Wind power has a waste problem that has been difficult to solve. Turbine blades made from a new plant-based material could make them recyclable. At th

Turbine Blades Have Piled Up in Landfills. A Solution May Be Coming.

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2024-08-31 12:00:02

Wind power has a waste problem that has been difficult to solve. Turbine blades made from a new plant-based material could make them recyclable.

At the end of their life span of around 20 years, they are chopped into pieces and buried in a handful of landfills across the Great Plains. Those few sites in Wyoming, Iowa and South Dakota have a spooky nickname: wind turbine graveyards.

Researchers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory have developed what they say is a turbine blade made from plant material that can be recycled. The new substance is made from inedible sugar extracted from wood, plant remains, used cooking oil and agricultural waste.

They say the prototype they developed can perform as well as traditional blades that are made from a combination of fiberglass and plastic and which have been very difficult to reuse.

The new, recyclable material could be easily adopted by industry, said Robynne Murray, one of the researchers at the national laboratory.