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View Winners → Gatto Secures Funding for Cutting Edge Piezoelectricity Project
Arcadia Weekly Dec 20, 2012
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After two years of work, Assemblyman Mike Gatto (D-Los Angeles) has found a new partner in the fight for green transportation and domestically produced alternative energy. Building on an idea of Gatto’s, the California Energy Commission (CEC) has announced that it will fund preliminary research on the potential of using California’s roadways to generate green electricity.
The research will focus on the large-scale energy-harvesting capabilities of piezoelectric materials, which are currently used in everything from lighters to smart phones. The research stems from a bill authored by Gatto, AB 306, which passed the legislature in 2011 with bipartisan support but was vetoed by Governor Brown because of a lack of funding for the project. In the veto message, the Governor encouraged Gatto to work through the CEC’s grant process to obtain funding for the project, and a year later, the assemblyman has successfully secured the funding.
“I am excited to see movement on this important research,” said Gatto. “California is the car capitol of the world. Just think how much energy we could create if we can harness some of the wasted energy produced by cars and trucks as they rumble down the roads.”
The science of piezoelectric roads works as follows: When a car or truck passes over pavement, the pavement vibrates. By placing relatively inexpensive piezoelectric sensors underneath a road, the vibrations can be converted into electricity to power roadside lights, call boxes, and neighboring communities. It may sound like something out of science fiction, but this technology has been used for years in sonar, and is used every day in touch-screen phones to convert pressure into electrical impulses. There is no extra energy needed for the car to transverse piezoelectric highways, because the sensors are located in the pavement itself.
The Energy Commission should complete initial research on the technology by the end of January, 2013 and will determine, based on their findings, if a small-scale-test project will be conducted by the State.
