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Geek Culture / Solar Panel Roadways?!

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Kezzla
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Posted: 25th May 2014 02:02
Check this out.


It is a very cool and interesting idea.
If this ends up working as well as the pitch video states it would be amazing.
This is the sort of thing that could cause another technology shift on the same scale as the introduction of the internet or mobile devices.

anyway, I saw that video and the idea captivated me so I figured I'd share it with you.

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Quik
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Posted: 25th May 2014 03:39
It's a great idea, i hope it rolls off - however, the problem is that it'd be SO expensive - like ridiculously so.



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Dark Java Dude 64
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Posted: 25th May 2014 09:34
That's what I was going to say, and I was going to capitalize 'SO' as well. Great minds think alike eh?

Kezzla
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Posted: 25th May 2014 10:11
Yeah, price-wise it is difficult to imagine this actually being used, but its a cool idea.

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nonZero
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Posted: 25th May 2014 10:11
Can't watch the video (internet connection) but I think it's a nice idea in theory. As everyone says, it's "SO" expensive. Maintaining it would be hell. However if all buildings had solar panels on the roof, that would drastically help. Ultimately, I think we still need to look into pods of human-batteries as a viable energy source. Prisons are filling up and we waste valuable resources with executions. Come on people, let's plug them into a clean energy source

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Quik
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Posted: 25th May 2014 12:46
Quote: "That's what I was going to say, and I was going to capitalize 'SO' as well. Great minds think alike eh?"

Indeed; )


And well - the production cost would be massive, even today regular solar panels cost a butt ton to make, and then replacing ALL THE ROAD would be such a massive task and that doesnt come cheap either.
Ofc, it'd pay for itself in time, but yeah..



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TheComet
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Posted: 25th May 2014 18:47
There's a huge amount of grey energy involved with solar panels. The energy required to mine quartz, refine the silicon, cut it into shape, build the panels etc. requires them to be used for at least 3 years before they repay themselves.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/solar-cells-prove-cleaner-way-to-produce-power/

And that's under optimal conditions. On the bright side, solar power would decrease the CO2 emission by nearly 90%.

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MrValentine
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Posted: 25th May 2014 19:16


Interesting...

I however have my doubts... in a number of areas...

Fitting Solar panels to my current house is in the region of £5,500~12,000 and I understand that would just cover my daily energy usage and generate some £500~1500 a year in return by selling my excess power back to the grid...

My confusion comes when I have to involve the local councils [Local Government Bodies Thinkers] to get the stuff fitted....... as such I can see this hardly taking off in our lifetimes... but I would love to see it happen sooner than later...

Dark Java Dude 64
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Posted: 25th May 2014 19:27
Quote: "On the bright side, solar power would..."


Yodaman Jer
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Posted: 25th May 2014 20:29
Quote: "The energy required to mine quartz, refine the silicon, cut it into shape, build the panels etc. requires them to be used for at least 3 years before they repay themselves."


That's why they're using as many recycled pieces of glass as possible - to reduce some initial costs. Sure, it will still take a while for them to pay for themselves, but it certainly would be worth it in the end.

We are going to run out of coal sooner than later, if current power companies were smart they'd invest in this too.


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TheComet
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Posted: 25th May 2014 20:44 Edited at: 25th May 2014 20:44
Quote: "That's why they're using as many recycled pieces of glass as possible - to reduce some initial costs. Sure, it will still take a while for them to pay for themselves, but it certainly would be worth it in the end."


That wasn't my point, though. My point was that the energy required to make solar panels is only replenished after a minimum of 3 years, given the solar panels have sun light 12 hours a day.

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Seditious
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Posted: 25th May 2014 20:55
Quote: "if current power companies were smart they'd invest in this too."


In the short term it makes more (financial) sense to burn fossil fuels since they are readily available and the technology is inexpensive. And of course they generate a lot more power. The downside is that in the long term it's an unsustainable practice, and dirty.
Dark Java Dude 64
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Posted: 25th May 2014 22:54
Yeah, and what company plans for the future anyway?

CoffeeGrunt
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Posted: 27th May 2014 23:25
I'd love to love this as a concept, but it seems expensive and begs the question of which roads will they put this on? People are imagining highways being ideal, but those often have high volumes of traffic moving across them, which block the sun and would cause a lot of stress on the panels.

It seems best to use them on low traffic roads that are going to be sitting in the sun unobscured all day. However, those roads are the least likely to get the funding for it, unless solar country lanes become a fashionable thing.
Seppuku Arts
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Posted: 28th May 2014 02:41
Nice idea, but I think there are some drawbacks, particularly in initial cost and of course maintenance, if money saved was able to make it a worthwhile enough of an investment, then excellent. But this is why people create prototypes, this is why it's tested and trialed, it helps folks see whether or not it's worth doing. Like with many things out there, it can be fantastic on paper, but not necessarily in the real world. If it's something that does what it says on the tin, it works and it offers a solution that's viable, then fantastic, I'm all for it. But I am the skeptical sort. That's one of the annoying thing about science, there's a lot of amazing things, but not all of them get to change our world. But, even then, if you look back at the last 100 years there has been a lot of amazing discoveries in science and advances in technology - with things we take for granted that should really blow our minds. I say as I am typing on a computer.

MrValentine
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Posted: 28th May 2014 02:51
As the PM system fails to inform, Sepp you got mail...

TheComet
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Posted: 28th May 2014 10:39 Edited at: 28th May 2014 10:40
Well okay then...



http://betabeat.com/2014/05/solar-roadways-reaches-full-funding-to-transform-america-into-tron/

Let's see how far this actually goes.

I wonder if the modules can be hacked? There's some way to communicate to them to set light patterns and stuff, so I wonder how secure their connection is.

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MrValentine
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Posted: 28th May 2014 11:10
That should be enough to cover 30 meters of road... of a single lane...



Quik
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Posted: 28th May 2014 13:16
don't really think the point of the indiegogo is to fill the US with solar panels, more like spreading awareness and getting people to get that: This is a thing.

Well - it's a wild guess.



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Kezzla
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Posted: 30th May 2014 14:51
I share the skepticism of the people looking at this realistically in terms of actual implementation. I like the idea and its impacts should it be developed. Much Like Nikola Tesla's visions, money may hold them back, but if they were only to be realized...

I guess being a computer game creating community we are pretty well equipped to imagine and walk around in these worlds as we see them.

Idea's like these make me feel excited for our future. Who knows what "impossible to realize" things will be commonplace in the future. Bring on the flying cars... wait...

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Quik
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Posted: 30th May 2014 15:36
oh yes - it does make me excitedfor the future, and I really hope they get the funding to atleast kick it off - after that, who knows what will happen. I'm just sceptical it will happen that fast really ^^



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Yodaman Jer
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Posted: 31st May 2014 06:59
Well, we ARE running out of coal - don't they say we only have about 50 years left, if that?

We will have to look into alternatives, this one seems pretty good although there are some flaws that other's have pointed out. I love the idea but I definitely see it being an issue monetarily!


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CoffeeGrunt
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Posted: 1st Jun 2014 16:06
Quote: " don't they say we only have about 50 years left, if that?"


I remember hearing this as a kid ten years ago. Does anyone really know how much is left? We keep developing new means to make more out of less and less as time goes on...
TheComet
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Posted: 3rd Jun 2014 00:01 Edited at: 3rd Jun 2014 00:02
Quote: "I remember hearing this as a kid ten years ago. Does anyone really know how much is left? We keep developing new means to make more out of less and less as time goes on..."


Well the fact is that we are past the peak.



No one knows for sure how long we've still got oil, but that is definitely not an excuse to not care about our future.

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Yodaman Jer
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Posted: 3rd Jun 2014 21:00
So judging by that image, it looks like the end of the oil-based economy could be somewhere in the late 2030s to mid 2040s?

That's 15-20ish years. That's kind of scary that it could be that close - we really need alternatives!


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Quik
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Posted: 4th Jun 2014 00:02
We do - but we really don't have anything "Viable" yet. Wind turbines are absolute crap - and solar energy works for half the world and half it doesnt. (anything nordic does have a lot less effect from solar energy - resulting in it not being viable)

I mean - look at sweden - we have 12 nuclear plants and a butt ton of water based energy. The nuclear plants cover 40% of our energy. and 40 more from the water stuff. It'd take 5000 wind turbines to cover 1nuclear plant - and that's just so many.
and as said - here in the north solar aint an option. And we're even running on low during winters - meaning we do import energy due to winter.


As it is now - nothing's really viable. Maybe Bio fuel - but other than that, I don't really see a solution. This would be it - or something along these lines; Moving energy generating away from simple stations and dedicated use, into our everyday lives



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Phaelax
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Posted: 4th Jun 2014 04:23
Looks very expensive. Not just for the panels, but for all the underground tunnels to connect the wiring.

LEDs, while they have their benefits, I don't want my freaking street glowing at night.

Winter time? Unless the panels are heated, what happens when they're convered in snow/ice? How well can they stand up to a snow plow or salt?

MrValentine
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Posted: 4th Jun 2014 04:36
Phaelax almost hit on something...

I am pretty sure these LEDs would be emitting certain light waves which would affect both Human sleeping patterns and Animal sleeping patterns... Imagine an OWL hooting at Midday...

easter bunny
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Posted: 4th Jun 2014 06:56
I think putting as much effort into Fusion research would be the best thing to do. It's the only hypothesized plan that will create huge amounts of power with little pollution.
Current nuclear reactors have the obvious problems, and wind/tide/solar methods don't generate enough energy. Fusion has just one problem, it generates too much energy Get around that (either by reducing the amount of energy generated, of by harnessing it more effectively), and the worlds energy problems are solved for the next few centuries at least, and by that time, there'll be more effective ways extending that period indefinitely.


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Quik
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Posted: 4th Jun 2014 09:04
Quote: "Winter time? Unless the panels are heated, what happens when they're convered in snow/ice? How well can they stand up to a snow plow or salt?"

They did state them to be automaticly self heated - so, if that's the case, that'd save us swedes a lot of work during winter ; )

Easter Bunny - only way to make fusion energy worthwhile is to make it.. well - not make any waste. The waste from fusion energy doesnt go away Currently we bury it in the ground in the hopes nobody goes wherever we bury it
Fusion is great for energy yes - but the waste is horrible.



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Blobby 101
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Posted: 4th Jun 2014 11:16
@Quik
Quote: "The waste from fusion energy doesnt go away Currently we bury it in the ground in the hopes nobody goes wherever we bury it"
Isn't that fission? I'm not an expert but I was under the impression fusion was a much cleaner alternative.

I really like this idea, if they can get past the cost barriers. I'm not sure light pollution would really be an issue, it's not like they'd have entire roadways glowing constantly. The lights for warnings would be fairly tame compared to the light we already get at night from streetlights/lit up signs etc.

easter bunny
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Posted: 4th Jun 2014 11:22
Quote: "Easter Bunny - only way to make fusion energy worthwhile is to make it.. well - not make any waste. The waste from fusion energy doesnt go away Currently we bury it in the ground in the hopes nobody goes wherever we bury it
Fusion is great for energy yes - but the waste is horrible."

What Blobby said, that's Fission. Fission is where you create a chain reaction with nuclear material. Fusion is where you take raw Hydrogen and turn it into Helium.
Here's a link: http://www.diffen.com/difference/Nuclear_Fission_vs_Nuclear_Fusion
So far nobody's figured out how to make a fusion reactor though.


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Indicium
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Posted: 4th Jun 2014 17:29
Fusion reactors have indeed been built - they just don't work very well.


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CoffeeGrunt
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Posted: 6th Jun 2014 20:53
Quote: "No one knows for sure how long we've still got oil, but that is definitely not an excuse to not care about our future."


Oh yes, that's certainly true. I was just saying that as we move to more efficient means of using it, it'll likely draw out the demise of oil over a couple of decades or so.

Quote: "Fusion reactors have indeed been built - they just don't work very well."


Many of them have been test runs for different aspects of Fusion. Hottest plasma, best in:out ratio, longest sustained reaction, and various people champion various solutions from lasers to induction to even synchronised hammer strikes to fuse the Deuterium and Tritium together.

ITER is the endgame for all these tests, and hopefully it becomes the first reactor to put out a worthwhile amount more than the energy put into it.
Neuro Fuzzy
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Posted: 6th Jun 2014 23:25
I like this video on the matter:


He did a similar teardown on the idea of powdered alcohol (which, if you haven't heard of it, prepare to get your hopes raised then dashed ^^)



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