China also has its own sunny road. A section of the photovoltaic highway developed by the Qilu Transportation Development Group has just been inaugurated. It is located near Jinan, the capital of the Chinese province of Shandong and is part of the ring road that surrounds the city
He is about to end up run over, his mother saves him
China also has its own sunny road. A section of the photovoltaic highway developed by the Qilu Transportation Development Group has just been inaugurated. It is located near Jinan, the capital of the Chinese province of Shandong and is part of the ring road that surrounds the city.
This freeway has three levels: the photovoltaic panels are located in the center, in the lower part there is an insulating layer while above the panels, for protection, there is a transparent and load-bearing layer that allows sunlight to penetrate.
The panels extend over an area of 5.875 square meters, covering two lanes and an emergency lane. They are able to generate one million kilowatt hours of clean energy per year, the same that would meet the daily needs of about 800 families according to what established by Qilu Transportation Development Group, the developer of the project.
The electricity produced by this section will be used to power the street lights, signs, surveillance cameras, tunnel and toll booth installations, but not only. The excess will be supplied to the state network. It is also designed to power electric vehicle charging stations as soon as they are added.
The designer Zhang Hongchao said that the road can withstand a pressure 10 times higher than normal asphalted ones.
A further confirmation of China's willingness to focus on solar. Despite being one of the countries in the world to produce the largest amount of polluting emissions, the Asian giant is also the world's leading producer of solar energy. In 2016, its photovoltaic capacity was around 78 gigawatts, and by 2020 it is expected to reach 105 gigawatts.
Record numbers. To cite another example, the city of Huainan operates the largest floating photovoltaic project in the world, which once completed will be able to power nearly 100 homes.
This is not the first photovoltaic road in the world. There are already several such projects. About a year ago France inaugurated its solar strasda, the WattWay project by Colas which will meet the energy needs of 3400 people, in the center of Tourouvre-au-Perche. Even in the United States, a section of the famous Route66 has become photovoltaic. Bike paths also take advantage of the sun, especially in the Netherlands where the Solar Road is now a reality.
READ also:
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The inaugurated stretch is 1 km long but it will take some time before the project can expand, mainly due to the higher costs compared to normal roads. In fact, there is talk of 3.000 yuan per square meter (about € 385).
Francesca Mancuso
