>
<p>thnx for the answers guys. what about geothermal?</p>
<p>I think geothermal power works through thermoelectrics, which would likely be the realm of materials science.</p>
<p>Environmental Engineering is good for low-industry renewables; it’s not too clearly defined, but with slight specialization, would appear to work well for solar cells and biofuels (areas under research). Chemical engineering is applicable to biofuels, some solar variations, and better chemical processes in fossil fuel plants (cleaning up the coal, etc.). Mechanical is good for anything with a turbine (hydroelectric, wind, some biomass, nuclear if you consider that renewable). Material could create better wind turbine materials, if the goal was to reduce mass/increase strength.</p>
<p>RacinReaver, I think geothermal doesn’t use thermoelectrics. Rather, it uses heat from the Earth to heat some sort of fluid and that fluid drives a generator. Mechanical engineering or physics might be best for this application (driving fluids, heat pumps, etc.).</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Looks like you’re right!</p>