Basic Physics: Car and Ice

The Problem We All Face

You know when you are driving and then the next thing you know you are skidding off the road, well that has happened to me numerous time. Luckily I was not driving, so there is no blame that could be placed on me. However, there is a reason why it is easier to slide on ice than pavement. Since the force of friction is greater on pavement than on ice, it is easier for the car to skid. Common sense, right? 

However, the real question is how does this affect our driving?

Basically, the speed and direction take a lot more time to get to. For instance, think of a snowy day where you had to drive to La Salle. When you hard braked at the yellow light you might have discovered that it took you longer to break. Since the frictional force is lower on ice, it will be harder to stop since it takes more time to apply the force needed to stop. For speeding up it will also take more time. 

Now what about driving on a curb?

Well, first I say good luck. In order to change the direction of a car you would need a certain force to act upon it. That force is friction, and if the force of friction is less than changing the direction will take longer. So driving 85 miles per hour which I know most of us do probably would not be a good idea on a snowy day. 

Three Inventions That Aim To Minimize Snow Hazards

While driving in the snow is nerve-wrecking and scary, there are people in the world who are absolute genius who have our backs. 

Yuki-Taro 

The Yuki Taro is a Japanese Invention that would essentially ingest the snow through the front of the machine and compresses it into consolidated bricks of ice through the back. The robot will be self guided and it will have cameras that will keep it from venturing off course. The engineers in Niigata stated in 2013 that they would have a marketable version ready within five years. So who knows maybe we will see a bunch of Yuki Taros on the road. 

Solar Road Ways 

In addition to generating renewable energy the solar cells implemented on high ways would help keep roads free of snow and ice. The heating elements in the panels will prevent snow and ice accumulation providing safer surfaces to drive. 

Green Chemicals and Beet Juice 

A lot of environmentalist disapprove of road-salt since it kills a of neighboring plant life. The goal is to make a new solution with green chemicals and beet juice that will be just as or more effective than the road salt. In fact, recent studies show it has been effective but it is hard to obtain because it is also extremely pricy.  For this reason, "Illinois Department of Transportation has stopped using to due to the expense, and because of the coffee-colored mix might have left some sort of film on the windshields" department spokesman Mike Cliffy proclaimed.  

Is there really a solution?

While these inventions sound like they would help, they are too expensive to enforce. So the reality is that we are just going to have to keep driving in dangerous conditions. However, when driving we should remember to drive slower because by reducing the speed it requires a smaller amount of friction. For instance, if there is a greater friction they it takes less to stop the car since the force is so strong. However, if you have a smaller force of friction acting on the car then it will take more time for the car to stop. 

Works Cited:

https://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/technology-inventions-to-minimize-winter-hazards-snow-ice-robot-solar-roads/56127051

http://www.dummies.com/education/science/physics/basic-physics-force-and-friction/