World’s tallest wooden wind turbine starts work in Sweden, unlike the others, which are usually made out of steel, this one is made from thin layers of wood that are glued together. The 150-meter-high structure hopes to be a more eco-friendly and renewable challenger to other turbines in the industry.
Modvion, the Swedish company behind the turbine, aims to produce many more wooden towers in the future.
How it works!
The turbine stands at 150 meters to the tip of the highest blade and the strength comes from the 144 layers of spruce wood that are glued together to make its walls.
The curved sections of the turbine are formed by gluing the thin layers and compressing them together at a factory.
On arrival at the site the pieces are then glued together and stacked on top of each other to make the tower.
Wood Vs Steel
Speaking to the BBC’s Environment Correspondent Jonah Fisher, David Olivegren from Modvion explained: “Wood and glue are the perfect combination; we’ve known that for hundreds of years. And because for taller turbines, wood is a better option since its lighter than steel and less material is used.”
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Modvion also states that using wood in place of steel is more environmentally friendly since trees take carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere when they are alive and, when chopped down, the carbon is stored in the wood.
It might not be easy to identify a wooden turbine because it looks very similar to its wooden counterparts.
With both having fiberglass blades attached to the generator, they also have a white coating to protect from environmental elements
Future prospects
The company has plans to open up a facility in the future that is able to produce 100 turbines a year.
Currently, Modvion is focused on constructing a taller turbine and plans to build another, even taller tower soon. The company hopes to supply at least 100 such towers by the end of 2027 and 2000 in a decade, representing about 10% of the turbines expected to be installed annually.
