PROTECT EMBANKMENT WALLS FROM EROSION WITH CONCRETE CANVAS

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

The South Australian Morgan Water Treatment Plant supplies safe, clean drinking water to more than 130,000 properties through the 358-kilometre Morgan to Whyalla Pipeline.

During the 1940’s, an embankment wall was excavated adjacent to the site - approximately 45 metres long and up to 6 metres high. The steep, exposed slope face slowly eroded over the life of the water treatment plant, resulting in our client requiring a solution to protect the wall from further abrasion and weathering.

OUR SOLUTION

The 45-metre long wall was constructed by applying the Concrete Canvas Geosynthetic Composite Cementitious Mat (GCCM) to a steep vertical slope. An elevated platform and excavator were used to sling the Concrete Canvas into place - Geofabrics supplied a 1.5 tonne rated spreader bar to facilitate safe and efficient installation.

Concrete Canvas GCCM was anchored at the top of the slope into a trench, as recommended in the Concrete Canvas guidelines, then pinned and backfilled to anchor and restrict downward movement during installation. The finished Concrete Canvas slope was saturated with reticulated water to enable the curing process to occur.

The completed project presents a well-prepared slope and subgrade, providing a sleek and uniform profile to the finished product. The Concrete Canvas GCCM solution allowed for minimal excavation and site disruption, achieving a short construction time frame and reduced disruption to the client’s operations.

PRODUCT USED

Concrete Canvas® Geosynthetic Cementitious Composite Mat (GCCM)

• The original Geosynthetic Composite Cementitious Mat (GCCM) and the first product to declare conformance to ASTM D8364- Standard Specification for GCCMs
• Used in a variety of civil infrastructure applications, such as ditch lining, slope protection and capping secondary containment bunds
• Allows concrete construction without the need for plant or mixing equipment
• Simply unroll and position Concrete Canvas, and then just add water (any type of water, including sea water) - Concrete Canvas has no impact on the pH of runoff water
• Compared to traditional concrete solutions, Concrete Canvas is faster, easier and more cost effective to install and has the additional benefit of reducing the environmental impact of concreting works by up to 95%
• Available in bulk and smaller batch rolls