Dutch city installs solar footpath

[boB]

The picture looks like these might actually be a more robust type of PV that you walk on but that might be deceiving.

Just isn't any space above ground in Holland I guess.   

https://www.pv-magazine.com/2023/04/05/dutch-city-installs-solar-footpath/

[pcprogrammer]

Should be a sign stating "no dogs allowed", to keep performance up to par. 

A bit confused by the article. In the beginning it states being able to handle 2 tons load without causing micro cracks, but later on they mention that the paves can be used on driveways and vehicles up to 8 tons can drive on it. 

[Berni]

Looks pretty robust they also look aesthetically more pleasing. The paved path actually looks like it fits in.

Still a dumb idea, but at least this is the best implementation of it that i seen so far.

I wonder if the pavers can be replaced one by one (if one dies) and how they are actually connected. With the low voltage output id guess they likely have 50 to 200 of these in series, so a break in the connection could knock out a lot of them.

[SeanB]

Note how the install is designed so the only vehicles that can go on it are bicycles, and they also only give the solar cell efficiency, not the actual module efficiency, which I suspect is going to be a whole lot worse, seeing as they have a heavy glass top on them. With the 5kg mass of each tile, I would say you can have the same mass and a roof mounted 100W panel, instead of the likely 10W output.

[redkitedesign]

Should be a sign stating "no dogs allowed", to keep performance up to par. 

That would be an improvement on any Dutch footpath

A bit confused by the article. In the beginning it states being able to handle 2 tons load without causing micro cracks, but later on they mention that the paves can be used on driveways and vehicles up to 8 tons can drive on it. 

Well, any vehicle more than 3.5tons in .NL has at least 4 wheels. 4x2=8, so its kinda obvious isn't it?

[Haenk]

I wonder how fast it will be scratched up enough to drop to near zero efficiency. I give it less than a year.

[MrMobodies]

I like how the utility covers blend in a little with the concrete.

The system’s performance is being monitored through an app .

Is that the ONLY means they have for it.

Our patented technology has been developed so no microcracks appear in the solar cell and do not affect the performance,” Helga Ruscsák, marketing manager at Platio, told pv magazine when asked about mechanical stress. “This rule is valid under intended use, i.e. if a Platio solar paver is not subjected to a pressure of more than 2 tons. Therefore it is safe to walk on it.”

So that doesn't include just putting on grassy muddy area where the weeds could grow through it like that other one that caught fire in Germany? in 2018 where they had to put a cover over it,

Hungary-based Platio has developed a damage-resistant path made of solar tiles.

Interesting to see if it lives up to their claims,

[pcprogrammer]

Should be a sign stating "no dogs allowed", to keep performance up to par. 

That would be an improvement on any Dutch footpath

A bit confused by the article. In the beginning it states being able to handle 2 tons load without causing micro cracks, but later on they mention that the paves can be used on driveways and vehicles up to 8 tons can drive on it. 

Well, any vehicle more than 3.5tons in .NL has at least 4 wheels. 4x2=8, so its kinda obvious isn't it?

Yeah that dawned on me a while after I wrote it. But still quite a bit of a different load from a bunch of pedestrians to an 8 ton vehicle. Look at an average driveway, how it forms tracks after a prolonged period of usage. What will it do with these paves? Also you can't park your car during the day because it kills the yield. To me all these ideas are just plain stupid.

Put them on roofs and be done with it.

I wonder how fast it will be scratched up enough to drop to near zero efficiency. I give it less than a year.

The article states 5 years warranty 

Probably does not include wear and tear.

[redkitedesign]

Look at an average driveway, how it forms tracks after a prolonged period of usage. What will it do with these paves? Also you can't park your car during the day because it kills the yield. To me all these ideas are just plain stupid.

Put them on roofs and be done with it.

Well, the concrete tiles used for driveways (and pavements) don't really deform, it's the ground underneath that tends to compress. And asphalt deforms too of course.

Putting them on roofs is much easier and cheaper indeed, and covering all roofs in .NL with solar panels would produce more electricity than the total (renewable+fossil+nuclear) energy consumption of the country. Albeit at the wrong time :-)

[pcprogrammer]

Well, the concrete tiles used for driveways (and pavements) don't really deform, it's the ground underneath that tends to compress. And asphalt deforms too of course.

When talking about the 30x30cm concrete slabs used to pave the walkways these tend to break when used on driveways. The thicker bricks can sustain much more, but indeed due to compression of the sand and soil underneath the problems come, end even these thicker bricks break some times. And over time they erode. These transparent glass tiles mentioned here might erode quicker.

But they use recycled materials and that is all the fashion now a days. 

[Helio_Centra]

Do all the near by buildings already have roof-top solar? If not then there's no reason to put them in the footpath.

[SiliconWizard]

This will save the planet, though.

[boB]

This will save the planet, though.

    

[Marco]

So one truck dropping off some building material at the front door and it's all cracked?

[SiliconWizard]

So one truck dropping off some building material at the front door and it's all cracked?

Nah, that's a conspiracy theory. It never cracks.

[AndyBeez]

Please correct my maths if I am wrong... from the article each cell is 21.5W and there are 2,544 of them. So the output is 54,696Wh. The article claims 55,000Kwh 'per year'. Not sure how they arrived at this figure?

Assuming the sun shines in Groningen. Solar insolation in KW per meter square meter can be found here : https://weatherspark.com/y/54892/Average-Weather-in-Groningen-Netherlands-Year-Round#Figures-SolarEnergy

I wonder if the power goes down when people walk on the pavement? No loitering on the solar pavement.

+ works at night under street lights.

[The Soulman]

Some eevblog member should go over there to take some photos for the forum..

Edit:
Found it: https://www.google.com/maps/@53.206346,6.5884407,3a,15y,310.05h,87.53t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1smsQKNFcKQSWomP6Jbg7MRQ!2e0!7i16384!8i8192

[coppice]

A bit confused by the article. In the beginning it states being able to handle 2 tons load without causing micro cracks, but later on they mention that the paves can be used on driveways and vehicles up to 8 tons can drive on it. 

A confusing article about technology? I'm shocked. The article actually says a pressure of 2 tons, but tons is not a pressure. 2 tons per tile might be a good strength. 2 tons for the whole area wouldn't. Saying vehicles up to 8 tons is a bit better, as there are regulations about the minimum ground contact area for heavy vehicles, so that sets some pressure bounds.

[EEVblog]

Ah, it's Platio again:

[redkitedesign]

Please correct my maths if I am wrong... from the article each cell is 21.5W and there are 2,544 of them. So the output is 54,696Wh. The article claims 55,000Kwh 'per year'. Not sure how they arrived at this figure?

2544 times 21.5W will be somewhere close to 55000W. Not close to 55000 Wh.

However, 1kWh production per year for every Wp of installed solar is a pretty accurate rule of thumb for solar in the Netherlands.