Solar Roads May Someday Power Your Electric Vehicles

This article is part of an Urban Infrastructure series exploring ways to better the cities of the future, brought to you by Intel's Innovators Wanted–looking for the next great idea to improve the quality of life in urban areas around the world. Sign up to find out more. As solar power keeps getting cheaper, engineers are finding more creative and efficient ways to integrate it into existing infrastructure like parking lots, bike paths, walls and windows. Certain designers have even found ways to attach solar cells in a thin-film spray, while others are weaving them into clothing fabrics. Some of these technologies are still in the "not-yet-proven-to-be-worth-it" prototype phase, but others are already out there, quietly changing the way our cities are powered. Just look at Amsterdam's new energy-generating bike paths, which are already exceeding expectations.

SolaRoad is exactly what it sounds like–the world's first "solar road." Built from interlocking photovoltaic panels, it works in the same way as a traditional solar cell–by capturing sunlight falling on its surface and converting it into electricity. The SolaRoad panels are unique in that they start as prefabricated concrete slabs, which are then top-layered with a tempered glass surface 1 cm thick. Silicon solar cells are embedded underneath the glass, which is tough enough to handle tire traffic, slick enough to keep most dirt from sticking, and clear enough to let sunlight through. The end product is also skid-resistant, to provide a safe driving surface.

SolaRoad's designers hope to take advantage of the existing transportation infrastructure in the Netherlands, which consists of over 140,000 kilometers of roads–a massive surface area that could power thousands of homes.

The first test version was installed last November as a bike path, and it's already generating more power than its designers initially forecast. Laboratory tests predicted that each square meter of the road would produce an average of 50 kilowatt hours of electricity per year. According to their spokesman Sten de Wit, as of June 2015 SolaRoad is producing over 70 kilowatt hours - enough to power a single-person household for a year. The technology isn't perfect yet, and the yields, while above expectations, are not enough for widespread implementation of the technology in its current form. Temperature fluctuations caused areas of the panels to delaminate, and the top layer had to be repaired and recoated. Still, the technology shows promise and improvements are being researched and implemented for a better, longer-lasting, and more efficient power generating roadway–one that can be used for powering traffic lights, signs, and local households. In the future, such roadways may even be able to power the electric vehicles driving on its surface.

SolaRoad is exactly what it sounds like: the world's first "solar road." Built from interlocking photovoltaic panels, it works in the same way as a traditional solar cell, by capturing sunlight falling on its surface and converting it into electricity.