Wind farms--their long-run value? A few days ago I posted some photos taken of some wind farm towers in northern Madison County in Indiana. There were some questions and musings in...

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jaymatt Loc: Alexandria, Indiana

A few days ago I posted some photos taken of some wind farm towers in northern Madison County in Indiana. There were some questions and musings in general about these farms, so I did a quick bit of online research which found the following information.

Each tower has a gearbox that contains 30 to 50 gallons of oil that must be changed at least yearly, usually more often. The life expectancy of a tower/field is 25 years. When the blades are replaced, the old ones are cut into three sections each and sent to a landfill for burial. Why they aren’t recycled, I don’t know.

Given the oil usage, the life expectancy, the supposed bird kill by the propellors, and the landfill problem, etc., many question their long-term value. Are they worth the problems that they cause? I am not sure; that’s for communities to decide.

badapple Loc: Twin Lake, Michigan

And they are not pretty.

wjones8637 Loc: Burleson, TX

John,

First the recycling issue of wind turbine blades - The reason they cannot be recycled is that they contain fiber glass/ carbon fiber or other materials for strength. These are usually held together with epoxy type resins not the polymeric materials commonly associated with the ability to recycle.

Second - I'm pretty sure the gear box oils can be recycled, but I haven't done any research.

I feel you have hit on one of several issues that come up as we try to renewable energy. Solar power seems clean at the area of usage, but many of the material also encounter the non-recyclable problem. Also, the energy expenditures for manufacturing either technology often moves the pollution created to another area or country.

For others posting after me, PLEASE keep this civil, since this has real potential to exiled to the Attic.

BIll

David Martin Loc: Cary, NC

jaymatt wrote:

When the blades are replaced, the old ones are cut into three sections each and sent to a landfill for burial. Why they aren’t recycled, I don’t know.

Good question. I found an article on npr.com stating the blades are made from a mixture of fiberglass and resin, can't be used for anything and thus have no value. And disposal is costly - they're huge - 100-300 feet long each - and take up considerable space in landfills.

Haenzel Loc: South Holland, The Netherlands

David Martin wrote:

Good question. I found an article on npr.com stating the blades are made from a mixture of fiberglass and resin, can't be used for anything and thus have no value. And disposal is costly - they're huge - 100-300 feet long each - and take up considerable space in landfills.

In the Netherlands landfill is not allowed. A dutch company found a solution for recycling those blades.

https://www.demacq.nl/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/borchure-recycling.pdf

We've got a lot of windmills over here. Old and modern ones. I prefer the old ones...They last hundreds of years!

kenArchi Loc: Seal Beach, CA

My brother-law supplies the chemicals and fiberglass materials to the blade mfrs here in so Calif. Most of these mfrs left Calif because of stricter EPA laws.
I don't think fiberglass products can be recycled.
Besides being ugly to beautiful landscape, they dont use any power besides oil waste, killing Eagles and other birds.
I understand from an article I have read onetime that there is a big expense in maintnance.
I believe individuals half gone broke because many times there was not enough wind to sell the electricity to power companies. And power companies only bought what they needed.
Anyway there are more articles of controversy .

robertjerl Loc: Corona, California

wjones8637 wrote:

John, br br First the recycling issue of wind tur... (show quote)

Solar as anything but on the roof of a building also takes huge areas of land to produce enough for a large population.
And the wind mills produce a low range noise that irritates some animals and people.

Add in the fact that solar only works during the day and then poorly if it is cloudy and the wind mills only work if the wind is strong enough. They aren't reliable and constant.

Ollieboy

jaymatt wrote:

A few days ago I posted some photos taken of some ... (show quote)

Don't forget the annoying low pitch hum that travels through the landscape. The technology is not ready for practical use at this time.

pendennis

Another thing that's not aired, is the ability for the utility company to turn an unsubsidized profit. Now, utilities are subsidized by the Federal government to install windmills and solar panels (they have their own reuse problems). The blades are not the biggest drag. The steel used to make everything but the blades, has subsidized costs. Right now, the fees for electricity don't amount to enough to pay for the coke to make the steel.

Last week, I received a call from my local utility (DTE Energy in Michigan). A very nice sounding young woman pitched me to pay an additional fee each month, to subsidize "alternative energy" costs by DTE. While the $20-25 annual total isn't very much, it's not only the principal involved, but the fact that they're attempting to corral their customer base into subsidizing something that their capital investment doesn't cover, and the concept just doesn't work.

A lot of the obsolete windmill blades are dumped in a landfill in Casper, WY (about 870 so far).

kenArchi Loc: Seal Beach, CA

Aren't Dams with hydroelectric turbines the cleanest and most source for electric?

Ourspolair

These wind turbines can be so costly to repair or tear down that there are many hundreds of them just rotting in the countryside - often on hilly ground where they are additionally an eyesore. Poorly thought-out engineering, IMO. Stay well and keep on questioning what we are doing to the environment in our attempt to become "carbon neutral".

pendennis

kenArchi wrote:

Aren't Dams with hydroelectric turbines the cleanest and most source for electric?

There are limitations; river water levels, which may be seasonal; damage to wildlife; flood; drought. Not all can/will occur, but they are considerations. Plus, hydro is really capital intensive in the development and build stages.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

Well, given that there is a limited amount of fossil fuels left, we’re ultimately going to need to find alternatives. The efficiency of solar cells has increased dramatically over the last decade, but we’ll still need more than they can provide, and adding hydro, wind, etc. is still not going to provide enough. Like it it or not, we’re going to need nuclear (unless you want to freeze in the dark or a new technology comes along).

DirtFarmer Loc: Escaped from the NYC area, back to MA

If we got rid of fossil fuels for transportation that would not eliminate our dependence on oil. Petroleum products are ingrained in modern society. Plastics, fertilizers, medicines, fabrics, to name a few uses. So alternative energy research is only part of the solution.

repleo Loc: Boston

I would rather have fiber composite blades buried in my local landfill than the remains of a nuclear power station. If you think wind turbines spoil your landscape, try to visualize it with a coal or oil fired generating station. Around here, most of the PV farms are located on closed landfills.
Wave energy converters (WECs) are an untapped source of renewable energy. These WECs can be located offshore either on the surface or below the water line and out of shipping lanes and fishing grounds. These generator fields would be close to where 50 % of the US population lives thus reducing the transmissions losses from remote generating stations.

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