A $2.8 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy will enable the University of Maine to use its polymer 3D printer, the largest in the world, for the precision manufacturing of blades for large wind turbines. The initiative is expected to cut production lead times and costs for the manufacture of large, recyclable segmented wind blade molds.

Carbon fiber reinforced acrylonitrile butadiene styrene thermoplastic feedstocks widely used in large scale 3DRendering of a 3D-printed wind blade mold segment that will be produced to accelerate wind blade development through additive manufacturing. Source: University of Maine printing currently cost more than $11/kg. The university intends to incorporate bio-based materials derived from wood, which should provide mechanical properties similar to aluminum, to reduce the cost of the feedstock to less than $4.4/kg. In addition to cutting development costs by up to 50%, the project could reduce lead times by at least six months.

The researchers will also collaborate with the U.S. Oak Ridge National Laboratory to improve mold surface temperature control by use of 3D-printed heating elements. The technology enables robotic deposition of heating elements, reducing mold fabrication time and cost.

The university is partnering with TPI Composites and Siemens Gamesa on the 3D printing project.