Lithuanian Researchers Propose Pyrolysis for Wind Turbine Blade Recycling
While wind energy is becoming one of the fastest-growing energy sources in the world, wind turbine blade waste emerges as a critical issue. Addressing this environmental concern, Lithuanian researchers have developed an innovative solution claiming that the benefits of pyrolysis can help reduce pollution.
In 2022, Dr Samy Yousef, a researcher at Kaunas University of Technology (KTU) Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Design, and a team of researchers from the Lithuanian Energy Institute completed a series of experiments to find a way to recycle wind turbine blades. As reported by KTU, their experiments consisted of breaking down old composite materials, such as glass fiber-reinforced epoxy resin composites, in a pyrolysis process using a special catalyst. By doing so, they aimed to separate valuable components for reuse and recycle old composite materials into useful energy.
Last year, in 2023, Dr Yousef and his team continued their experiments. This time – on real wind turbine blade fragments, provided by the Danish company “European Energy A/S”. The analysis of several wind turbine blades revealed that unsaturated polyester resins are predominant in the production of wind turbines in the Baltic region due to their cost-effectiveness compared to epoxy resins. Styrene, a main component of polyester resin, poses significant environmental and health risks. “When disposed of in landfills, it becomes highly toxic for humans and can cause lung cancer. In addition, styrene can pollute and poison groundwater and soil,” the information provided by the university said.
To address this, the research team made of KTU and Lithuanian Energy Institute scientists successfully extracted styrene from blades in the form of styrene-rich oil using a pyrolysis reactor. “The main goal of the research was to find a way to extract carbon fibers and resin from old wind turbine blades that are difficult to dispose of because they contain toxic substances and aren’t biodegradable,” Dr Yousef was cited. He added that during the experiments, the fibers, carbon and fiberglass were also recovered and purified through an oxidation process, offering a sustainable filler material to enhance the mechanical properties of composite materials.
Furthermore, the environmental impact of blade treatment using the pyrolysis process was calculated. “Conducting the life cycle assessment, Dr Yousef’s team has discovered the significant environmental potential of blade waste pyrolysis compared to landfill disposal. In particular, regarding global warming, stratospheric ozone depletion, and fossil and mineral resource scarcity,” KTU informed. Results revealed remarkable improvements in various environmental indicators, with enhancements between 43 to 51 percent. However, the strategy would still raise certain environmental challenges due to post-treatment processes such as washing and oxidation. An article on this method proposed by the researchers was published in Environmental Research 2024, volume 245.
(Published in GLOBAL RECYCLING Magazine 2/2024, Page 36, Photo: Hans Linde / pixabay.com)
