Wind Turbine Blades buried

[rgleason]

What a waste!

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/featu...-wNW441QRVGy-g


Why not make boats out of them?

[psk125]

How would you do that?

[coopec43]

Why not burn them to generate power?

[Discovery 15797]

Originally Posted by coopec43

Why not burn them to generate power?

Burning fiberglass? Seriously?

Besides the fact it would require more energy to burn it then it could possibly produce, the pollution and potential immediate and long term health hazards would be astronomical not only with the gases, but also from the glass dust particles.

In essence...we’ve traded a few kilowatts of electricity for a poisonous non-degradable material polluting the earth forever.

[thinwater]

Originally Posted by Discovery 15797

Burning fiberglass? Seriously?

Besides the fact it would require more energy to burn it then it could possibly produce, the pollution and potential immediate and long term health hazards would be astronomical not only with the gases, but also from the glass dust particles.

In essence...we’ve traded a few kilowatts of electricity for a poisonous non-degradable material polluting the earth forever.

That strikes me as rather uninformed. I'm guessing you've never worked in or studied waste to energy plants.


a. Fiberglass boats burn like mad. This is obvious.
b. Polyester resin burns in very much the same manner as oil when combustion is well controlled (it is a polymer of a double alcohol and and double organic acid). Unlike PVC (vinyl) or other hydrogenated plastics, the products of combustion are much like those from burning heavy oil.
c. The exhaust is treated through either an ESP or baghouse. The glass fiber will end up in the ash.
d. If fiberglass does not great down, how do you figure it is polluting the earth forever? You can have one or the other, but not both.



I'm not sayin' waste-to-energy is great, just like burning oil has problems, but most of the problems relate to chlorinate plastics and other trash contaminants that are probably not in the blades.


Recycling would be nice. But we need a process that is less harmful to the environment than the alternatives, which may not be easy.


Personally, I favor living smaller and using less of everything, including power.

[jimbunyard]

Time for yet another ill-fated climate change/global warming thread?

Why is this in 'construction and maintenance'?

Of course, this is a non-problem, as is made clear in the article: they could lay where they fell and the only danger they'd cause is to fossil fuel advocate's eyes and sensibilities.

From the article:

"....all blade waste through 2050 would equal roughly .015% of all the US municipal solid waste going to landfills in 2015 alone."

That is, 30 years worth of blades would equal .015% of all US municipal solid waste from a single year.


As could be expected when sensationalist headlines informed of the interim burial plan,

...“The backlash was instant and uninformed.”....


Where have we seen that before?

[Discovery 15797]

Originally Posted by thinwater

That strikes me as rather uninformed. I'm guessing you've never worked in or studied waste to energy plants.


a. Fiberglass boats burn like mad. This is obvious.
b. Polyester resin burns in very much the same manner as oil when combustion is well controlled (it is a polymer of a double alcohol and and double organic acid). Unlike PVC (vinyl) or other hydrogenated plastics, the products of combustion are much like those from burning heavy oil.
c. The exhaust is treated through either an ESP or baghouse. The glass fiber will end up in the ash.
d. If fiberglass does not great down, how do you figure it is polluting the earth forever? You can have one or the other, but not both.



I'm not sayin' waste-to-energy is great, just like burning oil has problems, but most of the problems relate to chlorinate plastics and other trash contaminants that are probably not in the blades.


Recycling would be nice. But we need a process that is less harmful to the environment than the alternatives, which may not be easy.


Personally, I favor living smaller and using less of everything, including power.

First, I never suggested fiberglass does not burn. Please carefully read what I wrote.
Burning heavy oil does not release the same toxic gases produced by polyester or epoxy resins that burn.
An Electrostatic precipitator will remove/Contain dust and particulate matter that still needs to be disposed.

Thus, I stand by my assertion that the total energy required to burn, process the gas emissions, and dispose of the waste would be greater than the potential energy produced during the burning process.

If, disposing of fiberglass by burning was cost effective and safe, I suspect somebody would be cashing in on that action.

I consider a big hunk of fiberglass that doesn’t degrade to be pollution whether it’s in a landfill or sitting at the bottom of a waterway.

[Wotname]

I guess the tonnage of fibreglass boats manufactured is far far greater than the tonnage of the wind turbine blades. At least the turbine blades did something useful in their life span.

[coopec43]

" A second avenue for recycling turbine blades is called pyrolysis.
After first chopping up the blades, pyrolysis breaks up the composite fibres in ovens with an inert atmosphere, at about 450-700C.
The process recovers fibres other industries can reuse for glues, paints, and concrete.
Other products include syngas (synthesis gas) that can be used in combustion engines. And char (charcoal) which can be used as a fertiliser".

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-51325101

[Pete7]

Looks like the start point for a 21st century version of a wharram cat.

That or a business opportunity, for sale underground waste or water tanks for your homestead.

Pete

[SailRedemption]

They need to take the cut sections and make artificial reefs with them. They are perfect for it. Hollow sections, inert to saltwater, will last forever. It would help with increasing fish stocks around the world. Louisiana does this with old oil platforms. They cut them off at the bottom and lay them in an area with few natural reef structures. It wouldn't be hard to accomplish, truck them to a port load them into hopper barges, take them to a certain lat/long and open the bottom of the barge to dump them. I believe Texas did something similar with crushed cars off of Galveston. It's a thriving fishing and scuba spot now. Here's an article (thesis paper I think) I read on it recently.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sour...pC5vvHGsCu0PtN

[GordMay]

Global Fiberglass Solutions (GFS) is working to provide solutions for the growing issue of decommissioned wind turbine blade waste. With recycling and manufacturing plants in Sweetwater, TX, and Newton, IA, GFS claims that it “provides industrial fiberglass waste recycling services to industries worldwide.” In addition, GFS manufactures fibers, pellets, construction materials, and more from the materials recycled in its plants.
The manufacturing plant in Sweetwater, TX, currently produces pellets under the brand name EcoPoly Pellets. According to a GFS press release, they are “thermoplastic fiberglass pellet[s] usable in injection mold and extrusion manufacturing processes.” The EcoPoly Pellets are made in part from recycled wind turbine blade material, giving new life to the blades that were previously viewed as unrecyclable.
The company’s next product will be a composite panel, which is expected to consume most of the recycled material. It can be used in construction and flooring applications, similar to a wood-content particle board. Unlike wood, however, composite panel doesn’t absorb water, making it well suited for marine industries and waterfront facilities.
GFS ➥ https://www.globalfiberglassinc.com/

[Jamme]

Originally Posted by SailRedemption

They need to take the cut sections and make artificial reefs with them. They are perfect for it. Hollow sections, inert to saltwater, will last forever. It would help with increasing fish stocks around the world. Louisiana does this with old oil platforms. They cut them off at the bottom and lay them in an area with few natural reef structures. It wouldn't be hard to accomplish, truck them to a port load them into hopper barges, take them to a certain lat/long and open the bottom of the barge to dump them. I believe Texas did something similar with crushed cars off of Galveston. It's a thriving fishing and scuba spot now. Here's an article (thesis paper I think) I read on it recently.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sour...pC5vvHGsCu0PtN

I believe a similar experiment was also done in NY using subway carts: https://nypost.com/2019/03/22/nyc-su...o-coral-reefs/

Interesting paper thesis; I hope more research will be done on degradation of the fiberglass resin with time and the effects of it (if any) on marine ecosystems.

[rgleason]

I guess that was a bad idea. I like the reef idea though, much better than simply burying them.

The other idea I like is living smaller.

There is a lot of knowledge here about burning fiberglass, but burying is probably better for the planet.

[GordMay]

Another innovative, though small scale, solution:
Wikado Playground (Rotterdam, The Netherlands) is Built From Recycled Wind Turbine Blades
➥ https://www.researchgate.net/figure/...ig13_268214857




See also:
“Research and guidance on restoration and decommissioning of onshore wind farms"
➥ https://www.researchgate.net/publica...ore_wind_farms