Presentations

Abstract

"The wind energy industry is committed to achieving the full recyclability of waste materials in alignment with the EU’s Circular Economy Action Plan (CEAP) and the UK’s Circular Economy Package (CEP). The central vision of the proposed project is to support the wind energy value chain in making a rapid transition toward a truly sustainable and fully circular energy system, where new generations of wind turbines (WTs) are manufactured using materials recycled from older generations. Such a transition provides a “golden” opportunity for the wind energy sector to become more self-reliant by reducing its dependence on predominantly imported critical raw materials while also protecting the environment and ecosystems from pollution by minimizing waste sent to landfills or incinerators. Furthermore, this approach will create thousands of new jobs in the recycling and re-manufacturing sectors while lowering the capital investment required to build new wind farms, making wind power an even more competitive and sustainable clean energy source in the long term. Our proposed project aims to achieve the following key objectives: (1) Using advanced material characterization and mechanical testing techniques, the project analyzes the microstructural composition, mechanical performance, and degradation levels of materials, such as metals, composites, polymers, and concrete, both before and after recycling. This experimental analysis will assess the quality and suitability of these materials for reuse in high-value manufacturing applications, ensuring that they meet industry standards for design, safety, and performance. (2) Based on the material properties and the efficiency of the recycling processes, the project identifies practical solutions to enhance the quality, performance, and durability of the recovered materials, ensuring they meet the rigorous standards required for next-generation WT manufacturing. The proposed strategies will incorporate both process-level innovations (e.g., optimized separation, purification, or treatment techniques) and material-level modifications (like enhancing the mechanical properties or stabilizing degradation effects)."