Re-Wind: Architectural Design Studio and the Re-Purposing of WindTurbine Blades

Morrow, R., Gentry, R., & Al Haddad, T. (2018). Re-Wind: Architectural Design Studio and the Re-Purposing ofWind Turbine Blades. 97. Paper presented at Sustainable Ecological Engineering Design for SocietyInternational Conference, Dublin, Ireland.

Document Version:Peer reviewed version

Queen's University Belfast - Research Portal:Link to publication record in Queen's University Belfast Research Portal

Publisher rightsCopyright 2018 The Authors.

General rightsCopyright for the publications made accessible via the Queen's University Belfast Research Portal is retained by the author(s) and / or othercopyright owners and it is a condition of accessing these publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associatedwith these rights.

Take down policyThe Research Portal is Queen's institutional repository that provides access to Queen's research output. Every effort has been made toensure that content in the Research Portal does not infringe any person's rights, or applicable UK laws. If you discover content in theResearch Portal that you believe breaches copyright or violates any law, please contact openaccess@qub.ac.uk.

Download date:24. Aug. 2020

1

SEEDSSustainableEcologicalEngineeringDesignforSociety,InternationalConference2018,DublinInstituteofTechnology,Dublin,Ireland,6&8thSept2018

Re-Wind:ArchitecturalDesignStudioandtheRe-PurposingofWindTurbineBlades

Morrow,Ruth1;Gentry,Russell2;AlHaddad,Tristan2

1SchoolofNaturalandBuiltEnvironment,Queen’sUniversityBelfast.

2SchoolofArchitecture,GeorgiaInstituteofTechnology,SchoolofArchitecture,Atlanta,Georgia,USA.

Keywords:designstudio,windturbines,reuse,circulareconomy.

Abstract

ThispaperdiscussestheopeningmovesofaninternationalmultidisciplinaryresearchprojectinvolvingresearchersfromIreland,NorthernIrelandandtheUS,aimingtoaddresstheglobalproblemofend-of-lifedisposalofwindturbineblades.Theproblemisoneofenormousscaleonseverallevels:atypical2.0MWturbinehasthree50mlongbladescontainingaround20tonnesoffibrereinforcedplastic(FRP).Itisestimatedthatby2050,39.8milliontonnesofmaterialfromtheglobalwindindustrywillawaitdisposal.Whilstland-fillisthecurrentmeansofdisposal,thenatureofthematerialsusedinthecompositeconstructionofwindblades(glassandcarbonfibres,resins,foams)meansitunsustainable.Hence,theprojectsetsouttodeployinnovativedesignandlogisticalconceptsforreusingandrecyclingtheseblades.Theprojectbeginswithinaninnovativejointdesignstudio,stagedbetweenQueen’sUniversityBelfastandtheGeorgiaInstituteofTechnology,wherearchitecturestudentswill,withinthehighly-constrainedcontextsofthebladepropertiesandthepotentialreusesites,systematicallygenerate,filter,andprototypeaselectionofproposals,reusingthedecommissionedwindturbinebladesinbuildings,infrastructure,landscape,andpublicart.ThepaperanalyzesthepotentialandchallengesofconsideringthishighlyconstrainedandyetmultidisciplinaryproblemwithinthecontextofaMasterslevelArchitecturestudio.Thepaperconcludeswithananalysisofhowoutcome-drivendesignproblemschallengetraditionaldesignstudiocultures,acknowledgingtheneedtomakeprocessesandideasmoreexplicitinordertocategorise,analyse,rankandrefineproposedarchitecturalsolutions.

2

IntroductionThispaperdiscussestheopeningmovesofaninternationalmultidisciplinaryresearchprojectinvolvingresearchersfromIreland,NorthernIrelandandtheUS,aimingtoaddresstheglobalproblemofend-of-lifedisposalofwindturbineblades.Theoverarchingresearchproblemisoneofenormousscaleonseverallevels:atypical2.0MWturbinehasthree50mlongbladescontainingaround20tonnesoffibre-reinforcedplastic(FRP).Windbladedesignsforoff-shoreturbinesarehoweverexpectedtocontinuetoincreaseinscale.Thelargestbladetodateis88.4metersinlength,(i.e4tenniscourtslong)anditisexpectedthatthiswillbecomethenormasthedemandforwindenergyincreases.Withalifespanof20-25yearsforeachwindblade,thismeansthatby2050,approx.40milliontonnesofmaterialfromtheglobalwindindustrywillawaitdisposal(Liu,P&Barlow,C.Y2017;Banketal2018).Currentlywindbladesattheirend-of-life,canberecycledand/ordisposedofinarangeofways.Theseinclude:thepredominantstrategy,landfill,wherethewholeresourcegoestowaste;variousformofincineration:someofwhichmayrecoverenergyand/orsomematerials(definedasquaternaryrecycling(Bockenetal2016))chemicalprocessing(definedastertiaryrecycling)thatrecoverssomematerialsbutinadowngradedform;andfinally,mechanical(mostlyintheformofsecondaryrecycling)whichseparatestheresinsfromthefibresforuseasfillerreinforcementmateriali.eadowngradingprocess.Allprocesseshavenegativeimplications:environmental,economicand/oraspotentialhealthhazards.Thematerialnatureoftheblades’compositeconstruction(glassandcarbonfibres,resins,foams)meanstheyareextremelydifficultto‘deconstruct’inordertoallowthematerialstobereclaimedandreused.Windbladesaremadeprimarilyfromglassfibrefabrics,withsomecarbonfibreinthehighstressareasoflongerblades.Thefabricsareinfusedwithathermos-setresin,typicallyvinylesterorepoxy.Toprovidehighflexuralstiffnesswithlowweight,theskinsandwebsaretypicallyproducedassandwichpanels,withcorescomposedofbalsaorfoam(Figure1).ThebalsaorfoamsarecutwithaCNCroutertoconformtotheairfoilshape,andtheentirepreformedpackage–fibrelayersandcores–areplacedinasingle-sidedmoldandresininfusedtoformonemassivemonocoquestructure.Theresultingunitizedstructureisasignificantadvantageformanufacturingandpromotesalongfatiguelifefortheblade,relativetootherbladematerialsystems.Butofcoursethecorollaryofthisuniqueandfiercelyintegralcharacteristicofwindbladesisthatonceconstructedtheyareextremelydifficulttodeconstructintoconstituentmaterialsorsmallerpartsfor2nd/3rdlifepurposes.Theseend-of-lifechallengeshavereceivedverylittleattentiontodate(Ramirezetal2016).Yetgivenhowsensitivethegeneralpublichavebeenaroundtheresultantnoiseandecologicaldamageofwindturbines,thereisapressingneedtodevelopsustainableend-of-lifestrategiesthatunderpinratherthanunderminewind-power’sgreencredentials.Whilstpoliciesmayevolveovertimetoencouragemanufacturerstodevelopcircularstrategies,researchprojectssuchasthisleadthewaywithinpresentcontexts,deployinginformedcreativitytoimaginefuturesolutions.

3

Figure1:Typicalbladeconstruction(adaptedfromGentryetal.(2018)).Thewiderresearchprojectsetsoutthereforetodeployandmarryinnovativedesignandlogisticalconceptsforreusingandrecyclingtheseblades.Inotherwords:theprojectteamunderstandsdecommissionedwindbladesasbeingasignificant,largescaleandgrowingglobalresourceofmaterialsandcomponents–conceptualisedbytheprojectteamas‘aNewForest’.Thequestionsthatthenemergeare:whatisthenatureofthestructure,materials,andcomponents.Howbestmightthosematerialsbedeployedinotherapplications?Andcanthisdoneinwaysthatisenvironmentallycognisantofthecontexts(social,cultural,economic)inwhichthewind-bladesarecurrentlylocated,and,ofthepotentialnewapplicationsandlocationofmarketsfor2nd(and3rdetc)lifeproducts?Obviouslythechallengeismuchgreaterthanathreeyearprojectcanfullyaddress,butwehaveadiverse,internationalteamofresearchersandstakeholders,whounderstandthattheprocessofgenerating,critiquing,prototypingandtestingpossiblesolutionswill,inandofitself,provideaprocesstemplateforfuturesolutionsforrepurposinglarge-scaleinfrastructurematerialsandsystems.ThispaperfocusesontheearlystagesoftheresearchprojectwhereitisproposedtousemastersleveldesignstudiosinSchoolsofArchitectureatbothQueen’sUniversityBelfastandGeorgiaInstituteofTechnologytogenerateandtestinitialideasonhowtorepurposewindblades.Thisisaratheruniquebeginningtowhatlookslikeanengineeringproblem.Thepaperwillthereforediscussthevalueof

4

bringingadesignapproachtotheproject.Afundamentalresearchquestionforthispaperis:Howcanamasters-leveldesignstudiobringvaluetothisResearchProject?Toanswerthequestionthepaperwilladdress:TheNatureandValueofDesign,especiallyinrelationtoIssuesofCircularEconomy;Thesignificanceofthestudents’roleinsucharesearchproject;andthechallengestothenormativeformatofDesignStudio,whenorganizedtobeindirectsupportofaresearchproject.Wewillthenoutlinefourstrategiesthathavebeenidentifiedanddevelopedtorespondtothechallengesandhencedelivervaluetotheresearchproject;concludingwithclosingremarksonwhatthisprojectmightofferbeyondapotentialsolutiontotheproblemofrepurposingwind-blades,anditssignificance.TheNatureandValueofDesignInhisseminalbook:HowDesignersThink:TheDesignProcessDemystified,ittakesLawsontoChapter3toconcedethathecanfindnoonedefinitionofdesignthatis‘useful’–definitionsareeithersospecificthattheyarequicklyoutdatedorsogenericthattheyareoflittlepracticaluse.Insteadheattemptstounderstanddesignbylookingathowitispracticedovertimeandbywhom.Hechartstheshiftfromcraftsmanasdesigner,wheredesigningandmakingweresynonymousandattunedto‘use’,tothepointwheredesignprofessionalssitremotelybothfromthemakerandtheend-user.Cross(2001)alsowriteshowresearchershavetriedto‘scientise’design,bytryingtocaptureandpinitdowntorationalizeddesignmethods,whichultimatelyweretooinflexibleandconsequentlyignoredbypractitioners.ContradictingCrossaredesignmethodologiesbasedonstrictanalyticalprotocolssuchasthosedescribedbyPahlandBeitz(1984),whichareclearlyappropriateindesignofdevicesandsystemswheretherelationshipbetweenpart,assembly,andfunctioncanbeclearlydelineated.Recentthoughtsontheroleofdesignersalignlesstoproblemsolvingandmoretocuratingcomplex‘messiness’intosomesemblanceofstructure-awarethatwithmoretime,moreresources,adifferentteam,inanothercontext,theprocesseswouldvaryandthedesignoutcomeswoulddiffer.Whereresearchisengagedinanalysis(sometimesimplyingdeconstruction),designisconcernedwithanticipatingandconstructingnewfuturesinformedbyknowledgeofoldpatterns.It’sthisabilitytofutureforecastandrespondholisticallytocontextandresourcesthatmakesdesignanaturalbedfellowforsustainablecircularpractices–atleast,potentially.ThoseinvolvedindrivingforwardtheCircularEconomyhaverecognizedthispotentialandtheurgencyinhelpingdesignerstodevelopmoreappropriateskills.

‘Designwillplayakeyroleinthetransitiontoacirculareconomy.Weneedtoeducateandinspirethedesignindustrytotakeupthischallenge.’

SophieThomasRSAREPORT01(2013)

ArecentcollaborationbetweentheEllenMcCarthyFoundation(AUKbasedorganizationpromotinganeconomythatisrestorativeandregenerativebydesign)

5

andIDEO(aglobaldesignfirm)ledtotheproductionofacomprehensiveonlineresource,‘TheCircularDesignGuide’.TheGuideistargetedchieflyatproductdesignandbusinesshoweveritstoolkitandlanguageprovidesausefulresourceforandinfluenceonthisproject.Theproblemofusingtraditionaldesignskillsinare-purposingprojectisdescribedbyAli(2017)asonethatrequiresboththeunderstandingofdesignprocessaswellasthedesignofprocesses,whereinthedesignernotonlyhasempathyfortheartifactbutalsoforthelogistics,workforce,andconstraintsimposedbythere-useproblem.Alicitestheneedforadecisionsupportframework,tobedevelopedandusedbythedesignerasameanstojudgethesuccessofthere-purposeddesignproposal.BlizzardandKlotz(2012)provideareviewofwhole-systemsdesignframeworksthataredirectlyrelevanttothedevelopmentofacirculareconomyforwindturbineblades.AccordingtoAli,inadaptingarchitecturaldesignproblemstothecirculareconomy,thefocusesbecomesmoreonmeans(processes)asopposedtogoals(aspectsofthedesignedartifact).Thisisnecessarybecauseofthematerialandgeometricconstraintsappliedbytheproductre-usescenario,whichinthecaseofwindblades,isevident.Asidefromthefactthatdesignerscangeneratepropositionsforthere-useandrepurposingofmaterialsandcomponentsintosecond-andthird-lifeproducts,designersalsopossessstrong2-Dand3-Dgraphicalskills.Theseskillsallowthemtocommunicateholistic,complexideasandstrategiesinwaysthatareremarkablyaccessibletoawiderrangeofaudiences,allowingadiverseresearchteamtointeractthroughimages,modelsandprototypesratherthanremainwithinlinguisticandjargon-basedsilos.TheDesignStudioAsstatedearlier,theinitialstagesoftheresearchprojectwillberunthroughaDesignStudio(Sept-Dec2018).It’sherethattheresearchteam’sunderstandingoftheproblemwillbepresentedandfurtherevolvedthroughdesign.TheQUBstudentswillgenerateasmanyideasaspossibleandthesewillgraduallybereducedinnumberoverasemesterbyaprocessoftesting,reflectingandcritique,includingthecritiqueofdesigntutors,researchersandwiderstakeholders.TheoutcomeswillthenbepassedtoGeorgiaTechwheretheywillbeprototypedatpartandfullscaleandfurtherassessedthroughstructuraltesting,andeconomicandlifecycleanalysis.Thedesignstudioistheperfectenvironmentforthisactivityforanumberofreasons:DesignStudiosarepeer-andinteractive-learningenvironmentsthatareframedaroundprojects.TypicallystudentsaregivenprojectbriefssetbyDesigntutorsthatmimicreallifeconditions.Theyrespondtotheseprojectsoverafewweeks,thoughatpostgraduatelevelthisistypicallysustainedoveronesemester.Studentsworkaloneand/orinteamsbuttheintentionofthedesignatedstudiospaceistoprovideanenvironmentwherenovicedesignersworkandlearnalongsideoneanother.Thisoccursthroughacontinuousprocessofinformalfeedbackontheirinvestigations

6

andpropositions,supplementedonaweeklybasiswithmoreformativefeedbackandcritiquefromdesigntutorsandinvitedexperts.TheDesignstudioisregardedasasafespacewherestudentsareencouragedtotesttheedgesofaproblem.Experimentationisnotonlypermittedbutalsoexpected–sincebypushingattheedgesofanideastudentsaresimultaneouslylearningandtestingtheirownskills,knowledgeandvalues.TheprocessintheDesignStudioisarigorousonewherestudentsareencouragedtoworkiterativelyandtomovethroughandtestideasacrossarangeofscales.Circulardesigndrawsheavilyonthisskillofmovingbetweenscales,butitalsochallengesustonotonlyconsiderphysicalscalei.e.product,buildings,landscape,infrastructure,butalsotoconsiderthesystemstheysitwithini.e.manufacturing,economicandsocial(EMFandIDEO,2017).Asidefromsettingthepedagogicalframeworkforthedesignstudio,theDesignTutorsaretheretoencouragestudentstoexperimentwitharangeoftools,tacticsandmethodstoenrichanddeveloptheirownpraxis.Inadditiontheirroleistohelpstudentstoeitherconvergetheirthinkingtodeliveroutputswithingiventimescales,orindeedtoopenuptheirthinkingtofurtherexplorealterativepossibilities.Thesamebriefwilldrawasmanydifferentdesignoutcomesastherearestudents–nooneansweris‘right’,thoughsomeare‘better’.Howevertheaimofdesignstudioteachingisultimatelytoensurethatthestudentsdeveloptheirownvoiceandmostespecially,astrongcriticalengagementintheirownwork,sincethisisthefundamentaldriverfortheirfuturedesignpractice:‘Ourroleisnottohelppeopletowardsourunderstandingofarchitecturalpractice,rather,theirown’(Morrow2015).

Sothedesignstudio,whenproperlystructured,isaplacewherehighlevelsofcreativityaremixedwithrigorouscritique;wheremultiplevoicesaresupportedandyetwheredeliveryoftangibleoutcomesisassured.ToparaphraseMasschelein,aneducationalphilosopher,thedesignstudioisauniquespacethatcreatesagapbetweenwhatispossibleandwhatisactual(Masschelein2011).TheStudents’RolePlacingtheinitialdesignideagenerationphasewithinapostgraduatedesignstudioallowsustocapitaliseonthecreativecapacityofarchitecturestudents.Weintendtoassignthisresearchproblemtoaround15studentsoveran11weekperiod.Thestudioprovidesadesignresourcethatwewouldnotbeabletoaffordbyothermeans,butthechallengeistoensurethatnotonlydoesitdeliverproductstoourresearchprojectbutalsothatthelearningexperienceofthestudentsisafullandpositiveone.Tothatend,wedrawontheteam’sestablishedexperienceofrunningliveprojectsaspartofthedesigncurriculum(Morrow&Brown2012).

7

“Aliveprojectcomprisesthenegotiationofabrief,timescale,budgetandproductbetweenaneducationalorganisationandanexternalcollaboratorfortheirmutualbenefit.Theprojectmustbestructuredtoensurethatstudentsgainlearningthatisrelevanttotheireducationaldevelopment.”

AndersonandPriest,2016Thestudents’roleisalsomuchmorefundamental,ontwolevels.Firstlytheprojectisbetterservedbyhavingasvariedarangeofideasattheoutsetaspossible;andaspreviouslydescribed:thedesignstudioandthetutorsarepurposefullytheretosupportdiversityofoutcomes.Aprofessionaldesignofficewouldbemorelikelytoconvergeonanarrowerbandwidthofideasthatmaptotheirexpertiseandprofile.Secondly,byinvolvingstudentswefollowoneoftheareasofrecommendationssetoutintheRSA’s2013Reportondesigninthecirculareconomy,whichistoskilluptheDesignIndustry,preparingfuturegenerationsofdesignersbyintegratingdesignforcirculareconomyandsystemsthinkingintothedesigncurriculaandcreatingmomentsofcross-curricularlearning,connectingdesignerswithengineers,materialscientists,etc.DesignStudioChallengesInadvanceofthedesignstudiorunningwearemindfulthatthereareconventionswithinArchitectureDesignStudioCulturethatmightoffersomeresistancetotheproject.Thefourkeyareasaremappedoutbelow.1.ScopeandScale.ArchitectureDesignStudioscanfocusonarangeofscales–fromlargetosmall:urbandesign,landscape,buildingsorfurnishings.Rarelyhoweverdostudiosoccurwhereallscalesareconsideredatthesametime,simplybecauseit’sdifficulttomanageandcanbeconfusingforthestudentsinvolved.Howeverwhendesigningforacirculareconomy,andespeciallyforthemassivewindbladeswearefocusedon,thedesignermustbeawareofallscalesandtheirassociatedsystems.Thismeansthatstudentsinthisstudiomustbeabletounderstandtheirpropositionsfromthelarge,geopoliticalcontexttothesmall,thenatureoftheconstituentmaterialsofwindblades.2.ProductoverProcess.Architecturedesignstudiosrelyheavilyontutorsdrawnfrompracticesothereisaculturaltendencyforstudentworktobejudgedmoreonthearchitectural,ratherthanthelearningoutcomes;andwhenthatisthecaseitisthefinaldesignproductthatpredominates.Giventhescaleofthisprojectandtherelativeearlystagethinkingaroundcirculardesignprocesses,itisunlikelythatwewillhavestrongdesignoutcomesafter11weeks.Howevertheresearchteamrecognisesthattheprocessofgenerating,critiquing,prototypingandtestingpossiblesolutionswill,inandofitself,provideaprocesstemplateforfutureworkinthisarea.Thispresentsyetanotherchallengefortheprojectsincebecauseofthedominanceofthe‘artefact’indesignstudioculture,designprocesses(whichincludethedecisionmaking)oftenliehidden.Thesehoweverarecriticaltoaresearch

8

projectthatbyitsnaturemustrevealits‘rawdata’forexaminationbylaterresearchers.Thechallengehereistocaptureandmakeexplicittheprocess.3.ProposaltoPrototype.TheproposalsdevelopedbyQUBstudentswillbecomeinputstoadetailingandprototypingworkshop,tobeheldatGeorgiaTechinAtlantainFall2019.Theintentisthatthehandoffbetweendesignersanddetailers/prototypersleadstoacloserelationshipbetweenideasandrealisations.Theobviousdifficultyhereisthattheprototypingstudentsmaywishtore-engageinadesignprocess–fromthestart–ratherthantomoveforwardwithassessment,re-designasnecessary,detailing,andprototyping.Twostrategieshavebeendevelopedtoaidintheintegrationofthetwophases:first,bothsetsofstudentswillcompleteasandwichpanelcompositesmakingworkshops–usingthesamematerialsandtechniques,tobuildcompetenceandcommunitybetweenthetwogroups.Inaddition,theQUBstudentwillbevisitingGeorgiaTechinSpring2018topresenttheirproposalstotheprototypingworkshopandfurtherbuildcommunity.4.OtherVoices.DesignStudiosaimtosupportdiversitybutinrealitystudentsarerarelyexposedtoanyviewsorexpertisebeyondarchitecture.Thisgeneratesavaluesystemthatisimplicitandthusdifficulttochallenge.Itcouldbearguedthatwithoutthisdiscourseatthe‘coal-face’ofdesigneducation,studentsareunpreparedforthechallengesthatlieahead.AddressingPedagogicalIssuesintheRe-WindProjectThissectionoutlinesthemeansbywhichwewilladdressthechallengesoutlinedabove.ScopeandScale:Wewilldevelop,inagreementwiththeresearchteamaclearVisual-basedNarrativethatexplainstheneedandchallengesofrecyclingbladesastheyareknownattheproject’soutset.AMastersofArchitectureStudenthasbeenappointedtocarryoutthisworkinadvanceoftheDesignstudioinorderthatwecanuseittoengageandattractstudentsintothedesignstudio.It’santicipatedthattheresearchteamwillalsouseittopromotetheprojecttowiderstakeholders.Theclarityofthisvisualnarrativeiscriticalinensuringthatweareallmovinginthesamedirection,yetalsoallowsforcreativefreedom.AsthestudiobeginswewillalsobegintoCreateaPrecedentMap.TraditionallyDesignstudentslooktobuiltprecedentsforinfluence,howeveritissometimesashallowgestureandquicklyforgotten.Ourapproachwillbetotreatthiswithmorerigor,extendingtheprocesstocollateasmanyprecedentsaspossible,includingprocessprecedents.thatarerelevanttotheproject.Theywillbeanalysed,categorisedandmappedsothatwecanalsospotandunderstandwhatismissingfromthemap.Thishelpsustobuildofftheexpertiseandendeavoursofothersyetalsoidentifypotentialnewareasofinvestigation.ProductoverProcess:Documentingthedecisionmakingprocessiscriticalsowewillusetwodevices.ThefirstisknownasSpreadSheetCritique–thisinvolvesa

9

formalisedanddocumentedprocessthatrecordseachdesignproposition(visuallyandtextually);analysesthepropositionsfromarangeofperspectives;identifiesandliststhenextpossiblestepsindevelopment;associatedrisks,andanyoutstandingquestions.Thisdocumentwillbecriticalinallowingotherswithinandbeyondtheprojecttocriticallyretraceorchallengetheprocess.ProposaltoPrototype:MaterialunderstandingisafundamentalcomponentoftheCircularEconomy.Itiscriticalthatdesignersgobeyondthegraphicalimageofaproposalandunderstanditsmaterialnature(embodiedenergy,workability,lifespanetc)andimpact(environmental,health).Inordertobringthestudentstothislevelofunderstandingweintendtotrialtwotechniques.Thefirstisknownasa‘Teardown’.Thisreferstoareverseengineeringprocess,usedwithintheRSA’sCircularEconomyDesignworkshop,whichofferedparticipantstheopportunitytotakeapartanexistingproductinordertounderstanditsmaterialcomplexity.Inthisinstanceweintendtodeconstructasmallsectionofablade.ThesecondtechniqueisaKitBuildwherewewilldesignaworkshopallowingstudentstoworkdirectlywithcompositematerials,makingtheirownelement.Theaimistoembedaphysical,intimateandtacitmaterialknowledgeofcompositeconstructionthatstudentscandrawonwhendesigninglargerscalepropositionsforwindblades.OtherVoices:ForthiswewillopenupthestudiotoExpertVoicesfromoutsidearchitecture.Theseformativemomentswilloccurthroughoutthesemesterandwillallowustocritiquethepropositionsastheyarebeingevolvedbythestudents,fromaseriesoftechnical,environmentalandsocialperspectives.TheRe-Windprojectisstaffedbyalargegroupofexpertswithbackgroundsinwindpower,lifecycleassessment,geographicinformationsystems,compositematerials,structuralengineering,communitybasedpracticeetc.Theroleoftheseexpertswillbeacknowledgedandharnessedinthedesignstudio,withoutoverwhelmingthestudentsorover-constrainingthedesignprocess.Theintegrationofexpertsandtheirknowledgeintotheprojectisdescribedinthenextsection.(seealsofig2).ProjectStructureThedesigneffortfortheoverallprojectisstructuredintofourmajorphases:(1)apreparationphase,wheredataandtoolsareassembledandorganizedforthedesignstudio;(2)thedesignstudioatQUBwhichisthefocusofthispaper;(3)theprototypingworkshopatGeorgiaTechand(4)thedesigndocumentationphaseattheendofthetwocourses.TheQUBstudioisalsostructuredinfourphasesasdescribedbelow(Figure2).

10

Context Ideas Concepts Proposals

CircularEconomyWindEnergyComplexGeometryCompositeMaterials

InfrastructureHousingAgricultureLandscape

WorkflowsSocietalImpactsLifeCycleAssessmentGeographicInformationSystemsPublicRealm

SiteImpactsAssessment

IndustryandEconomyofIreland

Figure2:StructureoftheWindbladeRe-WindDesignStudioatQUB.1. Context.Inthefirstphaseofthecourse,thestudentsareintroducedto

backgroundknowledgefromawiderangeofexperts–allofwhomaremembersoftheRe-Windresearchteam.Inthisway,thestudentdesignersareequippedtoapplythisknowledgeand“modeltheexperts”inthedesignprocess,asdescribedbyChristiaansandVenselaar(2005).TheproblemisuniquelysuitedtotheIslandofIreland,dueto:thelargeinstalledbaseofwindpowerontheisland,theenvironmentalethicofthegovernmentsandpeopleoftheisland,thefocusoneconomicdevelopmentandpreservationofIrishresources.

2. Ideas.Thesecondphaseofthestudiofocusesonideation,thatis,thegenerationofalargenumberofdesignpropositionsinwiderangeofdomains.Theseideaswillbedevelopedthroughsketching,coarse3Dmodeling,andthroughdiscussionswithexperts,stakeholders,andpotentialclientsforthesecond-lifewindbladeproducts.Itisanticipatedthateachstudentwilldevelop5to10ideas.Atthisstageofthedesignprocess,themeritofideasarenotassessed–nonearetoooutlandishnortoopedestriantobeconsidered.Theclasswilldevelopapatternbookofideas–andtheideasofotherRe-Windteammembers(engineers,physicalscientists,socialscientists)willbeinterleavedwiththosegeneratedbythestudents.

3. Concepts.Thethirdphaseofthecourseincludethedevelopmentofworkflows(iedesignofprocessesperAli(2017))andtheformulationofassessmentstrategiestoquicklyassesstheideasgeneratedinphase2.Promisingideaswillbeidentifiedandalloyedwithinformalworkflowsthatdepictthewindbladesastheytransitionfromtowerthroughremanufacturingtore-usesite.Assessmentwillincludemetricsthatassessthepercentageofmaterialreused,thecarbonsequestrationbymassandduration,andthepotentialsocietalimpacts(bothpositiveandnegative)oftheidea.Weanticipatethateachstudentwillgeneratethreeconcepts,eachtakenfromeitheroneoftheirownideas–orfromtheideasofotherstudentsorprojectteammembers.

4. Proposals.Finally,eachstudentwilldeveloponeproposalthatembodiesthetraditionaldeliverablesforanarchitecturalproject,includingtheselectionofspecificwindbladesfromtheIslandofIreland,ataspecificsite.There-useapplicationwillbefullydocumentedataspecific(likelydifferent)site,andwithfullydocumentedarchitecturalandprocessdrawings.Theproposalswillincludearefinedprocessmodeldocumentingthegeographicalandlogisticaloperationsnecessarytotransformthewindbladesfromactiveuseonatowertothere-

11

purposeapplicationontheIslandofIreland.Theproposalsshouldhavesufficientdetailforthefollow-onprototypingworkshopatGeorgiaTechaswellasfortheteamofecologicalandsocialscientistsandstructuralengineerswhoseworkwillfollowthedesignstudio.

SignificanceandConclusionThisPaperwaswrittenaswewereplanningtheDesignstudio(6monthsinadvance)soithashelpedtoframeandprovideawidercontextandplaceforreflectiononthenatureofthechallengethanwouldnormallybethecase.Thismeansthatthereare,atthepointofwriting,noresearch‘findings’forthepapertoreport.HoweverasweplanhowbesttoconjoinaDesignstudioandaresearchprojectwehavestartedtoconsiderthatthereispotentialfortheprojecttotriggerotheroutcomesbeyondthoseoutputsweinitiallyanticipated.Webelievethatthevisual2and3-Doutputsofthedesignstudiocanbeusedtoraisegreaterpublicawarenessaroundwindbladesandcirculareconomyissuesandassuchwehopetocurateaseriesofpublicexhibitions/presentations.Thedesignprocessandprojectasawholewillidentifythoseaspectsofcurrentbladedesignandmaterialcompositionthatpresentthegreatestdifficultywhenrepurposing,andwehopethatinformationmaypotentiallyinfluencethedesignoffutureblades.Wealsounderstandthatwhilstthescaleoftheproblemaddressedbytheresearchprojectisvast–anysolutionswillcreatecommercialopportunitiesofarelativescaleandsignificance.Thiswillbeanewareaofindustrythatneedsanewgenerationofprofessionals.Sofinally,byaligningaresearchprojecttoadesignstudiowebelieveithasthepotentialnotonlytodemonstratethepowerofdesignthinkinginthesecomplex,largescalesituationsbutwillofferanewformofdesignstudiofromwhichagenerationof‘circularity’designerswithemerge.AcknowledgementsThismaterialisbaseduponworksupportedbyInvestNI/DepartmentfortheEconomy(DfE),grantUSI-116;bytheScienceFoundationoftheRepublicofIreland,grant16/US/3334;andbytheU.S.NationalScienceFoundationundergrantsnumbers1701413and1701694.Anyopinions,findings,conclusionsorrecommendationsexpressedinthispaperarethoseoftheauthorsanddonotnecessarilyreflecttheviewsofthefundingagencies.ReferencesAli,AhmedK.(2017)“Architecturewithinacirculareconomy:Processmappingaresource-baseddesign-bid-buildprojectdeliverysystem,”Enquiry,TheARCCJournal,14:1,48-61.

12

Anderson,JaneandPriest,Colin(2014)“DevelopinganInclusivedefinition,typologicalanalysisandonlineresourceforLiveProjects”.InHarrissandWidder(eds.)ArchitectureLiveProjects.PedagogyintoPractice.Routledge.Bank,LawrenceC.;Arias,FrancoR.;Yazdanbakhsh,Ardavan;GentryT.Russell;Al-Haddad,Tristan;Chen,Jian-FeiandMorrow,Ruth(2018).‘ConceptsforReusingCompositeMaterialsfromDecommissionedWindTurbineBladesinAffordableHousing’,Recycling,3(3).Blizzard,J.L.andL.E.Klotz(2012)."Aframeworkforsustainablewholesystemsdesign."DesignStudies33(5):456-479.Bocken,NancyM.P.;dePauw,Ingrid;Bakker,Conny&vanderGrinten,Bram.(2016)“Productdesignandbusinessmodelstrategiesforacirculareconomy”.JournalofIndustrialandProductionEngineering,33:5,308-320.Christiaans,H.andK.Venselaar(2005)."CreativityinDesignEngineeringandtheRoleofKnowledge:ModellingtheExpert."InternationalJournalofTechnologyandDesignEducation15(3):217-236.Dorst,Kees(2008)‘Viewpoint.Designresearch:arevolution-waiting-to-happen’.DesignStudies29,4-11EllenMcCarthyFoundationandIDEO(Jan2017)‘TheCircularDesignGuide’.OnlineWeb-basedresource.https://www.circulardesignguide.com/[accessed24thMay2018Gentry,Russell,Bank,LawrenceC.,Chen,Jian-Fei,Arias,FrancoandAl-Haddad,Tristan(2018),“AdaptiveReuseofFRPCompositeWindTurbineBladesforCivilInfrastructureConstruction”,9thInternationalConferenceonFiberReinforcedPolymerCompositesinCivilEngineering(CICE2018),July17-19,2018.Hesse-Biber,SharleneNagy(ed)(2012)TheHandbookofFeministResearch:TheoryandPraxis,LosAngeles,CA:SagePublicationsLiu,PandBarlow,C.Y.(2017)‘Windturbinebladewastein2050’,JournalofWasteManagement62,229–240Masschelein,Jan.(2011)“ExperimentumScholae:TheWorldOnceMore...ButNot(Yet)Finished”.StudiesinPhilosophyandEducation30:529–535Morrow,Ruth(2015)Architecturefromthedogs....InD.Froud,&H.Harriss(Eds.),RadicalPedagogies:ArchitecturalEducationandtheBritishTradition(pp.115-121).London:RIBAPublishing,London.

13

Morrow,R.&Brown,J.B.(2012)LiveProjectsasCriticalPedagogies.InLiveProjects:DesigningwithPeople.Dodd,M.,Harrisson,F.&Charlesworth,E.(eds.).RMITTrainingPtyLtdSeptRamirez-TejedaKaterin;TurcotteDavidA.,andPike,Sarah(2017)“UnsustainableWindTurbineBladeDisposalPracticesintheUnitedStates:ACaseforPolicyInterventionandTechnologicalInnovation”,NEWSOLUTIONS:AJournalofEnvironmentalandOccupationalHealthPolicy,Vol.26(4)581–598RSAREPORT01(2013).InvestigatingtheroleofDesigninthecirculareconomy.TheGreatRecovery:redesigningthefuture.RSAprojectsupportedbyTechnologyStrategyBoard.