Only 1% of decommissioned wind power blades are effectively recycled, with a loss of more than 1,000 yuan for processing one ton: Zhongge Environmental Protection adopts the "crushing without pulverizing" technology to manufacture plastic carbon fiber pallets.
Project Name: Zhongge Environmental Protection Plastic Carbon Fiber Pallet Production Project
Company Name: Liaoning Zhongge Environmental Protection Technology Co., Ltd.
Target Track: Circular economy, solid waste resource utilization, decommissioned wind turbine blade recycling, green packaging and logistics carriers
Project Location: Economic Development Zone of Beipiao City, Chaoyang City, Liaoning Province
Filing Status: Filed and approved for project establishment, filing number "Beifa Gai Bei (2026) No.289", project code "2607-211381-04-01-699760", accessible on Liaoning Government Service Network
Financing Requirement: Planned financing of RMB 3 million
Fund Usage: Pre-production factors including power supply, crane installation, mold manufacturing, labor cost and operating turnover, etc.
Financing Stage: Early stage / Angel round (valuation and equity ratio to be negotiated face to face)
The dual disposal dilemma of decommissioned wind turbine blades and waste plastics is in urgent need of breakthrough solutions
China's installed wind power capacity continues to grow at a high speed, and the first batch of put-into-operation wind turbines are entering the decommissioning period in a concentrated manner. It is estimated that by 2030, the total number of decommissioned wind turbine blades in China will exceed 500,000 tons, and the cumulative number of decommissioned blades worldwide will reach about 43 million tons, with China accounting for about 40%. Decommissioned blades are mainly made of glass fiber or carbon fiber reinforced thermoset resin, whose highly cross-linked molecular network cannot be remolded by heating or dissolved, and natural degradation takes thousands of years. At present, the physical recycling method widely used in the industry can only break the blades into mixed materials, cannot realize the effective separation of resin and fiber, and the broken products can only be used as low-end fillers, with extremely low added value of products. The comprehensive cost of processing one ton of decommissioned blades is between 1,000 and 2,000 yuan, while the income of recycled products is difficult to cover the cost, resulting in that only about 1% of decommissioned blades are effectively recycled at present. A large number of blades are stacked or landfilled, and the users even grind them into powder as waste filler, which belongs to high-value low-utilization.
At the same time, the disposal pressure of waste plastics is also severe. Under the "Dual Carbon" goal, plastic pallets are accelerating to replace traditional wooden pallets. The annual growth rate of plastic pallets exceeds 15%, and the market size of plastic pallets in China has exceeded 120 billion yuan in 2026. However, the price fluctuation of virgin plastics and carbon footprint pressure make the industry urgently need a lower-cost alternative raw material solution. The convergence of the two major solid waste problems has given birth to the technical idea of collaborative utilization of decommissioned blade fibers and waste plastics.
I. One-sentence Introduction
Zhongge Environmental Protection uses super-large injection molding machines to "crush but not grind" the decommissioned wind turbine blades, retain the physical properties of fibers, melt and mix with waste PP/PE plastics, and integrally form high-strength, recyclable "plastic-carbon fiber super pallets", which solves the two major problems of wind power solid waste and plastic pollution at the same time.
II. Project Highlights
High-value utilization of decommissioned blades: Instead of grinding the blades into low-end powder fillers, they are cut and crushed into 10-50mm fiber-reinforced particles, retaining the length-diameter ratio of 15-25mm fiber bundles, so that glass fiber/carbon fiber becomes the "skeleton" of composite materials.
Simultaneously consume waste plastics: The first phase can utilize 3,000 tons of decommissioned wind turbine blades and 3,000 tons of waste PP/PE raw materials annually, with an annual output of 200,000 super pallets.
Clear technical barriers: The parent company Far East Heavy Industry has invested in YDZX-008 super-large injection molding machine and supporting equipment, with a clamping force of 4,000-8,000 tons, injection volume of 50-500kg, double-station, hot runner, hydraulic cone pin clamping, which can directly use ungranulated waste plastics and mixed waste materials, filling the domestic gap, and is comparable to the same level of equipment from KraussMaffei in Germany.
The project has been filed and approved: It is an investment attraction project of Beipiao Economic Development Zone, and the government provides 8308 ㎡ of factory buildings and 1289 ㎡ of office buildings for free use for two years.
Cost and performance advantages: The strength, toughness, bearing capacity and service life of the product are about 2 times that of the existing pallets on the market, and the cost is about 60% of that of pure plastic pallets.
III. Technology and Products
Technical route: Decommissioned blade cutting → coarse crushing → fine crushing and sorting → fiber reinforced particles → melt blending with waste PP/PE and additives → integral forming by super-large injection molding machine.
Core innovation:
"Making strength from waste": Retain the original long fiber bundles of the blades to realize fiber regeneration and reinforcement;
Interface compatibilization: Improve the compatibility between thermosetting resin and thermoplastic matrix;
Super-large runner mold: Suitable for high-viscosity, high-filling recycled composite materials, to ensure that large-size pallets are fully filled and have uniform structure.
Product system: Plastic carbon fiber super pallets, with specifications covering 1200×1000×160mm, 1500×1500×180mm, 2400×1200×200mm, etc., with dynamic load of 3-10 tons and static load of 10-25 tons, suitable for heavy-load scenarios such as ports, logistics, heavy industry, auto parts, wind power bearings, transformers, long-axis workpieces, etc. The product is resistant to -30℃ low temperature, salt spray, acid and alkali, with a service life of ≥10 years for recycling, and can be re-crushed and reused after scrapping, forming a closed-loop cycle.
IV. Value of Environmental Protection, Carbon Reduction and Circular Economy
Annually process 3,000 tons of decommissioned wind turbine blades and consume 3,000 tons of PP/PE;
Reduce carbon dioxide emissions of about 3,000 tons caused by incineration, and save 50-200 mu of landfill land;
For every 1 ton of recycled plastic products produced, about 1.5-2 tons of carbon dioxide emissions can be reduced;
For every 1 ton of decommissioned blades utilized, about 0.5-1 ton of carbon dioxide emissions can be avoided;
200,000 pallets per year can replace a large number of wooden pallets, which is equivalent to protecting 50,000 adult trees every year;
The carbon emission reduction in the whole life cycle is about 60%, which conforms to the trend of EU CBAM and has the advantage of carbon exemption for export-oriented enterprises;
Estimated at 50 yuan/ton of CCER, the carbon emission reduction value of a single pallet is about 10-20 yuan, and the annual carbon income of 200,000 pallets is about 2-4 million yuan.
V. Market and Business Model
Target market: Large e-commerce logistics warehouses, port terminals, construction machinery, auto parts, wind power equipment, chemical parks and other heavy-load, large-scale, high-turnover scenarios.
Business model: Lock the decommissioned blades and leftover materials of wind turbine manufacturers/blade factories in the upstream, set up recycled material modification centers in the midstream, sell super pallets in the downstream, and implement the "trade-in + closed-loop recycling" mechanism.
Economic calculation: The comprehensive cost of a single pallet is about 90 yuan, the selling price is 250-300 yuan, and the gross profit of a single pallet can reach 150-200 yuan; the first phase has an annual output of 200,000 pallets, with an annual output value of about 50 million yuan and an annual tax of about 1.5 million yuan after reaching production; the annual output value can reach 150 million yuan and the tax is about 7.5 million yuan after the second phase reaches production.
VI. Project Progress and Financing Requirements
The project has been introduced as an investment attraction project by Beipiao Economic Development Zone and completed the filing and approval. The parent company Far East Heavy Industry has invested in super-large injection molding machines and supporting equipment. The project now needs to raise 3 million yuan for the operation of pre-production factors such as power supply, cranes, mold manufacturing, labor costs, etc.
Summary: This project has multiple advantages of "feasible technology, economic benefit, environmental friendliness and policy conformity". It is a demonstration project combining high-value utilization of decommissioned wind turbine blades and plastic circular economy. The early-stage financing of 3 million yuan can promote the implementation of pre-production factors and seize the window period of "dual carbon + circular economy".