Far from being paved with gold, city streets could soon be covered in pig manure. Researchers from Carolina University have discovered that pig manure is rich in oils that are well suited for use in asphalt roads.
The group has developed a process that transforms the waste into a binder suitable for use in the production of asphalt. At a cost of around 10p per litre to process, this new bio-adhesive provides a far cheaper binder than petroleum. However, the intensive pig farming industry of which it is by-product has an environmental cost of its own. Pig farms around the world produce over 162.5 billion litres of swine manure every year.
While pig manure-derived bio-adhesive may not be ethically and environmentally benign, as the world slowly weans itself off oil and the cost of petroleum-based asphalt increases, the two million miles of asphalt paved roads in America will have to have a sustainable approach of its own.
A section of Route 66 in Missouri is to benefit from America’s first solar road panels for public use. The solar panels are six by four metres in size and will power signs and illuminated road signage. The SolaRoad is already in use in Europe on cycle paths.
The idea behind SolaRoad is simple: sunlight on the road surface is absorbed by solar cells and converted into electricity, which is used for street lighting. The panels are laid as prefabricated slabs topped with crystalline silicon solar cells protected beneath a translucent layer of tempered glass. The surface is engineered to be skid resistant.
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