Geomembrane is an insulator with a permeability coefficient of zero or close to zero, the main component of which is polyethylene. In recent years, the use of geomembrane insulation has become very popular, the main reasons for which are easy installation, cost-effectiveness, and cost reduction. The application of geomembrane sheets is so wide that it has become common to use them in sealing pools, buildings, tunnels, etc. In the following, we briefly explain what a geomembrane sheet is and then focus on its important features and applications.
What is a geomembrane?
In response to what is a geomembrane sheet? We must say that a geomembrane is an insulating and covering sheet used for the waste of fluids such as water; Today, geomembranes are considered one of the most widely used geosynthetic materials. Geomembranes are polyethylene sheets that are used in man-made projects and systems to control fluid penetration. From a structural point of view, it can be said that geomembrane sheets are composed of thin polymer sheets, which has caused them to be used in various fields such as construction projects, environmental projects, transportation, waste industry, and oil and gas.
It can be said in general that geomembrane sheets are used in environments where the loss of liquids and gases must be prevented. For example, geomembrane sheets can be used in projects where the waste of clean water, hazardous materials, gas, sewage, etc. should be avoided. Most of the time, the waste of any of the mentioned items will bring a high cost to the projects, which is prevented from happening.
Characteristics of geomembrane
In order to better understand the answer to the question of what geomembranes are, you should familiarize yourself with the types and specifications of geomembrane sheets. Geomembrane sheets are made in different types, the most widely used of which are PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride), TRP (Reinforced Polyethylene), HDPE (High-Density Polyethylene), LLDP Linear Low-Density. Polyethylene) LLDPE and EPDM (Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer) are EPDM. The thickness of geomembrane sheets is from 0.75 to 3 mm, the most common thickness of this product is 1.5 mm. Sheets above 2 mm are used for special applications. The price of geomembrane sheets is determined by the type, thickness, size, manufacturing company, quality of materials used, and warranty.
Applications of geomembrane sheet
Geosynthetic materials such as geomembranes have many applications due to their resistance to chemical substances, corrosion resistance, easy installation, long life, high flexibility, suitable physical properties, and cost reduction, which continue to the most important applications of geomembrane sheets such as sealing swimming pools, buildings We dig tunnels, reservoirs, retaining walls, landfills, and flower ponds.
Today, water reservoirs are very important in agriculture and animal husbandry and include pools that are used in horticulture and farms or fish farming; But the pool is not only limited to these things, the water reservoirs are very wide, which include swimming pools, man-made artificial lakes, washing ponds such as copper and ore, etc. Architects and builders of all types of pools prefer to use geomembrane sheets, an impermeable layer, to deliver durable work with a long lifespan. In fact, geomembrane sheets are made of polyethylene and are used as insulation for water penetration in all kinds of pool structures.
Pool sealing
Building sealing has been an important issue for a long time; Because if water penetrates any part of it, it will cause serious damage to the structure and building over time. Before this, insulation was done using petroleum products such as Qirguni and Izogam; But their problems, such as leaving Izogam, still persisted. In recent years, geomembranes as a layer for sealing structures could find an important and large place in the market of sealing equipment.
Tunnel sealing
Metros play an important role in urban transportation, and for this reason, the protection and maintenance of tunnels become very important, and their importance is not only limited to urban and mountain tunnels. Most tunnels, due to passing underground, have many challenges regarding water and They have soil, one of the most important of which is to prevent water from entering the tunnel. Nowadays, the builders of underground routes prefer to insulate the structures by means of geomembranes, which is a durable and flexible polymer insulation, in order to avoid water infiltration into the tunnel and causing problems and costs in the tunnel structure.
Sealing tanks
There are many tanks for storing liquids, such as storing water or chemicals, oil, gas, etc., and the smallest leakage causes the waste of materials inside the tanks. One of the reliable methods to preserve the materials inside the tanks is the use of thin layers of polyethylene, that is, geomembranes. Covering geomembranes with their high impermeability properties helps to preserve the materials inside the tanks.
Retaining wall sealing
The retaining wall is actually a retaining structure that is used to preserve the building and prevent the structure from collapsing. In fact, this wall increases the resistance of the soil so that the lateral pressure due to unnatural slopes can be tolerated. According to experience, half of the retaining structures will leak during the operation period, and this is the main reason why the sealing of retaining structures becomes important. The geomembrane layer is widely used in the insulation of retaining walls due to its impermeability and flexibility in construction.
Landfill
Th landfill is a place where waste is dumped. Although in recent decades, they have realized the value of waste and in fact, there must be materials in the landfill that can no longer be recycled, and recycled materials must be separated in advance and used many times in the recycling cycle; However, no matter how the waste is buried, its leachate must be removed in such a way that it does not enter the groundwater and does not pollute it. Therefore, the exit route of these materials must be designed in a safe and reliable way so that water does not enter the lower layers, i.e. the soil, and then into the groundwater. Therefore, the insulation of these routes and tunnels should be sealed, and today polymer layers of geomembranes are used due to their very high impermeability.
Excavated flower pond
When oil and gas projects are drilled, many materials such as salt, gravel, sand, chemicals, and drilling fluids are also released, which are harmful to the environment and may penetrate into the groundwater and cause water pollution. become To prevent all these incidents, along with oil and gas drilling, ponds are built that use geosynthetic materials such as membranes to prevent the entry of impurities and chemicals into the environment and underground water.
Conclusion
In this article, it was explained what the geomembrane sheet is. Geomembrane sheets are used for various purposes, including sealing pools, tunnels, buildings, etc., to prevent the loss of liquids, gases, and actually insulation, and the demand for its use is increasing day by day. Farnam Baspar, one of the manufacturers of geosynthetic products such as geomembrane sheets, has expanded its activities with the presence of geotechnical experts in this field and has taken great steps to strengthen these products. To buy geomembranes, contact this company to buy the best and most accurate product with consultants.