1. UEE Seminar Series Transportation, Environment and Energy
Distinguished Speakers’
Hosted by School of Urban & Environmental Engineering
Transportation, Environment and Energy
To Stimulate Creative Economy
Speaker : Kang-Won Wayne Lee
(University of Rhode Island)
Abstract
When I worked as a highway construction inspector with the New Jersey Department of Transportation (DOT) in 1978, I was fascinated by the US Interstate Highway System (10 South to North by 9 West to East) and decided to pursue my doctoral program at the University of Texas at Austin. After becoming the first Korean to be awarded a doctorate in highway (or pavement) engineering, I was involved in building the Saudi Arabian highway network from 1982 to I was also fortunate enough to contribute to building the 9 by 7 South Korean Expressway and Highway system from I believe that the 47 year old Expressway System started under late President Chunghee Park has been a major impetus for South Korean economic development and success. However, the pavement and transportation infrastructure have been worn out, and those require tender loving care, e.g., a sustainable Pavement Management System (PMS). PMS is a planning tool that is able to evaluate pavement condition and deterioration due to the traffic and environmental effects, and contains a series of decision units to determine how and when to maintain and/or rehabilitate the pavement based on condition survey results. We also need to promote an intelligent transportation infrastructure and system (ITIS) which will be a harmonious platform for the continuous economy growth.
All day long the road pavements receive solar energy from the sun rays, storing much of them as heat that is left to dissipate by nightfall. The concept of harvesting solar energy from asphalt pavement is enticing because it offers a way to collect solar energy by utilizing an extensive infrastructure that already exists. Thus, there was a need to investigate novel methods for solar energy harvesting and conversion with potential economic efficiency substantially beyond that of current technology. A pilot study identified four potential approaches, i.e., (1) Flexible Photovoltaic Cells, (2) Embedding Conductive Pipes in Asphalt Pavement, (3) Utilizing the Thermoelectric Effect and (4) Solar Roadways. In the end the main premise to this study was completed to the best abilities to all those involved. This is still a very new idea for the transportation industry and must be researched more to apply to real world scenarios. The idea that these different methods could be applied to everyday life is very intriguing. With more industries concentrating on greener technologies these different methods can help utilize and untapped source of energy that is ignored every day.
Date & Time : 4:00 pm, Dec. 5, 2013 (Thu.)
Location : T-202 EB2
Contact : Prof. Sung-Han Sim(2816)