Nonwoven bonded pre-applied waterproofing membranes - bond development and properties

Pre-applied bonded membranes are used as an additional waterproofing measure on waterproof concrete structures and are installed before concrete placement. They achieve a bond to the fresh concrete and often use nonwovens, which must be filled with cement paste during concrete placement. However, little is known about the separation of cement paste from fresh concrete, its properties in the nonwoven, or beneficial nonwoven characteristics. The following paper analyzes the bond of nonwovens in three parts: first, the deformation behavior of the nonwovens during concrete placement is determined using microsections. During concrete placement, the nonwovens are compressed and progressively recover during cement paste filling. As the fresh concrete is placed, filtration processes start. Excess water and a limited amount of fine solids separate into the nonwoven. A filter cake forms on top of the nonwoven and is responsible for a water-rich cement paste within the nonwoven. Only with the onset of vibration compaction is the filter cake loosened, more solids penetrate the nonwoven, and the water-solid ratio in the nonwoven is lowered. The bond subsequently develops proportionally to the tensile splitting strength of the concrete. Nonwovens influence the bond strength as they control the separable amount of excess water, which degrades the cement paste strength in the bonding layer.