Composites - Recycling and Circularity
Is the production, use or handling of composites such as fibre-reinforced materials relevant to your business? Then you know that future competitiveness depends on your ability to meet current and future recycling and sustainability requirements - while delivering a high-quality product.
At Danish Technological Institute, we support the composites industry in co-creating solutions where circularity, quality and business potential go hand in hand.
The benefits of composites create circular challenges
Composite materials are characterised by durability, strength and a complex composition that creates challenges, especially when handling end-of-life products.
This results in:
- High costs for disposal of non-recyclable composites
- Waste of valuable resources such as carbon fibre, glass fibre and polymers
- Environmental impact from landfilling or incineration of composite materials
- Non-compliance with legal requirements for recycling and circular economy
- Increased pressure from customers and suppliers
Composite materials are characterised by a unique combination of low weight and high strength. This requires a strong bond between two different materials. The dilemma is that this same bond makes it difficult to recycle the materials. Simon Frølich, Technology Director, Danish Technological Institute
Get access to knowledge for innovation and competitiveness
At Danish Technological Institute, we understand the challenges of recycling composite materials. This applies whether you work with glass fibres or carbon fibres with epoxy, unsaturated polyester (UPR) or polyurethane composites.
We work holistically in the composites value chain. This means we can help with, among other things:
- Demonstrating the recycling of your composite materials. This allows you to assess technical and economic aspects before implementing a full-scale recycling solution
- Screening for materials that minimise CO2 emissions and can be separated at end-of-life
- Optimising production processes adapted to the raw materials of the future
- Counseling on the best end-of-life pathways for your materials, based on existing options and emerging solutions, combined with life cycle and economic calculations
This ensures optimal resource utilisation and minimises waste while meeting your quality and performance requirements.
Case: Carving af new slope for composite ski recycling with Atomic
Disassembling an Atomic ski. Watch the full timelapse video here.
Advice on circular economy
Our specialists advise on how to incorporate circular principles into your business model and value chain. This helps you meet regulatory requirements, reduce costs and minimise environmental impact.
Contact us for a more detailed dialogue about your business challenges and goals - we look forward to talking to you.
Collaboration with industry ensures circular solution for recycling composites in wind turbine blades
Together with Vestas, Olin and Aarhus University, we have developed a technology that enables full recycling of the composite material in wind turbine blades. Through the CETEC (Circular Economy for Thermosets Epoxy Composites) project, a two-part solution has been found to separate the composite materials into fibreglass and epoxy, after which the epoxy is chemically broken down into basic components of the same quality as virgin materials. These can then be reused in new epoxy-based composites.