Technical Details
This is a road that pays for itself! In 2010 liquid asphalt cost $100,000 a ton! This is an expense that we cant keep paying. Solar Panels working at just 15 efficiency would be able to produce to three times the amount of energy that we produce on an annual basis. That is enough energy to power the entire world! None of the technology used is even anything new.
Solar panels instead of roads is more than just future talk. Glass has been known to have the strength of steel. The glass used in the panels won't be ordinary window panes but instead it will contain specially treated glass designed to be driven on.
Most of the material used in creating the internal support of the panels will be recycled material. Over 46,000 pieces of litter are floating in every square mile of the ocean. In the Central Pacific there are 6 points of litter to every pound of plankton. this mass amount of litter reduction would not only help us as a society but it will also aid marine life.
Solar panels instead of roads is more than just future talk. Glass has been known to have the strength of steel. The glass used in the panels won't be ordinary window panes but instead it will contain specially treated glass designed to be driven on.
Most of the material used in creating the internal support of the panels will be recycled material. Over 46,000 pieces of litter are floating in every square mile of the ocean. In the Central Pacific there are 6 points of litter to every pound of plankton. this mass amount of litter reduction would not only help us as a society but it will also aid marine life.
According to the official Solar Roadways webpage:
"Each individual panel consists of three basic layers: 1.Road Surface Layer - translucent and high-strength, it is rough enough to provide great traction, yet still passes sunlight through to the solar collector cells embedded within, along with LEDs and a heating element. It is capable of handling today's heaviest loads under the worst of conditions. Weatherproof, it protects the electronics layer beneath it. 2.Electronics Layer Contains a microprocessor board with support circuitry for sensing loads on the surface and controlling a heating element. No more snow/ice removal and no more school/business closings due to inclement weather. The on-board microprocessor controls lighting, communications, monitoring, etc. With a communications device every 12 feet, the Solar Roadway is an intelligent highway system. 3. Base Plate Layer - While the electronics layer collects energy from the sun, it is the base plate layer that distributes power (collected from the electronics layer) and data signals (phone, TV, internet, etc.) "downline" to all homes and businesses connected to the Solar Roadway. Weatherproof, it protects the electronics layer above it." |
The Prototype
Crosswalk Demonstration
Technical Concerns
How would we get power during the night when there is no sun?
They will use piezoelectric and thermocouple technology
According to Scott Brusaw (The creator and founder of Solar Roadways) - "With the vibration that roads experience, piezoelectric (the ability of some materials to produce a voltage due to applied mechanical strain) technology looks very attractive - especially since it could work at night when solar cells do not. We've been in contact with other companies attempting to use this technology in roads. Thermocouple (a junction between two different metals that produces a voltage related to a temperature difference) technology could also be used in conjuntion with our stormwater storage plans: the water stored beneath the frost line should remain below 60 degree F (similar to the temperature of a cave) and can be pumped via electric pumps to the surface of the road to cool the solar cells, making them more efficient. Thermocouples could be placed between the cold water conduit and the hot surface, creating a voltage during the cool down cycle. The reverse could be done in the winter months (50-60 degree water circulating past a near frozen surface). This technology also works at night."
They will use piezoelectric and thermocouple technology
According to Scott Brusaw (The creator and founder of Solar Roadways) - "With the vibration that roads experience, piezoelectric (the ability of some materials to produce a voltage due to applied mechanical strain) technology looks very attractive - especially since it could work at night when solar cells do not. We've been in contact with other companies attempting to use this technology in roads. Thermocouple (a junction between two different metals that produces a voltage related to a temperature difference) technology could also be used in conjuntion with our stormwater storage plans: the water stored beneath the frost line should remain below 60 degree F (similar to the temperature of a cave) and can be pumped via electric pumps to the surface of the road to cool the solar cells, making them more efficient. Thermocouples could be placed between the cold water conduit and the hot surface, creating a voltage during the cool down cycle. The reverse could be done in the winter months (50-60 degree water circulating past a near frozen surface). This technology also works at night."
What keeps people from stealing the panels and scrapping the materials
Each panel will be equipped with a microprocessor that communicates wirelessly with the other panels that it is connected to each other. The process is used to check for malfunctions or problems in the system. Any change whether criminal or other wise would be noted and reported. The road would be able to know where the missing panel would be and how fast it would be moving which would allow any law enforcement to catch them at an alarming speed
Each panel will be equipped with a microprocessor that communicates wirelessly with the other panels that it is connected to each other. The process is used to check for malfunctions or problems in the system. Any change whether criminal or other wise would be noted and reported. The road would be able to know where the missing panel would be and how fast it would be moving which would allow any law enforcement to catch them at an alarming speed
How will the panels stay clean so that it will be able to collect energy
The panels will be equipped with self cleaning glass. Which according to the reasearch done and demonstarted in the International Workshop on Scientific Challenges for New Functionalities in Glass is a "specific type of glass with a surface which keeps itself free of dirt and grime through natural processes. The glass cleans itself in two stages: the photocatalytic stage of the process breaks down the organic dirt on the glass using ultraviolet in sunlight (even on overcast days) and makes the glass hydrophilic (normally glass is hydrophobic). During the following hydrophilic state, rain washes away the dirt leaving almost no streaks, because hydrophilic glass spreads the water evenly over its surface."
Scott Brusaw (The creator and founder of Solar Roadways) even mentioned that even if the self cleaning glass doesnt work at optimal capacity then we could replace standard snow plows with street clearners
Last edit: 5/11/2014 8:41PM
The panels will be equipped with self cleaning glass. Which according to the reasearch done and demonstarted in the International Workshop on Scientific Challenges for New Functionalities in Glass is a "specific type of glass with a surface which keeps itself free of dirt and grime through natural processes. The glass cleans itself in two stages: the photocatalytic stage of the process breaks down the organic dirt on the glass using ultraviolet in sunlight (even on overcast days) and makes the glass hydrophilic (normally glass is hydrophobic). During the following hydrophilic state, rain washes away the dirt leaving almost no streaks, because hydrophilic glass spreads the water evenly over its surface."
Scott Brusaw (The creator and founder of Solar Roadways) even mentioned that even if the self cleaning glass doesnt work at optimal capacity then we could replace standard snow plows with street clearners
Last edit: 5/11/2014 8:41PM