TAGS: Sustainability / Natural Coatings
AkzoNobel opens the world’s first purpose-built wind turbine blade testing facility at its Felling plant in the UK. The facility can run simulations at half the speed of sound.
The €1.65 million investment will enable AkzoNobel’s International® protective coatings brand to accelerate development by potentially tripling the number of rain erosion tests that can be run every week. The brand has supplied wind farms around the globe.
Sustainable Innovation in Wind Energy Sector
Fitted with sound insulation, a small laboratory and a 1,000-liter water recycling tank, it will conduct tests that simulate harsh weather conditions. At full speed, the so-called ‘helicopter’ test can run at 176 meters per second. The speed of sound through air is around 343m/s.
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Today marks an exciting new chapter in our long history of supporting sustainable innovation and product development,” says Ralph Slikkerveer, R&D director of AkzoNobel’s Marine and Protective Coatings business.
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Bringing this type of world class testing in-house – where we can immediately generate the data, analyze results and prolong testing periods – will transform our contribution to innovation in the wind energy sector. We’ll be able to participate in a more meaningful way in lifetime prediction discussions on protective coating systems for wind turbine blades.”
The purpose-built facility has the capacity to conduct ultra-high-speed tests. The facility can also simulate weather conditions from different regions around the world, adjusting water flow rates – and both water and air temperatures, as required.
The Felling site has been manufacturing international products since 1904. It is firmly established as the brand’s global hub for research and development.
Cost-effective Testing of Protective Coating Systems
AkzoNobel is currently the only global paints and coatings company that can supply complete solutions for wind turbines, from the tip of the blade to the base of the foundations. It has more than 80,000 wind energy installations having been coated worldwide.
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The protective coatings we’ll be testing at the new facility will help to future-proof our customers’ blades so they can withstand the most extreme weather conditions. We’ll now be able to perform more cost-effective and accelerated testing on new products, offering the best possible solutions for our customers at a time when global investment in wind projects continues to grow,” continued Slikkerveer.
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It’s further proof that AkzoNobel is setting industry standards through sustainability-driven innovation by continuing to expand its game-changing portfolio of products and technologies.”
Source: AkzoNobel