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Directory:Energy from Roadways

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A directory of technologies and resources pertaining to harvesting energy from roadways.

There are a number of forces created that can be harvested from roads, including the wind from the passage of vehicles, vibrations from their tires, or the black surface being exposed to the sun.

Technologies

Vibrations

Produce Electricity While You Drive - Piezoelectricity can be put to use making electricity from the mechanical stress from vehicles passing over roadways. The concept was originally developed by Innowattech, who plans to lay down a sort of test road in Israel. (Alt Energy News; Oct. 7, 2009)

Piezoelectric Generator - Richard Dickson proposes using the piezoelectric effect for generating electricity, where pressure turns into electricity, from environments such as wave action or roadway impact. The question is one of cost and feasibility, not whether or not it would work.

Roadway Wind Harvesting

Energy from Roadways / Wind > Vertical Axis >
E Turbine uses air movement caused by moving cars to generate energy - Industrial designer Pedro Gomes has conceptualized a product that can utilize vehicles to generate renewable energy on the highway. The concept is simple: wind generated from passing vehicles turns the E Turbine, which charges a battery, which powers the lights along the roadway as well as information panels and emergency phones. (EcoFriend; Oct. 9, 2010)

Solar Roadways

Solar > Applications > Freeways >
Solar Roadways Prototyping Video - The Solar Roadways project is working to pave roads with solar panels that you can drive on. Co-founder Scott Brusaw has made some major steps forward since our first visit back in 2007, so we visited him again earlier this year for an exclusive update on the project, including the first ever video recorded of the Solar Roadways prototype! (ConsciousMedianNetwork; June 18, 2010)
- http://www.wimp.com/solarhighways/

Solar Roadways Awarded DOT Contract to Pave Roads with Solar Cells - In a first step toward turning highways into energy-generating solar panels, the Idaho-based startup Solar Roadways has recently received a $100,000 grant from the US Department of Transportation (DOT). The company will use the money to build a prototype of its Solar Road Panel, made from solar cells and glass, that is meant to replace petroleum-based asphalt on roads and in parking lots. (PhysOrg; Sept. 7, 2009)

Solar Roadways - The Solar Roadway™ is a series of interconnected glassified Solar Road Panels™ that you actually drive on. The idea is to replace all current asphalt roads, parking lots and driveways with 12 square foot Solar Road Panels™, each producing an average of 7.6kWh per day. (Solar Roadways; Nov. 17, 2008)

COULD SOLAR HIGHWAYS POWER OUR CITIES? - Australian renewable energy retailer Going Solar has conceived of a clever strategy that infuses urban transit systems with energy producing potential - install solar panels in highways as sound barriers! (Inhabitat; Aug. 30. 2008)

Solar Sidewalks

Solar > Applications > Roadways >
Photovoltaic Paving Tiles Coming Soon a Sidewalk Near You - Onyx Solar recently teamed up with Butech to launch a new line of photovoltaic paving stones made from ceramic and glass. The streamlined solar stones are manufactured using a process that produces less CO2 and uses less energy than traditional pavement, making this energy-generating material even better for reducing the environmental impact of building projects. (Inhabitat; Oct. 2, 2010)