Polymer slurry is a construction industry requirement. It is a mixture of several polymers. Two of its incredible traits are:
- It is hydrophilic, and
- It is super absorbent.
An example of polymer slurry is polyethylene glycol. When mixed with water polymer slurry thickens. Polymer slurry is used in the foundation pilings of buildings and infrastructure including bridges, marine docks, roads, piers, flyovers, subways, railways, and stadiums. Polymer slurry absorbs water and prevents it from getting through to concrete and steel used in the foundation pilings. Polymer slurry is primarily used in the construction industry.
Laying Foundation Piles
This viscous product is also a drilling industry favorite. Polymer slurry keeps foundation holes lubricated and stable while they are still being drilled and worked upon. Oftentimes construction tools/equipment break/snap in the foundation holes and they need to be extracted and replaced. Polymer slurry helps recover damaged tools from foundation boreholes.
Polymer slurry does not repel water on the surface as oil does. But it repels groundwater and prevents the water from entering the borehole, which is what aids in extracting and replacing the damaged tools. The higher pressure created by the viscous character of the polymer slurry is the reason why polymer slurry can keep groundwater at the arm’s length of concrete and steel.
Tall Tales of Polymer Fluids
Reports are that polymer slurry is extensively used while driving foundation piles of very tall buildings. Like the ones in Dubai which include the world’s tallest manmade structure! According to construction workers involved in raising this absolutely remarkable piece of architecture to its record-beating height, foundation piles were driven into the ground to depths of nearly 170 feet with the help of heavy equipment and polymer slurry.
The more than 50-meter deep foundation holes were lubricated sufficiently with polymer slurry before concrete was poured into them. The concrete which was protected from the ill-effects of the groundwater by the polymer slurry hardened and turned into foundation piles!
Finding Polymer Slurry
If you are in the construction industry and are in the process of getting back to breaking ground by restarting stalled construction projects or starting new projects, then you will be in need of fairly large quantities of polymer slurry. Of course, being a veteran in the industry you would know where to get hold of this very important construction material from.
And, unless we are not mistaken, knocking on the doors of dealers in the best heavy equipment near me will take us straight to the source of polymer slurry. If you think new players have entered the polymer slurry business, you might want to know them, too. In which case, a thorough search on the internet will be beneficial.
Summing Up
To round off this blog on polymer slurry, a key ingredient in the construction industry and a crucial piece of material used in the laying of foundation piles, let it be known that without polymer slurry modern buildings and the state of the art infrastructure of the current era would not have been possible. The fact of the matter is, polymer slurry has changed the way construction is done even as it transformed the face of the construction industry.
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