Can flax replace E-glass in structural composites? A small wind turbine blade case study

The failure root bending moment and corresponding tip displacement of the flax blade are 11.6 kN m and 2300 mm, respectively. The blades exhibit distinctly different load-deflection curves and failure modes. The mean flexural rigidity of the flax and E-glass blades are estimated to be 24.6 kN m2 and 43.4 kN m2, respectively. It is interesting to find that although flax fibres and their composites are generally recognized for their stiffness, a flax blade cannot compete against an E-glass blade in terms of stiffness.