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The project-life assumption of wind turbines is around 30 years. Notably, around 85% of turbine components such as steel and copper wire are recyclable.
To achieve high strength and lightweight, the blades of wind turbines are made out of fiberglass bonded together by epoxy resin. However, the complexity of fiberglass, composed of intricate strands of plastic and glass that are bounded by resin, makes it challenging to recycle.
In the United States, around 8,000 blades were decommissioned each year. Most of these retired wind blades end up in landfills, with the Casper Landfill in Wyoming receiving about 1,500 blades in 2019 alone.
Photo credit: Getty Images
Addressing the recycling challenge, Siemens Gamesa, a Spanish-German wind engineering company, developed a recyclable blade that improved the recycling process of blades. The blades were produced the same way as the standard blade manufacturing process, except that the resin used made possible efficient separation, by immersing with heated mild acid solution. The blade is used in RWE’s Kaskasi offshore wind power project in Germany, which is currently in operation.
Further innovations in blade recycling are underway, with Danish company Continuum Composite Recycling pioneering a technology to repurpose decommissioned blades into panels that can be used for building facades, floorings, and in wet rooms. The technology breaks materials into small fragments of 0.5 to 2 millimeters, exposed with resin and an additive, then compress with high temperature and pressure. The factory is expected to be operational by 2026.
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