GE is upgrading blades at the 16-year-old Fenner wind farm in New York to increase annual energy production by about 23%, while the old blades will be recylced and made into new products.
The 37-metre blades will be replaced with new models that are approximately five metres longer, but weigh the same as the older units, GE said.
The old blades are being recycled by Global Fiberglass Solutions (GFS) and will be made into new products, such as manhole covers, building panels and pallets.
GFS is using wet wire blades that are thin and strong enough to slice each wind blade.
The company then sprays a light mist of water so that debris rains into a giant dustpan lying beneath the blade.
It loads the dismantled blades onto flatbed trucks and takes them to nearby yards where the blades are shredded into raw fiberglass known as ‘feedback’ for recycling.
GE global executive director for Ecomagination Deb Frodl said: “The ability to recycle wind blades is a great way to improve both environmental and operating performance.”
Image: Global Fiberglass Solutions
