One of the prize-winning innovations was the ICCAR solution for interfaces to heat and power roads, developed with Eiffage Énergie Systèmes. This is an ice- and snow-resistant carriageway, with electrically conductive paint beneath the road surface acting as a heat source and transferring the heat evenly to the surface. An automatic monitoring system optimises the power used. This resilient innovation will reduce the number and duration of maintenance operations for winter viability, and limit the environmental impacts of salting and gritting roads. Sites such as some bridges, carpooling parking areas, hospital emergency parking, etc. will be made safer and their roads will remain usable in all weathers.
Developed in partnership with the startup SurfactGreen, Actigreen® is an emulsion for use with bond coats, high-wear surface treatments and sealing coats. Its tensioactive agent, EmulGreenTM R-B, is made with over 80% renewable and local raw materials. Its composition includes a mix of agricultural by-products (beet) and an alcohol derived from vegetable oil (rapeseed). The tensioactive agent, EmulGreenTM R-B is certified non-toxic and environmentally safe, and biodegrades more readily than existing road surfacing products. Actigreen® emulsion also meets the requirements of the NF EN 13808 performance standard.
Established by the Ministry for Ecological and Inclusive Transition in association with IDRRIM and Cerema, and co-certified by AIT (the French Agency for Innovation in Transport), the “Routes et Rues” call for projects encourages the validation of innovations under real conditions on demonstration sites.
The innovations recognised this year have been certified by the industrial cluster infra2050. They will now be the focus of experiments by public contractors keen to test them in their regions. The solutions will then be monitored for three to five years by Cerema to verify their performance and durability.
Since the competition began, Eiffage has been recognised for 18 innovative solutions: Recyclean® and R6Pont in 2015; Aéroprène® in 2016; Recytal-ARM® and Luciole® in 2017; Microphone®Stéréo and Guid’N Grip® in 2018; LuminoKrom®Vision+, Biophalt®, Skinway® and PRFC in 2019; Bioklair® (formerly BioKrom®) and Flexocim® (formerly Bio-Ertalh®) in 2020; TramERS GB5®, ÉcOasis® and HPE in 2021; Orra® in 2022; and Carbon Light in 2023.