Wind Power

RWE wind farm receives first of Siemens Gamesa’s recyclable blades

RWE wind farm receives first of Siemens Gamesa’s recyclable blades
(Siemens Gamesa RecyclableBlades leaving Hull for the Kaskasi offshore development. Image credit: Siemens Gamesa)

The first wind turbine to be fitted with Siemens Gamesa’s RecyclableBlades is now producing power at RWE’s Kaskasi offshore wind power project in Germany.

The 342MW Kaskasi offshore wind project, located 35 km north of the island of Heligoland in the German North Sea, will comprise 38 of Siemens Gamesa’s 8.0-167 DD wind turbines.

A number of these turbines will be equipped with handcrafted Siemens Gamesa B81 RecyclableBlades, each with a length of 81 meters.

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Sven Utermöhlen, chief executive of wind offshore at RWE Renewables, said: “That we are testing in our offshore wind farm Kaskasi the world’s first recyclable wind turbine blades under operational conditions is a significant step in advancing the sustainability of wind turbines to the next level.

“The first turbine equipped with Siemens Gamesa’s RecyclableBlades is generating electricity.”

Wind turbine blades are made up of a combination of materials embedded in resin to form a strong, stiff structure.

According to Siemens Gamesa, the use of their RecyclableBlade technology allows full reclaim of the blade’s components, thereby stimulating the circular economy. By using a mild acid solution the components can be separated into resin, wood, fiberglass, etc.

The RecyclableBlade technology was developed in Aalborg, Denmark, the blades were manufactured in Hull, UK, and the nacelles were produced in and installed from Cuxhaven, Germany.

Marc Becker, chief executive of the Siemens Gamesa Offshore Business Unit, said: “We’ve brought the Siemens Gamesa RecyclableBlade technology to market in only 10 months: from launch in September 2021 to installation at RWE’s Kaskasi project in July 2022.

“This milestone marks a significant contribution to Siemens Gamesa’s target of having fully recyclable turbines by 2040. With RecyclableBlade available for our customers, we can create a virtuous circular economy.”

The RecyclableBlade technology is also available for the 108-meter long B108 blades used on the SG 14-222 DD offshore wind turbine and the 115-meter long B115 blades SG 14-222 DD turbines.

Originally published by Pamela Largue at Power Engineering International here.

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