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THE Solar Road Thread (merged)

Discussions of conventional and alternative energy production technologies.

Re: Solar Roadways

Unread postby Newfie » Tue 06 Sep 2011, 15:40:20

markruther wrote:That the idea of ​​the roof and solar panels, less stupid all railway. Build more railways, as long as there is enough sun panels. As the panel is a point of view, the vibration of the train provides a self-cleaning at least part of the system.


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I am willing to listen if you can do the math and show me how it all adds up.
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Re: Solar Roadways

Unread postby Newfie » Tue 06 Sep 2011, 15:53:34

steam_cannon wrote:
ian807 wrote:OK, the roadway idea is stupid. The idea of say, roofing over all railways with solar panels, less stupid.
Roofing over rail is not a bad idea. Though I think positioning panels next to the train tracks and at an angle would be a better idea.
A big problem with urban elevated railways is their 'shadow' footprint. By putting solar panels along the ROW you just make that problem much bigger.


Regarding roads, what I think is possible:
* Roadways represent strips of land that is already zoned for government to build on.
* Panels could easily be positioned vertically or at an angle by highways.
* Solar panels could be used to supplement the grid.
NJ is doing this will solar panels mounted on utility poles next to the roads. It does NOT power the cars but does provide some additional power. Perhaps someone could look into this project and see how it is doing. At least one fellow I know says that the first thing he will steal in a crash is the solar panels.

What is questionable:
* That we have the money to build more infrastructure.
* Solar panels have trouble producing low cost power.
* It over-complicates things to put them in a road.


Frankly it strikes me that discussions like this are another form of denialism. Our energy usage is so over the top of sustainable limits as to be laughable. The ONLY way we can address our energy problems is to drastically limit use. However even this has grave problems.

Consider this, that living in a temperate climate has inherit energy costs, you must stay warm. I see no way to sufficiently reduce our heating energy usage. We COULD all live in some impossibly small hovel super insulated and use our body heat.

Building very energy efficient homes that house 30 to 50 people in a very small place is something we know how to do. It is possible, it has a strong energy conservation profile. It is relatively affordable. You could put these supper hovels near work centers and then cut way down on travel costs.

But I don't see anyone standing in line to support that idea.
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Re: Solar Roadways

Unread postby TimH » Sun 23 Oct 2011, 20:24:09

There has been a few related ideas proposed:

1.Run solar between rail tracks
2.Run solar/wind around electrical towers
3.Run solar/wind between the interstates

There is huge tracts of real estate for all 3,what is best? What is feasible? What say you?
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Re: THE Solar Road Thread (merged)

Unread postby reds37win » Fri 06 Jan 2012, 10:12:03

What about the idea to place solar panels on all government facilities. Think of the number of schools and goverment offices this could include.

This could also be coupled with windmills in applicable areas.

It's not a total solution, but it would be a terrific start.
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Re: THE Solar Road Thread (merged)

Unread postby Albert Ross » Mon 06 Feb 2012, 07:32:51

Solar Roads....coming real soon
Please give generously

Beautiful North Idaho - Home of the Solar Roadways

Finally: a solution to Global Warming... (it rises every morning)

Imagine leaving behind a world that our grandchildren will be proud of.
Children's children, small blue planet etc etc

Please sign our Solar Roadways Encouragement List.
[email protected]

Solar Roadways - patent (sort of) pending


Coming REAL soon since at least 2006

http://wayback.archive.org/web/*/http:/ ... dways.com/

Engineers love numbers. They (the numbers, that is) generally bore people to death, but at times they are necessary for understanding. One of the biggest questions that has been asked is simply, "Can we really generate enough pollution-free electricity to power our businesses and homes?" The calculations below are presented to answer this very important question.

First, the "givens":

In the contiguous 48 states, there are over 25,000 square miles of impervious surfaces (roads, parking lots, driveways, sidewalks, etc.), not including actual buildings and structures. Continuing development adds another quarter of a million acres each year. If these impervious surfaces were replaced with Solar Road Panels, how much electricity could we produce?
Let us make these very conservative assumptions:
· We use solar cells that have a mere 15% efficiency (there is technology available that actually doubles this number)
· We average only 4 hours of peak daylight hours per day (4 x 365 = 1460 hours per year)
A popular manufacturer of solar panels offers a 200 Watt model rated at 15% efficiency. Its surface area is 15.16 square feet. If we covered the entire 25,000 square miles of impervious surfaces with solar collection panels, we'd get:

((25,000 mi²) x (5280 ft / mi)²) / (200W/15.16 ft²) =

((25,000 mi²) x (27,878,400 ft² / mi²)) / (200W/15.16 ft²) =

(696960000000 ft²) / (200W/15.16 ft²) = 9194722955145.118733509234828496 Watts ≈ 9.19 Billion Kilowatts

If we average only 4 hours of peak daylight hours (1460 hours per year), this gives us: 9.19 Billion Kilowatts x 1460 hours = 13424295514511873.350923482849604 Billion Kilowatt-hours (or) ≈ 13,424 Billion Kilowatt-hours of electricity.

Now, keep in mind that this is an extremely conservative estimate.

According to the Energy Information Administration, the United States (all 50) used just over 4,372 Billion Kilowatt-hours of electricity in 2003, while the entire world (including the U.S.) used approximately 14,768 Billion Kilowatt-hours of electricity total. It is easy to see that the Solar Roadways could produce over three times the electricity that we currently use in the United States. Slightly increasing the conservatively low 15% efficiency would allow the U.S. (the “lower 48”) to produce the entire world’s electricity needs.
About 40% of U.S. carbon dioxide emissions stem from the burning of fossil fuels for the purpose of electricity generation. Coal accounts for 93% of the emissions from the electric utility industry. US Emissions Inventory 2004
This is where some of the numbers become "fuzzy": as best we can tell, it is estimated that approximately half (different agencies provide different estimates, but the average is about 50%) of the greenhouse gases that are causing global warming come from the burning of fossil fuels (primarily coal) to generate electricity. The Solar Roadway will, therefore, eliminate half of the greenhouse gases currently being produced.
Summary: the Solar Roadway can cut the causes of global warming in half!


Donations
If you'd like to help us continue in our quest for Solar Roadways, then you can donate to our project - every little bit will get us one step closer to implementation. The price of a cup of coffee or whatever you won't miss would be great. Be a part in helping us to change the future of the world.

Thank you and may God bless you and your family.

We're not a non-profit, so donations are not tax-deductable.

Or, you can send a check or money order to:

Solar Roadways
P.O. Box 293
Sagle, Idaho 83860

Thanks!

YEAH RIGHT WHAT........EVER! :roll:
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Re: THE Solar Road Thread (merged)

Unread postby Graeme » Wed 21 Mar 2012, 00:36:16

Solar Grid Parity in North Carolina (New Study)

As John Farrell noted in an article in January, grid parity is a complicated matter (and doesn’t take into account important health costs, greenhouse gas emissions costs, and grid costs). But grid parity is rather important because it relates to what actual consumers directly pay for solar-powered electricity compared to conventionally powered electricity.

Solar power has already hit grid parity in several regions, and a new study says that you can add some types of solar in North Carolina to that list.

The report, ”Levelized Cost of Solar Photovoltaics in North Carolina,” is from the North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association (NC SEA). “The data comes from over 10,000 solar PV system installations in North Carolina from 2006 to 2011 whose owners, per a state regulation, reported installation costs to the Public Utilities Commission,” Herman Trabish notes.

As one of the first states (and the first in the Southeast) to implement a renewable energy portfolio standard (REPS), North Carolina has the 8th-most cumulative installed solar photovoltaic (PV) in the U.S.

Before reporting on the key findings, I’ll note a couple very important points:


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Re: THE Solar Road Thread (merged)

Unread postby Graeme » Wed 21 Mar 2012, 05:55:07

oops. that's what happens when I'm in a hurry. Mods please move to
grid-parity-without-subsidies-could-be-just-3-years-away-t64136-15.html
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Re: THE Solar Road Thread (merged)

Unread postby marklee » Thu 07 Jun 2012, 12:36:00

Hello! I really think that since the earth has already gone hotter because of global warming, we might as well take advantage of its effects also. Nowadays, I really believe that solar energy is the best alternative source of energy though I know its costly. I agree with these Solar Road thing. :)
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These Solar Roads Could Power The Entire Country

Unread postby Graeme » Fri 09 May 2014, 21:33:54

These Solar Roads Could Power The Entire Country

There are nearly 18,000 square miles of roads in the U.S., an area that’s bigger than the entire states of New Hampshire and Massachusetts combined. By some estimates, there are also as many as 2 billion parking spaces. Since most of that pavement is soaking up sun all day long, a couple of entrepreneurs had an idea: Why not put it to use generating solar power?

The Solar Roadways project, now crowdfunding on Indiegogo, hopes to re-pave the country in custom, glass-covered solar panels that are strong enough to drive on while generating enough power to light the road, melt ice and snow, and send extra energy to cities. Eventually, if every paved surface was covered in the product, the panels would produce more power than the nation uses.


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Re: These Solar Roads Could Power The Entire Country

Unread postby Newfie » Fri 09 May 2014, 22:25:57

Good grief,not this kind of tripe again!

This is a scam out and out.
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Re: These Solar Roads Could Power The Entire Country

Unread postby peterjames » Sat 10 May 2014, 02:22:28

Why does this idea get a look in, when everybody shuns my idea of putting smallers wheels on the front of the car than on the back, thus allowing the car to always travel downhill.
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Re: These Solar Roads Could Power The Entire Country

Unread postby Graeme » Mon 12 May 2014, 20:48:12

That Amazing 'Solar Roadways' Project Has a Working Prototype

Four years ago, Scott and Julie Brusaw announced their provocative concept of "Solar Roadways," a system of modular solar panels that could be paved directly onto roads, parking lots, driveways, bike paths, "literally any surface under the sun." Since then, the Brusaws have received two rounds of funding from the Federal Highway Administration as well as a private grant to develop their project.

They now have a working prototype featuring hexagonal panels that cover a 12-by-36-foot parking lot. In addition to the potential to power nearby homes, businesses, and electric vehicles, the panels also have heating elements for convenient snow and ice removal, as well as LEDs that can make road signage. According to the Brusaws’ calculations, Solar Roadways, if installed nationwide, could generate over three times the electricity currently used in the United States.


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Re: These Solar Roads Could Power The Entire Country

Unread postby Beery1 » Tue 13 May 2014, 04:35:51

The Solar Roadways project, now crowdfunding on Indiegogo, hopes to re-pave the country in custom, glass-covered solar panels that are strong enough to drive on while generating enough power to light the road, melt ice and snow, and send extra energy to cities.


Aaaah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!

We can't even keep roads made from asphalt maintained, and you're suggesting that we replace them with glass covered solar panels?

This is fricken insane.
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Re: These Solar Roads Could Power The Entire Country

Unread postby ROCKMAN » Tue 13 May 2014, 07:38:49

I think you guys are being too harsh. I see nothing in the excerpt to suggest these folks are saying the system would be economical to deploy. It seems more akin to "technically recoverable reserves" in that while it might be physically possible to design the system there's no promise that it will ever be economical to utilize.

But I still prefer the idea of personal jetpacks myself.
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Re: These Solar Roads Could Power The Entire Country

Unread postby Subjectivist » Tue 13 May 2014, 08:43:43

If you want practical solar roads the only option I see is installing solar canopy over the road 15 feet up. To do so would be extraordinarily expensive but would have the side benefit of protecting the road surface from percipitation. This would eliminated the cost of snow removal and also eliminate rain effects that cause many hydroplaning related traffic accidents in inclement weather, partially offsetting the increased construction and maintainence expenses.
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Re: These Solar Roads Could Power The Entire Country

Unread postby sparky » Tue 13 May 2014, 08:49:10

.
Graeme have you considered the parts cost , installation and maintenance,
probably not
the idea is up there with the windmill over each person cap to power their mobile phone
actually , that last one make more sense
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