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Thermodynamics and Heat Transfer

DE5301

This online course will help you develop a sound basic knowledge of thermodynamic principles - including gas laws, measurement of pressure and temperature, mass and energy conservation and energy sources in the New Zealand context - and the mechanisms of heat transfer including the uses of heat exchangers.

Availability

Our distance learning courses are offered throughout the year to help you fit study around your work and life commitments.
Courses are offered up to 12 times per year depending on demand and availability of academic staff.
Exact start dates are in the course information pages and in our Enrolment dates page:

Enrolment dates

Cost

  • Course costs can be found on all course pages.  The fees may increase annually.
  • Qualification cost – to give you an idea of how much a qualification may cost in total over the duration of your studies, an approximate cost is provided for many of our qualifications. This is based on the required number of courses to complete the qualification and the average cost of those courses. It does not include annual administration fees, text books and course materials or external exam fees, and is subject to annual course fee increases. 

Credits

Courses are assigned credits depending on how much time and effort is needed to complete their learning outcomes. In general, each credit represents approximately 10 hours of study time.

Delivery method

  • Online – The course materials for online courses are delivered in an online format and all assignments are submitted online.
  • Mixed – These courses are delivered using a mix of online and paper based course materials. This may include receiving paper course materials, submitting  assignments online, or being required to participate in online forums and learning activities.
  • Print Only - The course will be delivered using paper based courses materials, and assignments may need to be submitted in hard copy rather than online. This will depend on the course.

Whether courses are delivered online, on paper or a mixture of both, there may also be components such as workshops, noho marae, work experience and practicum to participate in. To find out what your course involves check the course information page.

EFTS

EFTS stands for equivalent full-time student. An EFTS is the study time required for each course and is used by the Tertiary Education Commission to decide if a course is part-time or full-time. 

One year of full-time study is generally between 0.8 and 1.2 EFTS.

Level

You can tell how hard a course or qualification is by the level it is set at:

  • Levels 1-4 are about the same as secondary school and basic trades training.
  • Levels 5-7 are the same as university study.

Prerequisites

  • Prerequisites are courses that must be completed before another course can be studied. 
  • Co-requisites are courses that can be studied at the same time as another course.

If a course has a specific prerequisite or co-requisite course, it will be listed on the course page under the title 'Prerequisites'. If no courses are listed, check the entry and other requirements under the qualification you are studying for. Some courses require you to have studied at a particular level prior to enrolling.

Student loans

Not all qualifications or students are eligible for student loans. You will need to meet criteria such as studying a minimum number of credits over a specific study period. It is up to you to apply for a student loan via StudyLink - Open Polytechnic does not do this for you.

Information about student loans and eligibility

StudyLink website

Teaching weeks

Teaching weeks is the number of weeks that we teach a course. This differs from the enrolment period, which is based on the course start and end dates.

For example, a 20-week enrolment period will have 16 teaching weeks, followed by four weeks to accommodate marking, any extensions and reassessments, or exams.

Workload

The workload estimate given on a course page is calculated like this:

Number of credits x 10, divided by the number of teaching weeks for the course. The hours will be rounded up to nearest whole number.

Please note, this is a guide only. You may need more or less time for study, and you may also need to do more hours during assessment due dates or exams times.

The course will cover the following:

  • Temperature and pressure measurement
  • Gas laws and gas processes
  • Thermal expansion
  • Mass and energy conservation
  • Change of phase Ice/water/steam
  • Heating of solids, liquids and gases, specific heat
  • Thermal efficiency
  • Refrigeration
  • Heat exchangers
  • Heat Transfer
  • Energy sources, generation in NZ

On successful completion of this course, you should be able to:

  • Demonstrate an understanding of thermodynamics principals for temperature, pressure, gas laws, thermal expansion, conservation of energy, change of phase, heating and thermal efficiency
  • Apply thermodynamics principals to practical applications for air compressors, refrigeration, heat exchanger, and solar collectors
  • Calculate rates of heat transfer through multiple layers and combined modes
  • Evaluate and compare the sources on energy in NZ

Assessment

  • Internal assessment 50%
  • Examination 50%

For more information and a full list of exam times see our examinations page.

Examination information

Assessments for this course include an examination that you need to attend in-person.

Learn more

 

Labs requirements

 A 2 1/2 day Laboratory is a requirement for this course.
The venue for these Laboratories may be either Christchurch, Wellington or Hamilton.

For courses starting in February, laboratories will be held during the term 1 school holidays,  

For courses starting in June, laboratories will be during the term 3 school holidays.

Your course leader will confirm the actual dates within the first week of the course, however you can click here for school holiday dates to give you a guideline for planning.

Computer and internet requirements

To complete this course you will need access to a laptop or desktop computer, reliable broadband internet connection and a data plan able to support online learning such as streaming of videos (including YouTube), downloading content, and writing and submitting online assessments. If you are unsure if your current computer or internet access allows you to complete your online learning with us, please contact us before applying to enrol.

Learn more about our online learning and study tools.

How to enrol

Before enrolling in this course you need to:

  • choose the qualification you will study the course under
  • check the order that courses in the qualification should be studied in the Qualification Structure table. This is in the Choose courses and apply tab on the qualification page.

Work towards

You can do this course as part of these qualifications:

Certificate of Proficiency
Diploma

Course availability over the next 12 months

May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
2025
Jan
Feb

Dates for this course are not finalised yet

Check back later

Enrol by -
Course starts -
Course ends -
To be confirmed
To be confirmed
To be confirmed
Mar
Apr

Availability

Our distance learning courses are offered throughout the year to help you fit study around your work and life commitments.
Courses are offered up to 12 times per year depending on demand and availability of academic staff.
Exact start dates are in the course information pages and in our Enrolment dates page:

Enrolment dates

Cost

  • Course costs can be found on all course pages.  The fees may increase annually.
  • Qualification cost – to give you an idea of how much a qualification may cost in total over the duration of your studies, an approximate cost is provided for many of our qualifications. This is based on the required number of courses to complete the qualification and the average cost of those courses. It does not include annual administration fees, text books and course materials or external exam fees, and is subject to annual course fee increases. 

Credits

Courses are assigned credits depending on how much time and effort is needed to complete their learning outcomes. In general, each credit represents approximately 10 hours of study time.

Delivery method

  • Online – The course materials for online courses are delivered in an online format and all assignments are submitted online.
  • Mixed – These courses are delivered using a mix of online and paper based course materials. This may include receiving paper course materials, submitting  assignments online, or being required to participate in online forums and learning activities.
  • Print Only - The course will be delivered using paper based courses materials, and assignments may need to be submitted in hard copy rather than online. This will depend on the course.

Whether courses are delivered online, on paper or a mixture of both, there may also be components such as workshops, noho marae, work experience and practicum to participate in. To find out what your course involves check the course information page.

EFTS

EFTS stands for equivalent full-time student. An EFTS is the study time required for each course and is used by the Tertiary Education Commission to decide if a course is part-time or full-time. 

One year of full-time study is generally between 0.8 and 1.2 EFTS.

Level

You can tell how hard a course or qualification is by the level it is set at:

  • Levels 1-4 are about the same as secondary school and basic trades training.
  • Levels 5-7 are the same as university study.

Prerequisites

  • Prerequisites are courses that must be completed before another course can be studied. 
  • Co-requisites are courses that can be studied at the same time as another course.

If a course has a specific prerequisite or co-requisite course, it will be listed on the course page under the title 'Prerequisites'. If no courses are listed, check the entry and other requirements under the qualification you are studying for. Some courses require you to have studied at a particular level prior to enrolling.

Student loans

Not all qualifications or students are eligible for student loans. You will need to meet criteria such as studying a minimum number of credits over a specific study period. It is up to you to apply for a student loan via StudyLink - Open Polytechnic does not do this for you.

Information about student loans and eligibility

StudyLink website

Teaching weeks

Teaching weeks is the number of weeks that we teach a course. This differs from the enrolment period, which is based on the course start and end dates.

For example, a 20-week enrolment period will have 16 teaching weeks, followed by four weeks to accommodate marking, any extensions and reassessments, or exams.

Workload

The workload estimate given on a course page is calculated like this:

Number of credits x 10, divided by the number of teaching weeks for the course. The hours will be rounded up to nearest whole number.

Please note, this is a guide only. You may need more or less time for study, and you may also need to do more hours during assessment due dates or exams times.