Super-Tough Solar Panels Could Make Every Road Into A Power Plant
Roads do two things well: Carry cars, and soak up sun. What if, instead of just getting really hot, roads could generate electricity with that sunlight? That’s exactly what Solar Roadways—and now, the Department of Energy—has in mind.
Solar Roadways, a single-purpose startup, just snagged a $US100,000 grant from the DoE to design and build a 3.6m x 3.6m super-tough solar panel, intended to be laid as sections of road. As it’s been optimistically imagined, the panels would also have a layer of low-res LED lights, so they could display changing signage.
Given how expensive and inefficient regular solar panels are, this whole plan sounds a little far-fetched, but the benefits could be huge: the company says that they could meet the entire country’s energy needs if the interstate system was replaced with its (still theoretical) panels. Neat, but there’s a minor issue of cost.
To pull this into perspective, Solar Roadways say they could take 500 homes off the grid with just 1.6km of four lane solar highway. They also say their 3.6m x 3.6m panels will cost about $US6900 apiece. Assuming a width of four panels, 1.6km of highway needs to be made up of 1760 panels, which comes to over $US12 million dollars before construction costs, which usually make up the bulk of the sum anyway.
I mean, they managed to coax $US100k out of the government already, so maybe there’s more to this than meets the eye. Or maybe, the Deptartment of Energy just wants to give this plan a fair shot, just make sure this won’t work. Spaghetti, walls, etc. [Solar Roadways via Inhabitat via PopSci]
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Comments (AU Comments | US Comments)
I remember Dr Karl Kruszelnicki surmising about this about 10 years ago. Sounds technically and financially very difficult, but roads are big flat surfaces that get sun all day.
Not sure how making something durable enough to take a beating from cars, trucks, accidents, lost cargo etc is a better idea than putting solar cells in roof tiles and covering the top of every home, office block, and warehouse.
If not on roads, then possibly for driveways and patios and mall parking lots? Much less wear and tear. I’d be interested in how much electricity one could save with the average suburban spread of concrete.
Seems a little far-fetched to me, simply because the amount of wear and tear on tar-based asphalt alone is pretty substantial on most major roads. Putting solar panels on top of homes is fairly expensive in itself but with 12 million dollars at hand, and with 500 homes taken off the grid (in this scenario), we’re looking at $24k per home which is more than enough to invest in a more efficient and durable solar panel. Sadly, access to this amount of money is unrealistic in any situation, but especially in the state we’re in right now.
The highway solar panels are a great concept everywhere… except on paper.
Wild eyed Yankee Doodle dreamers! Walking on the moon! Camping on Mars! Get down to earth, build eco-friendly, reasonable sized, Zero upkeep, Zero energy, well super-insulated, solar, wind powered ground-heat ballasted homes with composting, water recovery, aquaculture, greenhouse and gardening facilities – ready for the next cyclical down turn in our very volatile and “cyclical” economy! Cyclical being the key word, remember when signing your mortgage papers This is a ‘cyclical” and volatile corporatism economy! I say again, “Cyclical” just in case you have forgotten already, Yankee Doodle Dandy! Cyclical! goddammit Cyclical!
Is this a joke? What about the wear-and-tear? Do they realize conventional roadways must be resurfaced every 8-20 years (depending on materials and use)? And in cities where traffic is heavy, what of the big shadows made by rows of stopped cars? Sorry but this is half-baked.
It would make more sense to start with sections or spaces between lanes (as seen in the photo where the lines are). That way, we could find out if the solar cells can take the pounding from a smaller more feasible scale.
I love the idea, but the problem of weights, accidents, etc. (as someone already commented) present a number of challenges…as does the astronomical cost.
Perhaps another, more reasonable, idea is to focus on smaller highways that get less traffic and less wear. Same sun, less wear. Or maybe on-ramps and off-ramps. Ideally, this would be something we could lay on top of current structures. So, if a panel would need to be removed (for repair?) then a slight decline and incline could be inserted to allow the original roadway to take the pressure for that stretch.
Lots of potential.
That sounds like a great plan!
Why not put the solar panels ABOVE the road? It would be nice to drive in the shade, and no one would be driving on the solar panels.
Or, even better, why not build them over parking lots? Everyone would love covered parking!
Along the lines of Crusty Baguette’s idea of putting panels on top of the road ways… Could we put panels on the back of all the interstate over head signs? Being in a major city we have hundreds of signs that show exits coming up, toll plazas and etc, and yet nothing on the back of those signs. The frames are already up, just throw up some panels on the back side. These panels could be used to help power toll plazas, street lights, sign lights, etc.
Nice idea in an ideal world, but roads get covered with oil and rubber – look at any road markings that have been down for more than a few weeks. That film of grime will cut the efficiency of the panels. There is something a bit dumb about the whole project, almost as if it has been set up to show how uneconomical solar could be – which it will be if this sort of idea is pursued.
They really look SUPER HAIL proof, too! Just put them along side the commuter rail road tracks as access roads and power the trains with them! Little or no extra construction cost involved. Then let me pull my electric car onto a car/truck rail carrier so I can recharge and avoid all those bio-hazards while we breeze past the traffic! And if we built long distance high speed rail across country we could build it right behind that fence along the border just to keep an eye out for all those aliens who need a job because energy is too expensive, and suppressing commerce.
Here are 2 more reasons this is a great idea; if it works. If the durability is good, that would be an excellent improvement over what we have today. Just look at the current cost of road maintenance, at the very least that cost would be transferred toward maintaining energy production. Secondly the electricity produced could be used directly by electric cars which would then have unlimited range on these solar highways.
Here is an allready commercially available road energy system: http://www.ooms.nl/english/pages/divisie_toelevering/road_energy_system.html
Well reading dowm some of the comments we have plenty of diasgreement. Maybe the solar panels are not the best idea but sometines from the not so good ideas spring good ones. Could highways heat water? Hot water doesn’t have to be heated so could it do away with water heaters? Cars, trucks, and trains make plenty of wind could some sort of small windmills be placed along roadways or train tracks to produce energy? Maybe this idea will lead researchers to something else. Just saying.
hurtzsogood
If you’re going to put a load of solar panels somewhere, why look to a road? The great majority of the US’s desert south west has nothing in it and is sunny most of the time. They don’t have to be robust or self cleaning either. This seems like a crazy idea to me.
though the idea is all good and wonderful it’s just not efficient enough even if they did have the cash to cough up. Some good Points at the link the below.
http://abetterenergyplan.ca/the_plan_renewable.php