Energy Harvesting Technologies and Devices from Vehicular Transit and Natural Sources on Roads for a Sustainable Transport: State-of-the-Art Analysis and Commercial Solutions

Roberto De Fazio, Mariangela De Giorgi, Donato Cafagna, Carolina Del-Valle-Soto and Paolo Visconti ()
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Roberto De Fazio: Department of Innovation Engineering, University of Salento, 73100 Lecce, Italy
Mariangela De Giorgi: Department of Innovation Engineering, University of Salento, 73100 Lecce, Italy
Donato Cafagna: Department of Innovation Engineering, University of Salento, 73100 Lecce, Italy
Carolina Del-Valle-Soto: Facultad de Ingeniería, Universidad Panamericana, Álvaro del Portillo 49, Zapopan 45010, Mexico
Paolo Visconti: Department of Innovation Engineering, University of Salento, 73100 Lecce, Italy

Energies, 2023, vol. 16, issue 7, 1-46

Abstract: The roads we travel daily are exposed to several energy sources (mechanical load, solar radiation, heat, air movement, etc.), which can be exploited to make common systems and apparatus for roadways (i.e., lighting, video surveillance, and traffic monitoring systems) energetically autonomous. For decades, research groups have developed many technologies able to scavenge energy from the said sources related to roadways: electromagnetism, piezoelectric and triboelectric harvesters for the cars’ stress and vibrations, photovoltaic modules for sunlight, thermoelectric solutions and pyroelectric materials for heat and wind turbines optimized for low-speed winds, such as the ones produced by moving vehicles. Thus, this paper explores the existing technologies for scavenging energy from sources available on roadways, both natural and related to vehicular transit. At first, to contextualize them within the application scenario, the available energy sources and transduction mechanisms were identified and described, arguing the main requirements that must be considered for developing harvesters applicable on roadways. Afterward, an overview of energy harvesting solutions presented in the scientific literature to recover energy from roadways is introduced, classifying them according to the transduction method (i.e., piezoelectric, triboelectric, electromagnetic, photovoltaic, etc.) and proposed system architecture. Later, a survey of commercial systems available on the market for scavenging energy from roadways is introduced, focusing on their architecture, performance, and installation methods. Lastly, comparative analyses are offered for each device category (i.e., scientific works and commercial products), providing insights to identify the most promising solutions and technologies for developing future self-sustainable smart roads.

Keywords: energy harvesting; vehicle transit; vibrations; piezoelectric transducers; solar roadways (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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