Thermal Behavior of a Novel Solar Hybrid Road for Energy Harvesting

Transportation is undergoing a radical transformation toward novel way of thinking about road pavement: sustainable, multifunctional infrastructure able to satisfy mobility needs, ensuring high safety standards, low carbon impact, automated detection through smart sensors, and resilience against natural anthropogenic hazards. In this scenario, the could also play role for energy harvesting, thanks exploitation solar radiation. The latter can be directly converted into electricity by cells placed under semitransparent layer, or it harvested calorific flowing fluid. aim paper introduce concept “hybrid road,” which exploit both approaches. innovative pavement multilayered structure composed top layer made glass aggregates bonded together resin, an electrical containing cells, porous asphalt circulation fluid, finally, base waterproof layer. hybrid generate electricity, contrast heat-island effect, run heat pump heating purposes, facilitate deicing during winter. present details experimental data obtained energetic tests performed with laboratory-size prototype road. results show that harvest around 55.2 W heat-transfer Furthermore, exchange between water has cooling effect on entire prototype.