Solar Roadways: Just a Dream?
Just a few years ago, many people found the possibility of solar powered roadways absurd. However, several scientists now believe the idea has real potential. Scott and Julie Brusaw came up with the idea eight years ago as a way to reduce greenhouse gases.
Their company, Solar Roadways, builds glass-topped solar panels that can withstand the weight and wear of trucks and heavy traffic. Simultaneously, these panels will produce electricity for revenue and possibly for charging electric vehicles. Moreover, LED lights inside panels create road markers and even produce advertisements. Despite facing a large amount of initial skepticism, mass-produced solar roads have the potential to cut nearly 75 percent of greenhouse gas emissions. The project has received federal grants, as well as $2 million in fundraising on IndieGoGo.
However, mass production of these solar panels still faces many complications. The panels are extremely complicated, with three different bases. The first layer is the road surface—the glass is bulletproof, ridged to provide traction but translucent to pass sunlight to solar cells. Underneath this is the microprocessor board for sensing loads on the surface and controlling heating elements. The heating elements are necessary in order to melt snow and ice, or else the solar panels cannot absorb the sun’s energy. This in itself poses complications, but could potentially result in the collection of freshwater through a purification runoff system. Finally, the third layer is the base plate, which distributes the solar power and data signals to homes and businesses connected to the roadway.
This complicated process means that one panel is estimated to cost up to $5000. So far, the Brusaws have been building these panels by hand. Mass production of the panels, therefore, would be extremely expensive. Scott Brusaw has yet to release just how expensive the project would be.
Some critics wonder why solar panels should be placed on the road, rather than easier, safer places such as roofs, sidewalks, etc. The roof, for example, would have less shadow. Shadows pose another question. According to an article in the magazine Renewable International, even a small amount of shade on one solar panel reduces the efficiency of the entire stretch. Cars, trees and surrounding buildings, of course, constantly shadow roads. Critics therefore wonder if the possible inefficiency is worth the cost of mass production.
Another point of criticism comes from the remote aspect of LEDs. The ability to change lane directions to provide for better traffic flow during rush hour, provide road markers and produce advertisements is very beneficial. However, this also provides the opportunity for hacking and even worst-case scenarios of chaos if anyone can change lane patterns.
Despite these possible complications, the potential is extreme. According to Dr. Pradeep Haldar, solar power and photovoltaic expert at Albany’s College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering, “If you just did it for all the roads in New York, that would be enough to power all of the electricity we need in New York State.” Of course, we all want to believe in the possibility of solar-powered roadways. Environmentalists hope that further research and funding will help turn the dream of solar roadways into a carbon footprint reducing reality.
01/17/2015 @ 3:44 am
Don’t forget the benefits of not having to build asphalt roads—they’re not cheap to build or maintain. There’s the offset of plowing snow and the benefits of having your drive and walkways snow and ice clear. There will also be benefits as smart cars get smarter and smarter. Solar roads provide a smart grid for smart cars. There’s also the benefit of providing cable channels to homes and businesses. Let’s start with the easy stuff, like parking lots. If you build it, they will come.
01/20/2015 @ 10:12 pm
Asphalt is fairly cheap compared to this. The all-in cost for asphalt is as little as $2/sqft. The primary cost driver is not the cost of materials. In fact, the gravel used in asphalt roads is almost free. Benefits of ice and snow melting? LMAO!!! Do the math on how much energy is required to do what you’re proposing. It’s mind-boggling.
Smart cars getting smarter and smarter? How does that fundamentally alter the principles of thermodynamics, electricity, and magnetism???
Cable corridors? LOL, do utilities not have places to put lines and pipes now? What makes you think they’ll just be willing to scrap what they have a pay a bunch more money?
01/17/2015 @ 3:49 am
What about Space Based Solar Power nss.org it’s feasible and doable.
01/17/2015 @ 4:27 am
Hmmm…is there enuf sunshine in NY to even do this? Why not try in CALI first, then see what happens? Or how about Denver? Let’s try not to be too silly this time, I am ALL for SOLAR, but let’s start with the Sunshine States people. As far as the Cost to do this, it’s ASTRONOMICAL – there is no number high enuf, but then again, there is no number hi enuf for global warming and the damage it’s causing. Better to try and fail than not to try at all.
01/17/2015 @ 2:15 pm
How about starting with the thousands of square miles of unshadowed roads in Texas? Vast stretches of multi-lane highways, sunshine for most of the year….. plus they can put their “unbreakable” claim to the test with softball sized hail!!! Texas would be a great place for Solar Roadways!
The author of this article doesn’t understand what mass production is….. $5000 per panel could easily turn into $500 per panel…. with bulk suppliers, automated production, and most importantly, a demand for the product. Right now, $5000+ per panel would never pay for itself… they need to get the cost down to cheap chinese crap electronics level first.
How about a nice do-it-yourself model, for homeowners? The demand for solar power is rising rapidly….. I hope these guys don’t miss the boat. I would love to use their product, but still cannot… I will instead have to use someone else’s solar panels. That’s bad business for Solar Roadways. Foot dragging will definitely kill their business before it is even born.
01/19/2015 @ 10:18 pm
A driveway and sidewalk that I wouldn’t have to freaking shovel? Sign me up. I’ll build the bloody things myself if they provide a kit.
01/20/2015 @ 10:34 pm
There are existing technologies that have existed for literally decades to melt the snow and ice in your driveway. You can do it with electric heating mats or hydronic heating. It’s not widely used because of cost. I’ve only seen it done in rich neighborhoods where the cost of energy is low.
01/20/2015 @ 10:16 pm
Even at $500/panel, it’d still by too expensive to be cost effective. Oh, and then there’s the problems of how little energy it could produce and unproven durability and longevity. Even if solar cells double in efficiency, and there’s a good chance they might, it still won’t bail out Stupid Freaking Roadways. Why? Everything is relative. Solar farms in the desert will still cost half as much as rooftop solar, which will cost a fraction of the cost of a solar road. Solar farms and rooftop solar will also generate much more energy than a solar road because of the *CORRECT* angling and being protected from dirt and wear.
01/18/2015 @ 5:59 am
This seems very very very intriguing. My biggest question is; How will you clean them? We drive on rubber tires, many cars leak oil, fumes, fluids. All this byproduct then becomes one with the road.
The panels seem to be textured. How will you get all that thick grime out?
01/18/2015 @ 4:32 pm
People are so concerned about the solar part, that they fail to realize the big picture. That these panels would make use of what is essentially wasted space. When roads and lots aren’t being driven on, what are they doing? Just sitting there, doing absolutely nothing productive. Imagine what these solar roads could do, they energy they could collect on roads like Interstate 40. In essence, they would be serving multiple functions, not just one.
And not only would they make use of wasted space, but think of how much of our state and federal taxes could be saved on maintenance, not to mention time. Before, to fix say a pothole on a major road or highway, you had to bring out almost an entire construction crew to fix something. With these panels, all you need is a special tool and two guys to get the job done. Speaking of potholes, these panels will make those a thing of the past. Also, because of the way these roads are designed, when the panels become old and obsolete, they can be replaced with newer, cheaper, more efficient models with ease.
Finally, the cable corridors would not only act as a storm drain and as hardware storage, but could utilized by utility companies, such as Verizon Fios and Google Fiber, instead of digging and burring utilities underground.
01/20/2015 @ 10:24 pm
Are we running out of space in which to put solar panels in the US? Ever take a cross country flight? Ever notice how much unused space there is, especially out west???
Why make something do multiple functions when you can do them separately in a much easier, cheaper, and more effective way??? It’s why we don’t have flying dump trucks…
The states and the feds really don’t spend hardly any money at all on the roads or our infrastructure. That’s why it’s crumbling. Potholes can be prevented by using concrete roads, but that’s expensive. It’s cheaper and easier to use super cheap asphalt and then patch potholes as needed. We’re talking like an order of magnitude cheaper. That’s why the only areas that concrete is used are things like heavily-used sections of interstate highway.
You’re also overestimating the value of a cable corridor and what Verizon or Google would be willing to pay for it. Concrete boxes that you can drive on aren’t cheap and using it as cable storage won’t even come close to covering the costs. Most utilities don’t put their stuff in “cable corridors” because the of extreme cost and the fact that they only need to access the cabling like once every 50-100 years. They’re also not going to rip out all of their existing infrastructure and put it under solar roads just to bail out the Brusaws.
01/18/2015 @ 5:26 pm
There are plenty of roads across California, Arizona and Texas alone that are not highly travelled, but are in constant sun. Think of all the desert! It seems like the project should use a systematic way of prioritizing the highways across the US to the get solar panels to optimize the best result. Not just start paving New York City. When you think about it, an urban environment does not make a lot of sense due to the shadows. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. I SO hope to see this happen before the end of my lifetime! P.S. please let me know when you will be going public, so I can get in on it – ha ha!
01/20/2015 @ 10:27 pm
There are plenty of open spaces in California, Arizona, and Texas in which to put solar farms at a tiny fraction of the price of using solar roads. Ever take a cross country flight? I don’t understand the big draw here. The requirements of a road and that of a solar panel are diametrically opposed to each other. It’s like the word “solar” just turns people’s brains off and shuts down all critical thinking.
01/21/2015 @ 12:57 am
Check out this article about a new bike path paved with solar energy cells In the Netherlands that may signal a revolution in green energy infrastructure: http://torontoist.com/2015/01/public-works-could-a-solar-power-generating-road-one-day-power-your-car/
01/21/2015 @ 2:56 am
That bike path cost $3.75 million for only 100m and only generates enough energy to power…wait for it…”up to one household.” Unfortunately it has already begun to delaminate and get all dirty, despite being open for only a few weeks. It’s this kind of crap that decreases the credibility of the solar industry.