I think i posted about this thing 18 months ago, but i can't remember.
The gist:
Solar road ways made of super glass that not only collect solar power, but once connected through a city, or the nation, provide power through the glass sections under the surface, thus revamping our entire power grid network.
18 months ago the dude was looking for funding, and still getting reserach accomplished. He's hoping to put in a prototype this year at his facility.
Some quotes
i'm a freaking visionary
click for more infos
The gist:
Solar road ways made of super glass that not only collect solar power, but once connected through a city, or the nation, provide power through the glass sections under the surface, thus revamping our entire power grid network.
18 months ago the dude was looking for funding, and still getting reserach accomplished. He's hoping to put in a prototype this year at his facility.
Some quotes
How much would the solar highway cost? Brusaw calculates an estimated cost -- in great detail -- on his website. Short answer: each mile would cost $4.4 million. Payoff? A cleaner, self-sustaining highway that would eventually pay for itself in energy production and in other ways, he said.
-- How can glass provide enough traction while supporting the weight, wear and tear of a conventional concrete or asphalt highway? Glass, especially when fused together in layers, is stronger than most people think, said Brusaw. He said he's joined forces with top glass researchers at University of Dayton and Penn State who can develop super-strong glass that would offer vehicles the traction they need.
-- Can the solar highway's surface collect enough sunlight when it's filled with bumper-to-bumper traffic? Yes, he says. Even when roadways are filled with bumper-to-bumper traffic, solar collection would be at 50 percent, he estimates.
As for Brusaw, he hopes to win more private and federal support by demonstrating a new prototype smart-road parking lot to be finished in the spring.
His goal would be to partner with a high-profile national chain like McDonald's or Walmart to turn their conventional parking lots into solar-powered, interactive, temperature-controlled spaces where electric-vehicle owners can recharge their cars while they shop or drive across the country.
"The Federal Highway Administration told us they're not going to let us go out on the highway to start this," said Brusaw. "They told us to go into the parking lot first, prove your technology, perfect it and learn your lessons there -- which makes sense."
Electricity generated by the highway could be used to recharge electric vehicles and to power lights and LED warning signs along the road itself.
In fact, Brusaw believes that solar roadways -- if widely accepted -- could eventually generate clean electricity around the world, eliminating the need for fossil fuels and saving the planet from global climate change.
i'm a freaking visionary
click for more infos
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