PU Injection Foam Resins
WEBAC® 150
- Classic Line
Merowe Dam Project
The Merowe Dam is a dam in Sudan that dams the Nile about 375 kilometers north of Khartoum. Construction of this impressive structure began in 2000. With a crest length of 9,280 meters and a maximum height of 67 meters, the dam is one of the largest infrastructure projects in the region.
Approximately 96% of the dam consists of rockfill, main, and earth dams. The central section of the dam—the most technically challenging section—houses the 370-meter-long water intake power plant and the 154-meter-long flood spillway. Ten water turbines have been supplying Sudan with electricity since 2010.
During the concreting work on the power plant area of the Merowe Dam, ambient temperatures reached up to 50 °C. Despite specially developed cooling systems, cavities/voids and water inclusions formed in the concrete structure. In addition, the horizontal concreting joints and vertical block joints could not be properly sealed under these climatic conditions. As a result, the concrete lost its waterproofing properties.
After the Nile was dammed, both water and Nile silt penetrated the structure. Maintenance passages inside the dam became impassable – safe operation was no longer possible. Post-construction sealing of the structure was urgently necessary.
From the galleries, the maintenance corridors inside the dam, core drillings with a length of up to 13 m were made specifically into the water-bearing concrete joints, which had to be drilled at an angle. In order to reach deep enough into the structure, a special WEBAC packer technology from mining and tunnel construction was used. This allows the packers to be fixed at any depth in the structure. This made it possible to inject WEBAC injection resins into all open joints section by section and seal them against water pressure of up to 5 bar.
In a first step, WEBAC 150 PU injection foam resin was used to achieve a quick, temporary water stop and cavity filling. Subsequently, WEBAC 1403 PU injection resin was used to create a permanent seal.
Despite extreme temperatures and high humidity on site, the injection technology was optimally adapted to the conditions. WEBAC PU injection resins are characterized by a simple mixing ratio of 1:1 and can be reliably processed with the WEBAC IP 2C-F2 2C pump. The separate delivery of the components to the mixing head prevents premature reaction of the resins and supports a fast reaction time, regardless of the processing time.
The damage to the Merowe Dam was thus pragmatically repaired starting in 2011. Now the Merowe Dam can continue to serve its purpose of energy generation and irrigation.
Products Used
- View details
WEBAC 150 is a versatile PU injection foam resin (SPU) that is particularly valued for its safe and easy application. Upon contact with water, it cures with significant expansion to form a surface-tight, firm-elastic foam with a very fine-cell structure. This makes it suitable for the rapid, temporary closure and sealing of pressurized water-bearing cracks, cavities/voids, and leaks in building construction, civil engineering, bridge construction, and tunnel construction.
PU Injection Resins
WEBAC® 1403
- Classic Line
View detailsWEBAC 1403 is a long-track-record proven PU injection resin, particularly valued for its safe and controlled application. Upon contact with water, it cures into a closed, waterproof, and dimensionally stable resin with a fine pore structure. It is suitable for sealing, crack injection, and stabilizing masonry and concrete, and is used for post-construction damp proof courses (dpc) against capillary rising damp.
