‘World’s first’ wooden wind turbine blades installed

Wind power has just become a little greener after a ‘world first’ installation of wooden wind turbine blades in Germany.

The 19.3-metre blades were installed on an existing turbine in central Germany by local start-up Voodin Blades.

Voodin claimed in a statement on Thursday that these are the “world’s first wooden wind turbine blades” to be installed.

Waste from older wind turbines is a growing concern as the energy transition matures.

Tom Siekmann, CEO at Voodin Blade Technology, said most blades are buried or burned at the end of their lifecycle.

“This means that – at this pace – we will end up with 50 million tonnes of blade material waste by 2050,” he said. That is roughly the weight of the Great Pyramid of Giza, eight times over, with a few million tonnes to spare.

“With our solution, we want to help green energy truly become as green as possible.”

Voodin develops blades made from laminated veneer lumber (LVL), a material it claims can deliver high-strength, lightweight components “with a minimal carbon footprint”.

These are claimed to be “noticeably better” to recycle than industry standard blades, which are made of fibreglass and carbon fibre bound together with epoxy resin, a material Voodin said is “difficult and expensive to break down.”

The usual lifecycle of wind turbine blades is 20 to 25 years and Voodin said that, as the first generation of blades approaches the end of their lifecycle, “new, more sustainable turbine blade solutions are needed to ensure sustainable wind energy production in the future.”

Voodin has been working with paper and pulp giant Stora Enso in developing its LVL blades, with plans to install an 80-metre blade in the future.