Renewable energy road system
Solar-powered road surfacing enjoys its day in the sun as inventors raise fundingAn American couple has launched a crowdfunding campaign to support the development and eventual roll-out of multifunctional solar cells as a replacement for conventional bitumen-surfaced roads.
Idaho husband and wife, Scott and Julie Brusaw, came up with the idea, which is probably best explained by their glib-but-annoying video. In short, the solar cells are easily replaced, generate power from the sun, and each can withstand weight of up to 250,000 pounds (113,400kg).
So far, 38,000 contributors from across the 50 states of the USA and 42 other countries have got behind the Solar Roadways concept, which would provide numerous benefits if adopted for national road systems. The inventors say that each cell's array of LEDs can direct traffic to slow for hazards ahead, and the system can melt snow in colder climes, making salt redundant.
When not required for those purposes, the solar cells can feed power back into the national grid, reducing the energy load from coal-fired power stations.
The Solar Roadways team has extended the expiry date for the project to June 20. Crowdfunding site Indiegogo describes Solar Roadways as its most popular campaign ever. To date the campaign has raised US $1.5 million, and the company has also secured grants worth US $850,000 from the American Department of Transportation.
Enthusiast website autoblog.com has approached the idea with caution, citing objections on the grounds that the US cannot afford to maintain its current road network infrastructure as is, let alone an entirely new network, comprising integrated solar panels and LEDs.
Another website, The Verge provides an even bleaker assessment, concluding that the concept of selling LED-illuminated advertising to subsidise the cost "sounds more like brainstorming than a business plan." Adrianne Jefferies, the writer of the article, quotes Equities.com business editor Joel Anderson, who says that the Brusaws have failed to secure funding by conventional means.
"Probably because there's too many more-practical, more-promising investments to be made to seriously consider this pipe dream."
Pictured: Scott and Julie Brusaw with prototype Solar Roadways parking lot
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