| Title |
Sustainability of polymer composites and its critical role in revolutionising wind power for green future / |
| Authors |
Subadra, Sharath P ; Griskevicius, Paulius |
| DOI |
10.21595/stge.2021.21974 |
| Full Text |
|
| Is Part of |
Sustainable technologies for green economy.. Kaunas : JVE Journals. 2021, vol. 1, iss. 1, p. 1-7.. ISSN 2669-2457 |
| Keywords [eng] |
polymer composites ; thermosets ; thermoplastics ; wind turbines ; recycling ; green economy. |
| Abstract [eng] |
Fibre reinforced polymer composites are gaining wide acceptability in different sectors due their high specific mechanical properties. They have effectively replaced conventional material like metals in many applications thus imparting lighter weight with higher efficiency. Wind energy sector has grown tremendously over the last decade and as per “The Global Wind Turbine Market-Forecasts from 2020 to 2025”, global wind turbine market was valued at US$ 90.144 billion in 2019 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 5.34 % to reach an estimated market size of US$123.154 billion by 2025. Wind turbine blades are fabricated using fibre reinforced composites with ideally a balsa or foam core. The composites used in this case are essentially glass reinforced in epoxy resins, and these highly engineered materials are difficult to recycle as epoxy is a thermoset resin and are not re-mouldable. This poses an environmental problem and a loss in terms of recoverable capital. Thermoplastics as against thermosets could be an alternative resin material for the blades but this has been less explored by the wind sector. The use of thermoplastic could impart cost reductions due to shorter manufacturing cycle times, recovery of raw materials and reduced tooling adjustments in terms of heating. Recovery of composite constituent parts can provide economic benefits because those constituent parts have high embedded energy. In the context of this dilemma of recyclability of wind turbine blades, this review paper intent to explore the current research and future prospect of recycling wind turbine blade materials. |
| Published |
Kaunas : JVE Journals |
| Type |
Journal article |
| Language |
English |
| Publication date |
2021 |
| CC license |
|
