France Paves Highway With Solar Panels

[TravelingBethelite]

http://www.takepart.com/article/2016/02/08/france-solar-road?cmpid=tpenviro-eml-2016-02-13-fitbit

Could 'we' do it too?

[Jardine]

Sturdy enough to drive on means sturdy enough to shingle with, no ?

Hell, pave the country with them.

[pumpkineater2]

I imagine that it would get rather dirty over time with tire marks and grime from vehicles, reducing its energy producing performance.

[SignGeek101]

It's been talked about before in the US. My biggest concerns would be durability, efficiency, and stopping power for a vehicle.

I definitely support it though. I'm actually a bit of an environmentalist, which clashes heavily with my interest of roads 

[noelbotevera]

I'll see it when electric cars are feasible. That'll happen when I see planes swimming.

[Rothman]

Makes me wonder if there will be any follow-up articles to see how this installation goes. 

[jakeroot]

I'll see it when electric cars are feasible. That'll happen when I see planes swimming.

The Model S is already pretty feasible.

I don't think installing solar panels in the roadway is that far out there. They could be installed along the shoulders of roads.

I imagine that it would get rather dirty over time with tire marks and grime from vehicles, reducing its energy producing performance.

All you need is regular maintenance (as you would with any power plant), and of course, these little beauties...

[Pete from Boston]

I'll see it when electric cars are feasible. That'll happen when I see planes swimming.

Seeing as how seaplanes have been viable for over a century, we're well past due.

[noelbotevera]

I'll see it when electric cars are feasible. That'll happen when I see planes swimming.

Seeing as how seaplanes have been viable for over a century, we're well past due.

Still haven't seen one. Maybe if I see the Boeing 777 or something like that be able to be submerged in water, then I could believe it.

[Pete from Boston]

I'll see it when electric cars are feasible. That'll happen when I see planes swimming.

Seeing as how seaplanes have been viable for over a century, we're well past due.

Still haven't seen one. Maybe if I see the Boeing 777 or something like that be able to be submerged in water, then I could believe it.

But anyway, you're comparing fantasy with something that exists and is growing, so have fun with that.

[Rothman]

My grandmother worked on the Spruce Goose.

[Duke87]

It's been talked about before in the US. My biggest concerns would be durability, efficiency, and stopping power for a vehicle.

And how it would withstand winter weather. Somehow I don't see these things being friends with road salt and snow plows.

Still, if it can be made to work, it's great way to put some surfaces that tend to bake in the sun much of the day to good use.

I do echo the sentiment, though, that covering roofs with these things might be more practical since they'll produce just as much electricity per square foot but be subject to much less wear and tear.

[english si]

What a waste of the limited production of optical-grade Silicon!

Let's ignore that the south of France is, while not horrendous, is a place where a solar panel used optimally wouldn't get that high a gain on the energy put into it - probably a triple-your-money scenario for a 25 year lifespan (going on about 18 years for a optimally positioned photovoltaic in the UK to break even and southern France getting about double the solar energy).

Let's ignore that shadow from buildings / traffic would reduce the intensity of solar energy reaching the panel.

Let's ignore the increased risk of damage to panels from having traffic pass over them that would lower lifespan and make it harder to make a decent energy profit from them.

By placing the panels flat on the surface of the planet, you decrease yield significantly compared to placing them optimally - and for what reason?

The solar freaking roadway (OK, this is a bit better as it doesn't need as much energy to run the system as that over-optimistic scheme that's all bells and whistles) will make an energy profit, don't get me wrong, but by going with the gimmick they are massively reducing that profit.

Arizona and Algeria are the sorts of places to do this sort of gimmicky stuff and get away with it.

[english si]

I do echo the sentiment, though, that covering roofs with these things might be more practical since they'll produce just as much electricity per square foot but be subject to much less wear and tear.

More, as you can optimise the positioning without needing all roads to be fairly steep, and south-facing.

[noelbotevera]

Being serious, would it be feasible? Unless this is a neighborhood street, that would make sense, as you can power homes right from the road. A backup system to use is simply dig wires under the road so that when it's night, the place doesn't lose power.

[Pete from Boston]

Doesn't some technology company have a television commercial running lately with this concept illustrated in a futuristic fashion?

[english si]

Being serious, would it be feasible? Unless this is a neighborhood street, that would make sense, as you can power homes right from the road. A backup system to use is simply dig wires under the road so that when it's night, the place doesn't lose power.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrical_grid

And as France buries cables in urban areas, like much of Western Europe, so there would be wires under the street already.

[Roadgeek2500]

I believe that doing something like this is completely stupid, especially considering you could just put the panels on a roof for much greater power output.

Here's a video explaining how stupid it would be, for this specific example, to put solar panels on a road. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjbKYNcmFUw

[pumpkineater2]

What I don't understand is, if they're so willing to use up as much public space as a road has, then why not just put these panels on other public surfaces that wont get near as much wear and tear. For example, sidewalks(or any surface meant for people to stand/walk on), shade structures, public buildings etc.

[Brandon]

http://www.takepart.com/article/2016/02/08/france-solar-road?cmpid=tpenviro-eml-2016-02-13-fitbit

Could 'we' do it too?

Nice idea, but how would they handle massive amounts of snow?

[english si]

Nice idea, but how would they handle massive amounts of snow?

Heated surface heating it to "35-40 degrees" (I'm guessing Fahrenheit)

and while it doesn't take much energy to heat a panel to that temperature, the idiots forget that it would take a lot of energy to change the state of snow, and doing that would provide a cooling effect to be overcome to not create a ton of ice forming on the surface.

If you get ice most of the time in those situations with surfaces that convert solar energy to heat really well (blacktop), how much more when you are doing it an inefficient way.

[silverback1065]

The only reason why this will never happen in the US is one thing, MONEY. 

[Duke87]

I do echo the sentiment, though, that covering roofs with these things might be more practical since they'll produce just as much electricity per square foot but be subject to much less wear and tear.

More, as you can optimise the positioning without needing all roads to be fairly steep, and south-facing.

The panels shown in the article appear to only be able to be laid directly on a flat surface because they are designed like tiles and have no structure with which they can be erected.

But yes, regular solar panels (not these) can be tilted for optimal exposure. For some added cost which may or may not be worth it depending on wind loading and such.

[english si]

The panels shown in the article appear to only be able to be laid directly on a flat surface because they are designed like tiles and have no structure with which they can be erected.

I was more thinking of the impracticality of a road surface consisting of lots of little bits all angled the same way (high damage to vehicles, people and panels), rather than the design of the panels themselves.

But even rooftop panels (as long as they are facing south) flush to a pitched roof are going to be closer to the optimum than ones on the road.

[cbeach40]

Still haven't seen one. Maybe if I see the Boeing 777 or something like that be able to be submerged in water, then I could believe it.

I think a lot of people are still trying to find a submerged 777.