Market opportunities for industrial minerals in the emerging wind turbine market appear to have good prospects as the wind blade composites market starts to take off.
Advances in the wind industry, with a focus on wind blade technology, was the theme for last month’s global conference on Wind Turbine Blade Manufacture in Dusseldorf, Germany, organised by UK-based Applied Market Information Ltd.
There are essentially two main areas for industrial mineral applications in wind turbines: manufacture of the primary tower and blades; and manufacture of components within the motor driving the turbine, mainly in the permanent magnets (IM August 2010: The winds of change).
The blades make up 11% of the cost breakdown of an onshore wind turbine, with 25% for the nacelle, and the tower, electrical systems and civil work each consuming about 13%.
Wind turbine blades are usually made from fibreglass or carbon...