L. Bank et al, "Structural Analysis of FRP Parts from Waste Wind Turbine Blades for Building Reuse Applications"

Abstract

The focus of this work is on the problem of the future waste to be generated by the decommissioning of wind farms and especially the Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) composite materials used in the wind turbine blades. The FRP composites used to manufacture the blades are not biodegradable and present severe problems with regard to waste management and their End-of-Life (EOL). The impact on polymers on the environment and society has become a major concern in many countries. With the increased awareness of the environmental impacts of climate change, decreased and more expensive natural resources, and greater global concerns for health, the barriers to FRP production and waste disposal are likely to increase. In the context of the circular economy the preferred method to manage FRP waste is to use it in new applications or processes. Recent structural analysis research conducted by the authors related to reuse of FRP composite material parts from decommissioned wind turbine blades in infrastructure applications is presented in this paper.

Citation

L.C. Bank, F.R. Arias, T.R. Gentry, T. Al-Haddad, B. Tasistro-Hart, and J.F. Chen, “Structural analysis of FRP parts from waste wind turbine blades for building reuse applications,” SEMC 2019, Cape Town SOUTH AFRICA, Sept 2-4, 2019 in  Advances in Engineering Materials, Structures and Systems: Innovations, Mechanics and Applications – Zingoni (Ed.), pp. 1520-1524.