Techniques for the Fabrication of Geomembrane Filled Seams

Abstract

Geomembranes employed to overlay the excavation for landfills must be seamed together on-site at the landfill. To ensure the integrity of the containment system of the landfill, these sheets or blankets must be carefully seamed. Present methods in common use are: extrusion fillet welding, where the extrudate is placed over the edge of the seam; extrusion flat welding, where the extrudate is placed between the two sheets to be joined; hot wedge seaming, a thermal fusion bonding, where an electrically heated wedge melts the sheets to be joined, after which a roller applies pressure to ensure the seal; hot air seaming, where hot air between the sheets melt the surfaces to be joined; chemical fusion, where a liquid chemical is applied between the two sheets to be joined; and chemical adhesive, where a dissolved bonding agent (adherent) is applied between the two sheets to be joined. This paper is a review of the technology involved in forming the seams by each method.