Photovoltaic Energy Of The Future? Panels On Roads And High-ways

One of the main problems with photovoltaic systems is the use of land areas. There is a shortage of roof surfaces for houses and industrial enterprises. For this reason, entire fields covered with solar panels are springing up in large areas around the world. This creates obvious land use problems, lesser in desert areas but huge in cultivated territories. One of the solutions already under implementation is the coexistence of agriculture and photovoltaic systems, the so-called “agrovoltaic systems,” but more innovative solutions are also being explored, such as road surfaces that produce energy by harnessing the sun.

The Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy, and Sustainable Economic Development (ENEA), in collaboration with the photovoltaic sector company TeaTek S.p.A., is developing photovoltaic panels capable of withstanding heavy loads and extreme weather events, suitable for highways, pedestrian, and bicycle streets in the city.

“We are studying the modules that, unlike conventional photovoltaic panels, can withstand static loads of up to several tons, the passage of moving vehicles, and even extreme weather conditions,” explains project coordinator Girolamo Di Francia. “When we talk about photovoltaic road applications, today we mostly mean surface coatings, wind barriers, paving pedestrian paths, bicycle paths, or tram tracks.”

According to ENEA calculations, installing photovoltaic panels on just 10% of Italian roads and highways would provide an energy generation capacity of more than 20 GW. The first application tests began “recently at a global level, with a particular focus on the possibility of developing safer and more efficient driving conditions,” the Italian research agency said in a statement.