In a groundbreaking development, the EU-funded REFRESH project has shown promising findings from its first life cycle assessment (LCA) on recycling glass fibre and carbon fibre reinforced composites from end-of-life (EoL) wind turbine blades. The study shows that both mechanical and thermal recycling processes deliver significant environmental gains over conventional disposal methods.
Notably, thermal recycling demonstrated more than a 70% reduction in climate change impacts compared to incineration, positioning REFRESH as a game-changer in sustainable composite waste management. The evaluation of advanced recycling techniques, including microwave-assisted pyrolysis, remains underexplored in existing environmental assessments.
This study, based on high-quality primary and experimental data sourced from the project's partners, provides a comprehensive and data-driven assessment of innovative recycling processes for composites derived from EoL blades, a topic of increasing importance in the transition to a circular economy. The study included a detailed hotspot analysis, providing actionable insights for reducing environmental impacts across different process phases.
REFRESH Environmental Impact Assessment
Conducted by RINA Consulting, in the initial phase of the project, the analysis followed the ISO 14040 and 14044 standards. The functional unit for the analysis was defined as the recycling of 1 ton of EoL wind turbine blades.
The analysis covers the project's three main recycling processes: mechanical recycling, and two thermal processes — pyrolysis, and microwave-assisted pyrolysis (MW-pyrolysis).
The comprehensive LCA provided a thorough evaluation of the environmental impacts across the entire lifespan of the recycling processes. The calculations were performed using the GaBi LCA for Expert software. The study focused on three main impact categories: climate change; resource use (fossils); and resource use (minerals and metals). The characterisation method used was the Environmental Footprint (EF) 3.1 method, which is aligned with the latest standards and EU recommendations.
Comparison with Linear Disposal Scenarios
Mechanical recycling demonstrated a 2% reduction in environmental impact compared to landfilling. Despite the relatively low percentage reduction, it is important to highlight the generation of secondary raw materials through the recycling process.
The thermal recycling processes, pyrolysis and microwave-assisted pyrolysis, demonstrated a remarkable 71% and 72% reduction in climate change impact, respectively, compared to incineration. This highlights the potential of these processes for significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
The study also revealed that the environmental benefits of using recycled fibres in relevant industries (e.g., lightweight structures, textiles), both glass and carbon, as secondary raw materials, were significantly greater than the impacts associated with the recycling processes themselves. This means that, although recycling involves energy consumption and emissions, avoiding the impacts associated with production of virgin fibres (which is typically energy-intensive and resource-demanding) results in a net environmental gain.
Next Steps
This initial LCA analysis indicates that the REFRESH recycling processes have the potential to significantly reduce environmental impacts compared to traditional disposal methods. The next steps involve optimising the processes, assessing the final use of the recycled materials, and conducting an economic and social assessment to maximise the project's sustainability potential.
Source - refresh-project.eu
