FORGING THE BLADES OF THE FUTURE WITH COMPOSITE MATERIALS WITH CIRCULAR, SAFE AND SUSTAINABLE DESIGN
HORIZON-CL5-2023-D3-02-15 > | Grant agreement ID: 101147451
April 2024 – September 2027
The European Commission aims for climate neutrality by 2050, with wind power expected to supply 50% of the EU’s electricity by then. However, end-of-life (EoL) management of wind turbines presents environmental challenges, particularly in recycling composite materials like glass and carbon fiber used in turbine blades. Current recycling methods are costly and inefficient, and wind turbine blades are projected to contribute significantly to thermoset composite waste in the coming years. Future innovations should focus on developing high-performance, bio-based materials with enhanced recyclability and new, greener recycling technologies to improve economic feasibility and reduce environmental impact.
The BLADE2CIRC project aims to make wind turbine blades more sustainable by using high-performance, bio-based composites to improve performance and recyclability. This initiative seeks to reduce the environmental impact of wind energy and promote a circular economy where materials are efficiently reused.
Biobased Thermoset and Dynamic Materials: The company will design bisphenol-free bio-based epoxy resins, dynamic building-blocks, and unsaturated polyester resins for structural applications in WTB, with enhanced repairability, recyclability, and reprocessability (3R properties). These materials will incorporate reversible bonds that support degradation through chemical or enzymatic processes, promoting circularity.
Advanced WTB Recycling Technologies: The company will develop a cutting-edge chemical process to dissolve crosslinked polymers in WTBs, achieving 100% dissolution and improving sustainability by using greener solvents and milder reaction conditions. Moreover, structural resin, adhesive and coating materials will be designed to eventually facilitate their enzymatic degradation at their end-of-life
Biocomposite Material Development and Performance Validation: The company will design and develop the materials for WTB applications, using molecular dynamics simulations to predict and analyze the impact of dynamic bonds on the polymer networks. These materials will be validated through virtual modeling and lab-scale testing to ensure their performance in real-world applications.
Debonding on Demand for Enhanced Recycling: The company will create bisphenol-free biobased debondable adhesives based on Covalent Adaptable Networks (CAN) epoxy or non-isocyanate polyurethane systems, incorporating vitrimers materials to enable controlled disassembly of WTBs for more efficient material recovery.
Self-Healing and Omniphobic Coatings for Lifetime Extension: By leveraging the dynamic properties of vitrimer materials, the company will design self-healing and omniphobic and iceophobic coatings using bisphenol-free bio-based epoxy or polyhydroxyurethane matrices, to extend WTB life and reduce maintenance needs.
These innovations will significantly enhance the recyclability, performance, and sustainability of wind turbine blades, supporting the transition to a circular wind energy economy.