Pyrolysis and oxidation characteristics and energy self-sustaining process design of retired wind turbine blades

Abstract

Pyrolysis offers a straightforward method to extract valuable glass fiber from retired wind turbine blades, showing great potential for resource utilization. Experimental findings reveal that calorific value of pyrolysis gas increases with pyrolysis temperatures between 400 and 700 ℃. When the solid product obtained was oxidized at 500 ℃ for 40 minutes, clean glass fiber products can be obtained. Based on it, a new pyrolysis process for retired wind turbine blades and clean glass fiber recovery was designed using Aspen Plus software. By comparing the influence of pyrolysis temperatures, the stability and flexibility of the system were analyzed. The simulation results indicate that the pyrolysis temperature within the range of 400–700 ℃ can fully achieve energy self-sufficiency of the system, and excess heat can be stored by heating molten salts with high heat capacity. In practical applications, it is recommended to set the pyrolysis temperature and oxidation temperature at approximately 500 ℃, thereby further improving the economic efficiency of the system. This pyrolysis and recovery process can significantly improve its economic efficiency through energy self-sustaining system optimization, marking a significant contribution to the sustainable and economic management of retired wind turbine blade resources.