5 Reasons to Use Plastisol For Your Geotextile Products

Geotextiles are permeable fabrics which, when used in association with soil, have the ability to separate, filter, reinforce, protect, or drain. They are able to withstand many harsh weather conditions, are highly durable, and are able to soften a fall if someone falls over. Overall, these materials are referred to as geosynthetics and yield benefits in geotechnical and environmental engineering design.

What are geotextiles used for?

These fabrics are commonly used to stabilize or reinforce earthen structures such as retaining walls, embankments, slopes, and the like. Existing technologies include polyolefins (e.g., polypropylene and polyethylene), glass-fibre and polyesters which are formed into flexible, grid-like sheets. The sheets are stored on rolls and spaced apart, generally in horizontal layers depending on the height and reinforcement requirements of the earthen structure.

Geotextiles also play a key role as snow fences, containing heavy snowfall, protecting roads from snow drifts and guiding skiers. The woven textile use for snow fences is coated with PVC plastisol for both durability and colour impact. In doing so, the snow fences are able to withstand adverse weather conditions, heavy snow fall, and also act as a brightly coloured barrier for skiers and drivers.

Why use plastisol for your geotextile products?

At Polyblend, we are proud suppliers of plastisol for geotextile products – we draw from our vast experience to tailor design geo-solutions to best meet our customers performance and economic requirements. Coating your geotextile fabrics with plastisol allows you to add further strengthening of the substrate with added specific properties.

How can specific properties be determined by PolyBlend’s design team?

The formulating process starts with an in-depth look at the article requirements and customer processing plant. Parameters are agreed with the customer in regards rheology, hardness, and tensile properties to ensure smooth processing.

At this stage we also look at the desired product finish, for example a gloss or matt finish, alongside any other special requirements to suit the correct environmental conditions. This is achieved through the application of specialist PVC resins.

Can certain properties be formulated into the plastisol?

They certainly can, and this is were our highly experienced and skilled technical team will analyse your product specifics and criteria to enable us to design a formulation to meet your requirements which may include:

• Anti-Sag
• Oil Resistance
• Improved Weathering
• UV resistance
• Increased/decreased surface tension
• Anti-static
• Alkali-resistance
• Antimicrobial
• Antiviral

Increased strength and durability

Plastisol is most commonly used as a coating for geotextile fabrics because of it’s strength and durability. Plastisol is able to withstand a high level of impact, such as from falling snow and rock, and also prevents corrosion of the material from harsh weather conditions. Without such coating, the geotextile fabric would not be a suitable for the likes of snow fences and earthen structures.

Customer support

As a supplier of plastisol, we have over 35 years of industry experience. Our commitment to world class quality provides our customers with the confidence that the product delivered is as per their project specifications, ensuring performance and life-cycle costs are optimised.

Our superior technical support includes design and application suggestions to support design developments, construction and installation systems. Our comprehensive product design advice for projects can include plastisol stability analysis.

As with all development projects, we are always on hand every step of the way to give end-to-end technical support and advice, help with process and product improvements, and provide on-site assistance with trials and process support.

If you are interested in learning more about plastisol for geotextile products, then please don’t hesitate to get in contact – mark@polyblend.co.uk