Flax/Acrylic demonstrator wind turbine blade produced as part of SeaBioComp project
The University of Plymouth, one of the project partners in the SeaBioComp project, has produced a flax reinforced acrylic thermoplastic scale model of a wind turbine blade as a demonstrator component for the project.
The two half blades (front and back) were manufactured using a flax fabric reinforced acrylic thermoplastic matrix by in situ polymerisation monomer infusion techniques under flexible tooling (MIFT).
The mould profile is for a floating offshore wind (FLOW) turbine blade at a scale of 1:50. The trimmed and faired blade weighs 395g.
Large composite marine structures (eg boat hulls or wind turbine blades) are usually manufactured using a Resin Infusion under Flexible Tooling (RIFT) process. However there are few options for end-of-life disposal of these products in the recycling process.
The SeaBioComp project is seeking to develop in situ polymerisation (ISP) of bio composite materials using the Monomer Infustion under Flexible Tooling (MIFT) method.
For more information on the project and its findings please visit http://www.seabiocomp.eu/
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