We’ve been familiar with solar power for decades. Without a doubt, its potential is huge, especially if you’re to use it to power every vehicle out there. Unfortunately, solar panels take up a lot of space to be set up and the truth is, our country won’t grow any bigger. To compensate for the lack of space, Solar Roadway from Idaho has a radical idea: use every asphalt-covered road out there as real-estate for these solar panels. This way, it can supply the country’s energy needs.

Though it may seem really radical and perhaps even ridiculous, the DOT has given the said company a 100,000 dollar contract in order to demonstrate this proposal. Basically, solar road panels are composed of three layers. The bottom later contains all the data and power lines so electrical power can be distributed properly. The middle layer contains the solar cells and LEDs. Last but not the least, the top layer is translucent so that the sun’s rays can pass through.

Right now, everything is still in its conceptual stage and it’ll take decades before a real solar road panel can be used. Fact is, there are thousands of roads in the US and if you transform each of them into a solar road panel, it can create havoc when it comes to traffic. Aside from that, it’ll take such a long time for all of these roads to be transformed.

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2. Prius Goes Solar
3. Louis Palmer Goes Around the World in His Solartaxi
4. Another Green Car From Ford: The Ford Edge Hydrogen Plug-in Hybrid
5. What You Need to Know About High-MPG Cars

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