ANOTHER Solar Roadways FAIL - Hengelo

[EEVblog]

This "solar bridge" in Hengelo in the Netherlands is starting to fail 2 months after opening, to the surprise of absolutely no one.
When will the madness stop?

[benst]

According to https://solarmagazine.nl/nieuws-zonne-energie/i13271/dura-vermeer-bouwt-in-hengelo-brug-met-zonnecellen-in-wegdek the solar panels are from Colas Wattway.

[blackbird]

I work just close (less than 1 Km) by this bridge (@eevblog , at your former French employer  ) and the opening of this bridge was delayed several times. Planned was the opening early January this year but the actual opening was beginning of June.

The bridge was built by Dura Vermeer (a large construction company in The Netherlands) and the have a website about this project: https://www.duravermeer.nl/nieuws/dura-vermeer-bouwt-met-innovatieve-aanpak-boekelosebrug-in-hengelo. Site is in Dutch, here a google translated link: https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=auto&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.duravermeer.nl%2Fnieuws%2Fdura-vermeer-bouwt-met-innovatieve-aanpak-boekelosebrug-in-hengelo

The municipality of Hengelo had issued a fine to the constructor for the delaying the opening of the bridge. As a response the constructor has taken the municipality of Hengelo to court. Translated site: https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=nl&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cobouw.nl%2Finfra%2Fnieuws%2F2019%2F03%2Fdura-vermeer-sleept-hengelo-over-nul-op-de-meterbrug-101270730%3Fvakmedianet-approve-cookies%3D1%26_ga%3D2.17320319.75483021.1565554146-1671730533.1564145664&sandbox=1

[floobydust]

"It would become the very first 'zero energy bridge' in the Netherlands. Thanks to Wattway's solar panels Colas, France, in the asphalt construction, the bridge has to provide its own energy, for example for the lighting."

Hmmm, those proven winners are made by French WATTWAY. Details are in the WATTWAY® patented resin-film construction and https://patents.google.com/patent/FR3073106A1/en. Seems to limit them to 60V to elude regulatory and safety but they are frequently wired in series...

The failed solar bike pathway in Erftstadt, Germany seems to also be using those WATTWAY solar panels? The city tossed it back to TÜV-Rheinland.
A problem is there are no (safety) standards for solar roadways yet. I think it ended up being high voltage and grid tie? The electrical fires are a concern.

[Brumby]

This adds a whole new meaning to the term "burn-out"!

Cars have been doing this to roads for years - and now the roads can fight back!

[nctnico]

"It would become the very first 'zero energy bridge' in the Netherlands. Thanks to Wattway's solar panels Colas, France, in the asphalt construction, the bridge has to provide its own energy, for example for the lighting."

Hmmm, those proven winners are made by French WATTWAY. Details are in the WATTWAY® patented resin-film construction and https://patents.google.com/patent/FR3073106A1/en. Seems to limit them to 60V to elude regulatory and safety but they are frequently wired in series...

To me the panels used on the bridge look like older models from Colas with a glass surface. I don't understand why these ended up on the bridge because Colas seems to have abandoned this design a long time ago. The patents you linked to describe the more recently designed flexible stick-on panels.

I'm not sure whether the panels are linked in series or not. In the end the entire installation has to pass generic safety regulations for electrical installations. There is no 'eluding' there. Limiting the individual modules to 60V is probably done to make the panels safe to handle individually.

[wavetrex]

Hi, an update on this 4 months later:

One line of panels completely peeled off, the other one is half opaque dirt, half peeled off.



See all the pictures here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/wtxify/albums/72157710182784491/with/49071096878/

The panels make a lot of noise when cars pass over, like a drum-roll: CLACKdrdrdrdrdrdrdrdrCLACK

I don't want to know what happens if someone has to do a hard brake while on these things... they seem very shiny and slippery !

Video:


Please excuse the silly editing, i'm a total noob, just learning basic commands in Premiere