EuCIA joined the REFRESH project’s partners at the M41 General Assembly in Norway on 12-13 May.
With just six months remaining, this project demonstrating a smart, circular solution for end-of-service wind turbine blades is building real momentum and there is strong progress to report in all areas. In particular, the upscaled recycling lines of Gees Recycling in Aviano, Italy (mechanical recycling) and Gjenkraft in Høyanger, Norway (thermal recycling) are nearing the end of commissioning, and there is a range of innovative products incorporating recycled materials in development under the direction of CETMA. Testing of TECNALIA’s blockchain traceability platform will start soon, and RINA continues to gather information for the comprehensive LCA and LCC analyses of the recycling processes and end products that will be published later in the year.
Stakeholder workshop
The latest progress was showcased during the project’s second stakeholder workshop, From End-of-Life Blades to Circular Products – Technologies, Prototypes and Market Pathways, held online on the second day of the General Assembly. For this, EuCIA’s Managing Director Raphaël Pleynet teamed up with Anurag Bansal, Head of Strategic Innovations at ACCIONA Construccion, on the presentation Developing markets for recycled materials. Anurag provided an overview of the main challenges for end-users considering using recycled materials, and ACCIONA’s role in REFRESH developing prototypes for construction applications. The company’s goal is to replace virgin materials with recycled alternatives without sacrificing structural integrity. Raphaël outlined the upcoming EU regulations set to advance circularity of composite materials – the Circular Economy Act, End of Life Vehicle Directive, Net Zero Industry Act – and explained how the European Circular Composite Alliance (ECCA) is bringing all stakeholders together to accelerate the composites industry’s circular transition.
A recording of the workshop is available on the REFRESH YouTube channel.
For further information about REFRESH visit the project website.
REFRESH final event to be held in Brussels
As REFRESH’s communication and dissemination partner, EuCIA is now planning the project’s closing event in Brussels this December. This is an opportunity to engage our network, including the European Circular Composites Alliance (ECCA), and maximise awareness of REFRESH’s achievements at EU level. Look out for out for more news on this event in the coming months!
Initiatives such as REFRESH are demonstrating that circular solutions for composite materials are feasible, but to enable their wider deployment and commercialisation there are still barriers to overcome. EuCIA, together with WindEurope and other industry associations, have identified several regulatory solutions required in the joint position paper Circular Economy Act and Composites. By championing secondary raw materials and incentivising circular business models, the Act represents a pivotal opportunity to unlock the full potential of composites for a sustainable future.
