Much of the value of composites is in their composition; attempts to separate the fibres from the resin have so far only resulted in low grade materials. This outdoor furniture preserves the material’s structural value by cutting panels directly from a used wind turbine blade.
The blades has an airfoil shape and are curved along its length. Yet, when panels of about 2 m. length are cut from an 80 m. blade, the panel is relatively flat and straightforward to use. The picnic table was designed to demonstrate the potential of these panels.
To test processing and reuse of the blade materials, we made a prototype. First, the blades were cut into panels and beams. The panels were then fed into a CNC waterjet cutter to cut the parts of the table. And finally, the parts were finished and assembled into the table. The prototype was exhibited at the Dutch Design Week 2019 and used as design case study for structural reuse.
