Selecting the appropriate geomembrane liner can be a challenging task. Unlike various geosynthetics that exhibit distinct visual differences, geomembrane liners typically share common colors, physical and chemical portieres. Visible difference between geomembrane liner products may be limited to the degree of reflection and specific surface finish. However, beneath these surface similarities, geomembrane liners can differ significantly in terms of structure and material composition. Randomly choosing geomembrane liners may lead to issues such as the need for leak detection, addressing cracks resulting from wrinkles, or greatly affecting the service life. BPM is the professional geomembrane manufacturer and supplier, we wholesale a complete line of geomembrane HDPE liner for a variety of civil engineering applications. In this article, we will give some useful tips to identify the best quality geomembrane liner with reasonable price for your specific needs.
When you explore the large mount of the product information of geomembrane liner, you will have many questions. What is geomembrane made of? Why the geomembrane price differ greatly from different geomembrane manufacturers or suppliers？What are Virgin raw material and recycled material for geomembrane liners? Why virgin material is always better than recycled for geomembrane Liner？Their quality and prices vary greatly, mainly reflected in the differences in raw materials, production processes, performance, etc. Let us introduce them in detail next.
1 Introduction to Geomembrane Liner
Geomembrane liner is a geotechnical material with waterproof and anti-seepage barrier formed from a high molecular polymer (polyethylene particles) as the basic raw material, which is hot melted, extruded and solidified through production equipment. BPM offers a variety of geomembrane liners, including the smooth geomembrane liner, textured geomembrane, and composite geomembrane Liner, etc. The smooth geomembrane liner is available in three colors including black, white, and green, providing options to suit different project requirements. The textured geomembrane liner can be customized with either a single or double-sided surface, offering enhanced frictional characteristics for specific applications.
2 Application of Geomembrane Liner
The application fields of geomembrane liner mainly include landfills, sewage treatment plants, artificial lakes, rivers, reservoirs, fish ponds, lotus root ponds, breeding farms and other projects, environmental protection and sanitation projects, water conservancy projects, municipal projects, gardens, petrochemicals, mining, agriculture and other fields.
3 Differences Between 100% Vingin Material and Recycled Material for Geomembrane Liner
3.1 Different Production Processes
100% vingin material geomembranes is formed by high-temperature melt extrusion and rolled after cooling, while recycled geomembranes are made by recycling unused or discarded geomembrane raw materials and reprocessing them.
3.2 Differences in Raw Materials
Virgin materials Geomembrane impermeable Geomembrane uses high quality raw material high density polyethylene (HDPE) as impermeable substrate. In the production process, a certain amount of carbon black, antioxidants, anti-aging agents, ultraviolet absorbers are added with special formula. Using highly automated impermeable geomembrane liner equipment, it is made by three-layer co-extrusion blow molding technology. The finished geomembrane liner product can meet ASTM standards, has UV radiation resistance, good flexibility, flexibility, elasticity, weather resistance, environmental stress cracking resistance, excellent chemical resistance and bonding properties, and can be used in a wide operating temperature range. And the service life is longer, the mechanical indicators are higher than ordinary polyethylene. Suitable for all kinds of engineering projects. The virgin material is non-toxic and harmless. It is suitable for aquaculture, reservoir, artificial lake, etc. It has the characteristics of easy to use, long life and high breeding density.
The recycled geomembrane is crafted from reclaimed polyethylene materials that undergo a re-heat-melting process. However, due to variations in the quality of recycled materials, differing degrees of aging, and the presence of impurities, the performance of the geomembrane liner after production may fall short of meeting engineering requirements. Additionally, the reheating process may leave behind toxic substances, rendering it unsuitable for applications such as aquaculture. Despite these limitations, there exists a market for recycled geomembranes, known for their affordability and frequent use in engineering coverings. The resulting geomembrane liner products typically vary between national standard and non-standard specifications.
3.3 Appearance Differences
The appearance of the virgin material HDPE geomembrane is smooth, shiny and good flexibility, while the appearance of the recycled material HDPE geomembrane is black, with rough material points and poor flexibility.
3.4 Performance Differences
Physical properties difference between virgin material HDPE geomembrane and recycled material HDPE geomembrane are completely different. The physical properties of HDPE geomembrane liner mainly include tensile fracture strength, yield strength, puncture resistance and right Angle tear strength, etc. These physical properties of virgin material HDPE geomembrane liner are much higher than that of recycled material HDPE geomembrane liner. The chemical properties of virgin HDPE geomembrane and recycled HDPE geomembrane are different: The chemical properties of HDPE geomembrane mainly include cracking resistance, aging resistance, UV resistance, oil and salt resistance, acid and alkali resistance, corrosion resistance, high temperature resistance, low temperature resistance and non-toxic performance, etc. These chemical properties of virgin HDPE geomembrane are much higher than that of recycled HDPE geomembrane.
3.5 Different Geomembrane Quality
At present, it can be divided into three kinds of geomembrane liner. Non-standard geomembrane, GB standard geomembrane, and ASTM standard geomembrane.
3.5.1 Non Standard Geomembrane
Non-standard geomembrane is produced from recycled materials, which may crack in 2-4 months in the case of light, and can be used for about 5 years in the case of avoiding sunlight. Low price with general waterproof function, can be used for ordinary seepage prevention projects.
3.5.2 GB Standard China Geomembrane
GB standard China geomembrane is produced by high-quality return ratio of new materials, the service life is used in the absence of the sun for about 20 years, the price is slightly higher with good tensile resistance, low temperature resistance, anti-aging ability, generally used in cold areas and construction environment slightly poor seepage prevention projects.
3.5.3 ASTM Standard Geomembrane
ASTM standard geomembrane liner is produced from virgin materials, in the absence of sunlight, the service life is about 50 years, the product quality is good, the price is high, has good acid and alkali resistance, corrosion resistance, anti-aging, anti-low temperature, anti-ultraviolet ability, long service life is generally used in the project with high impermeability. Such as landfill seepage prevention, tailings treatment site seepage prevention, slag field seepage prevention, solid waste landfill seepage prevention and so on. Due to the different raw materials, production ratio and standards, the prices of different types of geomemes are also very different. Therefore, the appropriate quality of geomembrane can be selected according to the design requirements or the needs of their own projects.
3.6 Different Geomembrane Price
Usually, the price of virgin HDPE geomembrane is higher than that of recycled HDPE geomembrane with the same thickness. If the price is very low, lower than the cost of raw materials, it must be recycled materials. BPM insists on using imported brand raw materials and resolutely does not use recycled materials. As a geomembrane manufacturer with its own factory, it will provide competitive ex-factory prices. It is a trusted geomembrane liner manufacturer.
4 Summary
To sum up, using virgin material rather than recycled material for geomembrane liners offers several advantages, particularly in terms of performance, durability, and reliability. When choosing a geomembrane liner, you need to consider its performance, quality, cost-effectiveness and other aspects. It is recommended that you fully understand the relevant information of each geomemrbane liner product before making a choice, so that you can reasonably select a suitable geomemrbane liner to ensure the quality of the project. In many critical applications, where reliability and performance are paramount, virgin material geomemrbane liner are preferred.
Any questions about this topic of virgin material and recycled material for geomembrane liners, please contact us for more information.
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