Speaker: Reed Miller, Assistant Professor, University of Maine
Light and durable composites are used to make many items, from bridges to bicycles to wind turbine blades. Reduced weight and longer lifespan may lead to less material usage than with conventional materials, but at the end of an item’s life we need options to reuse in a novel way or recycle / downcycle to retain valuable material properties. For example, innovative recycling options that take advantage of the reinforcing fibers of massive turbine blades are now scaling up to meet the moment. Results of a preliminary material flow analysis will be presented, along with ideas for devising a national strategy.