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The Minnesota Department of Transportation is evaluating the possibility of combining electricity production with snow barriers to protect roads.
In colder regions, such as Minnesota, high winds and snowfall can cause snow drifts on roads, making them dangerous and difficult to clear. These regions often build snow fences along roads to prevent snow drifts from accumulating on the pavement.
Now, researchers at North Dakota State University and the Minnesota Department of Transportation are evaluating the possibility of adding solar panels to snow fences, with the double benefit of adding clean energy production to an already urbanized space.
The solar fence is made up of 15cm wide solar panels with gaps in between. The fence blocks snow drifts. A 100-foot section of fence can produce between 20 kWh and 30 kWh per hour during the day in the northern climate, said Mijia Yang, an associate professor at North Dakota State and principal investigator on the project.
“With this 30-meter section, they produce enough energy to cover the energy needs of a normal home,” Yang told Minnesota Public Radio. “And that was quite revealing. “If it was done over a mile (1.6 km), it would be 50 homes.”
The Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) maintains about 58 km of composite snow fence across the state, part of a 285 km network of various types of windbreaks.
Some models of the solar fence developed by MnDOT also have mats heated with electricity powered by the photovoltaic array. This can help the department manage snow drifts, which can reach 3 meters high.
The economic analysis of the highway photovoltaic fence showed that it could reach breakeven in about four years, while the fence could last more than 20 years.
The next phase of the investigation consists of developing a plan for the destination of the electricity produced. One possibility would be to power electric vehicle charging stations at highway rest areas. MnDOT is also considering selling the generated electricity to third parties, which would generate more revenue for the department. |
