Why 'Engineer The Future'?
The blades of wind turbines must meet a number of requirements: they must weigh little, be robust enough to withstand extreme weather conditions and that the stiffness of the material can be given a direction. That is why the blades are made of so-called fiber composites. Characteristic of this material is the chemical bond between fibers and epoxy resin, the property that also makes recycling these blades very difficult. In addition, the material is not expensive. As a result, wind turbine blades are constructed from this material.
It is estimated that about 14,000 turbine blades will be discarded, which amounts to about 40,000 - 60,000 tons of composite. In The Netherlands this concerns about 1,600 turbine blades. Dumping is prohibited in The Netherlands, unless the processing costs are too high in another way.
Recycling this material is therefore difficult and until this day, unfortunately, not very environmental friendly. That is why KIVI students dedicate themselves to bring research, government and industry together and ask students:
“How can we deliver a more sustainable tomorrow?”
KIVI students
KIVI (Koninklijk Instituut Van Ingenieurs, The Royal Society of Engineers) is the professional association of engineers in the Netherlands with more than 18,000 members. We are commited to supporting engineers in their profession and recognizing the value of their work. We help engineers in making connections with research, education, society and, of course, with each other. We also help to guarantee the quality of education and research, to use the work and knowledge of engineers for the benefit of social issues and to make the impact of technology on society visible. To this end, we work together with the technical business community, knowledge institutions, higher education, the government and foreign partners.
KIVI students’ main goal is to connect all engineering students in The Netherlands. We aim to do the following:
- Connecting of different studies and educational institutions for increasing the network from local to national and strengthening multidiscplinary working.
- Responding to social issues together with (young) political parties.
- Support in setting up start-ups.
- Help students in finding technical internships through our internship platform.