Roads which have the power to melt snow and ice or power the vehicles which run on them could be a step closer as US firm Solar Roadways announces it has been granted $750,000 from the Federal Highways Administration to produce a prototype version of just such a road.
Idaho-based Solar Roadways came up with the idea of developing ‘roads that pay for themselves’ after realising how the price of asphalt has risen over the years, making conventional roads financially burdensome.
The firm has now developed a 12×12 foot prototype of its road surface containing solar panels and 6000 LED lights, which could be used as road markings.
The power generated from the solar panels could power road signs and markings, the vehicles themselves through inductive charging or simply be used to heat the road to clear snow and ice without the need for expensive gritting or snow ploughing. Excess electricity could even be fed into the grid-helping the road to pay for its own construction.
Founded by Scott and Julie Bursaw, Solar Roadways claims its prototype can generate 7.6 kilowatt hours of electricity per day. The pair even think that if most of roads in the US were solar panelled, the country would be able to produce three times the electricity it needs on an annual basis.
One of the biggest challenges for the firm was to develop a road surface, made of glass, which retains the qualities of asphalt. Strong as steel, with the traction and non-glare qualities of asphalt, the Solar Roadways prototype road uses glass that is light, shatterproof and transparent enough to allow solar rays to penetrate through to the solar panels below. Unlike the glass we are use to today, it does not reflect light or have a smooth, slippy surface.
