A Scottish start-up has developed a wind turbine blade from sail cloth that it claims could boost energy production by nearly 9% compared with conventional units.
ACT Blade was set up in 2015 after a feasibility study funded by Innovate UK proved its longer 55-metre blade was technically viable and could offer significant savings.
The world’s first textile blade is 24% lighter than a traditional fibreglass one. Using the same textile as modern sails, they say it can also be made longer.
A prototype 13 metre-long blade was successfully tested at the Offshore Renewable Energy Facility in Blyth in March 2020.
Three blades will be tested on a working wind turbine at the Energy Technology Centre in East Kilbride and will be producing energy by the end of 2020.
Early analysis suggests the blade could reduce the levelised cost of energy by nearly 7%.
When compared to a conventional blade the ACT Blade uses less material and so less waste is produced in production.
In addition, the textile covers the entire surface of the blade, so it does not need to be painted, according to ACT.
The blades are component-based and therefore relatively easy to dismantle and separate out for recycling.
Founder and chief executive Sabrina Malpede said: “Innovate UK funding has helped the company massively and on several layers. Deployment of new technologies in the wind industry is too expensive and risky for private investors alone.”
Now a team of eight, ACT Blade is developing a commercial strategy, beginning with 50-metre replacements for blades on 2MW turbines that will be tested in 2022 on a commercial turbine then commercialised by 2023.