Engineers are turning old wind turbine blades into gummy bears and nappies

Wind turbines could be given a truly sweet second life thanks to a new discovery from engineers in the US.

They have invented a new type of resin, the material that coats turbine blades, that could be reused to make countertops, car tail lights, power tools, nappies and even gummy bears.

The breakthrough, from chemical engineers at the University of Michigan, could hold the key to one of the biggest challenges that comes with wind power: how to recycle turbine blades.

Made of resin-coated fibreglass that is difficult to separate and recycle, wind turbine blades average 50 metres each in length - half the length of a professional football field. Although some can be recycled into lower-value materials, most discarded blades end up in landfills.

As bigger, more efficient turbines replace old ones in a process known as ‘repowering’, defunct blades are a growing problem. Wind power association WindEurope expects around 52,000 tonnes of blades to be decommissioned annually by 2030.

With the wind industry calling for a Europe-wide ban on landfilling turbine blades by 2025, green-minded scientists are coming up with creative solutions.

Chemical engineers at the University of Michigan, USA, have developed a new, recyclable composite resin that could be used to make turbine blades.

Once the blade is decommissioned, the resin can be recycled into household items and sweet treats. Or it can be dissolved and made into new turbine blades, according to research published by the American Chemical Society (ACS).

“It can be used over and over again in an infinite loop,” says professor and researcher John Dorgan, PhD. "That's the goal of the circular economy."

To create the new turbine material, Dorgan and his colleagues combined glass fibres with