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Recycling of glass fibre reinforced polymer composite wind turbine blades in South Africa
Thesis (MEng)--Stellenbosch University, 2026.
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
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Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University
2026
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| _version_ | 1867613800074575872 |
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| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Wheeler, Gail Kate |
| author2 | Blaine, Deborah |
| author_browse | Blaine, Deborah Wheeler, Gail Kate |
| author_facet | Blaine, Deborah Wheeler, Gail Kate |
| author_sort | Wheeler, Gail Kate |
| collection | Thesis |
| dc_rights_str_mv | Stellenbosch University |
| description | Thesis (MEng)--Stellenbosch University, 2026. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/135556 |
| institution | Stellenbosch University (South Africa) |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:41:53.663Z |
| license_str | Other — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| publishDateRange | 2026 |
| publishDateSort | 2026 |
| publisher | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| publisherStr | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| spelling | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/135556 Recycling of glass fibre reinforced polymer composite wind turbine blades in South Africa Wheeler, Gail Kate Blaine, Deborah Erfort, Gareth Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Engineering. Dept. of Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering. Thesis (MEng)--Stellenbosch University, 2026. Wheeler, G. K. 2026. Recycling of glass fibre reinforced polymer composite wind turbine blades in South Africa. Unpublished masters thesis. Stellenbosch: Stellenbosch University [online]. Available: https://scholar.sun.ac.za/items/2cec661a-b6d4-4281-bcc9-ca5158472ce7 With the increasing number of wind energy facilities (WEFs) being constructed in South Africa, largely supported by South Africa’s Renewable Energy Independent Power Producers Procurement Program (REIPPPP), there is a growing need to identify feasible disposal pathways for decommissioned wind turbine blades. As a result, this study looks at the waste created from wind turbine blades that have been decommissioned, and it aims to understand an appropriate way to recycle these wind turbine blades in South Africa. This study investigates the loading conditions, structural design, and material composition of wind turbine blades. This research refines the study to looking at Glass Fibre Reinforced Polymer (GFRP) recycling for South Africa whilst considering wind turbine blades as the source of this scrap GFRP. At a global scale, five main categories of GFRP recycling methods are identified: mechanical, thermal, chemical, high-voltage fragmentation and co-processing. These recycling methods are investigated and the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) is employed to select a recycling method which is most desirable for possible implementation in South Africa. Using the most desirable recycling method, as selected via the AHP, a life cycle assessment (LCA) is conducted. This LCA is used to compare the implementation of the most desirable recycling method, both domestically and internationally, to the alternative of disposing of the decommissioned wind turbine blades in a landfill. The results from the LCA compare the global warming potential (GWP) of each option to understand which process would be most feasible to implement in South Africa. A selection of transportation sensitivities were conducted to the LCA set up. These sensitivities established that having a GFRP recycling facility within 650 km of every wind farm in South Africa could be a feasible solution for recycling wind turbine blades in South Africa. Masters 2026-04-01T11:56:01Z 2026-04-01T11:56:01Z 2026-03 Thesis https://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/135556 en Stellenbosch University 106 pages application/pdf Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| spellingShingle | Wheeler, Gail Kate Recycling of glass fibre reinforced polymer composite wind turbine blades in South Africa |
| title | Recycling of glass fibre reinforced polymer composite wind turbine blades in South Africa |
| title_full | Recycling of glass fibre reinforced polymer composite wind turbine blades in South Africa |
| title_fullStr | Recycling of glass fibre reinforced polymer composite wind turbine blades in South Africa |
| title_full_unstemmed | Recycling of glass fibre reinforced polymer composite wind turbine blades in South Africa |
| title_short | Recycling of glass fibre reinforced polymer composite wind turbine blades in South Africa |
| title_sort | recycling of glass fibre reinforced polymer composite wind turbine blades in south africa |
| url | https://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/135556 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT wheelergailkate recyclingofglassfibrereinforcedpolymercompositewindturbinebladesinsouthafrica |