Characterisation and Investigation of the Mechanical Material Properties of Recycled Glass-Fibre Reinforced Polymers for Sustainable Reusability

Waste products from glass-fibre reinforced polymers (GFRP), which are used for wind turbine rotor blades, represent a substantial environmental and disposal challenge. According to the state of the art, thermal or chemical recycling methods require high energies and resource consumptions. Based on a new recycling approach, this study analyses the potential of mechanical recycling as a sustainable alternative for the management of GFRP waste. This paper presents a novel solution for mechanical recycling of GFRP waste and analyses the mechanical properties of recycled GFRP materials manufactured with mechanical recycled and processed GFRP waste. The study investigates the impact of particle size classifications on the mechanical properties of recycled GFRP materials, providing insights for optimising the recycling process. Tensile strength tests were carried out to measure the Young’s modulus E and ultimate tensile strength Rm to compare the properties of recycled GFRP specimens with newly manufactured GFRP materials and thus identify the suitability of these materials for specific applications. Furthermore, the GFRP material samples were analysed using computer tomography (CT) to determine the fibre lengths lf in order to analyse their influence on the mechanical material properties. First results showed a correlation between the particle length lp and the ultimate tensile strength Rm of the investigated GFRP material samples. The mechanical recycling approach enables more sustainable GFRP materials compared to the current state of the art, which significantly reduces the environmental impact of GFRP waste disposal.