Siemens Gamesa unveils recyclable wind turbine blade

Siemens Gamesa has introduced the world’s first recyclable wind turbine blade for commercial use offshore.

The company has produced the first six 81-metre (266-foot) long RecyclableBlades at its blade factory in Aalborg.

Many wind turbine components, such as the tower and nacelle, have established recycling practices. Until now, the composite materials used in wind turbine blades have been more challenging to recycle, the company said. The RecyclableBlade enables recycling at the end of its lifecycle.

The company’s wind turbine blades are made from a combination of materials cast together with resin to form a strong and flexible lightweight structure. The chemical structure of this new resin type makes it possible to efficiently separate the resin from the other components at end of the blade’s working life.

This mild process protects the properties of the materials in the blade, in contrast to other existing ways of recycling conventional wind turbine blades, the company said. The materials can then be reused in new applications after separation.

Siemens Gamesa and RWE are committed to install and monitor RecyclableBlades at the Kaskasi wind power plant offshore Germany. The project is expected to be operational in 2022.

It is also working with EDF Renewables and wpd with the aim to deploy several sets of RecyclableBlade at future offshore wind farms.

Source: Offshore Magazine