Regen Fiber offers windmill blade diversion path

Fairfax, Iowa-based logistics firm Travero says it has launched a new business unit called Regen Fiber that will deploy a “patent-pending and eco-friendly process to convert decommissioned wind turbine blades into reusable materials for manufacturers in the concrete, mortar and other industries.”

Regen says it process converts end-of-life blades, most commonly made of a fiberglass composite, into a reinforcement fiber th”at increases the strength and overall durability of concrete and mortar applications such as pavement, slabs-on-grade and precast products.”

The Regen process also produces microfibers and additives that can be used in other composite, concrete and soil stabilization applications, says the company.

Travero and Regen cite the American Clean Power Association for an estimate that nearly 70,000 wind turbines in the United States are currently part of the energy landscape.

“With tremendous growth projected in the wind industry and an increasing number of turbines already reaching the end of their approximately 20-year lifespan, Regen Fiber is entering the market at the perfect time,” says Jeff Woods, director of business development at Travero.

“Recycling blades without using heat or chemicals while simultaneously keeping them out of landfills or being burned supports the sustainability goals of both the wind industry and customers receiving the recycled products,” he adds.

Travero says in 2021 it began piloting the process at a facility in Des Moines, Iowa. Working with customers in the concrete industry, Regen has been able “to validate products’ performance and ensure the products meet customer requirements,” the company says.

What Travero calls large, commercial-scale operations for the recycling of decommissioned blades are expected to begin in the second half of this year. A new manufacturing facility for Regen operations is currently being constructed in Fairfax.

The location is in a section of Alliant Energy’s Big Cedar Industrial Center, next to a Travero logistics park. Travero is itself a business unit of Wisconsin-based Alliant Energy.

At the Fairfax location, Regen Fiber says it anticipates recycling more than 30,000 tons of shredded blade materials per year.

In addition to recycling decommissioned blades, Regen Fiber also is recycling wind turbine blade manufacturing scrap. Those scrap materials are processed into fibers that can be used for asphalt and composite products, according to Regen.