Question

A company is developing a system which can heat up and melt ice on roads in the winter. This system is called 'energy storage'.

During the summer, the black surface of the road will heat up in the sunshine.
This energy will be stored in a large amount of soil deep under the road surface. Pipes will run through the soil. In winter, cold water entering the pipes will be warmed and brought to the surface to melt ice.
The system could work well because the road surface is black.
Suggest why.​

Answer 1

Step-by-step explanation:

The color of a surface can affect how much solar energy it absorbs or reflects. Black surfaces absorb more solar radiation than lighter-colored surfaces, which reflects more of the sunlight. This is because black surfaces have a lower albedo, which is a measure of how much light a surface reflects.

When a black surface, such as a road, is exposed to sunlight, it absorbs more of the sun's energy, which is then converted into heat. This heat is then transferred to the soil underneath the road surface, where it can be stored for later use. During winter, the pipes running through the soil can be used to extract this stored heat and warm the cold water, which can then be used to melt ice on the road surface.

Therefore, the black surface of the road is beneficial for this energy storage system because it allows for more efficient absorption of solar energy, which can then be used to heat the soil and melt ice during the winter months.