The Renolith Water Penetration Protection System (WPPS):
Another dangerous effect for concrete is a phenomenon called water penetration. If water will be stored within the concrete, it will be susceptible to hot or low temperatures. Hot temperatures, typically for tropic countries, will cause the formation of water steam within theconcrete. On the other hand, low
temperatures will cause the formation of ice. Both things are dangerous for concrete, because then the concrete will ?explode" from inside, causing well known effects like potholes.
For the understanding of our WPPS, it is essential to understand the mechanism, which is causing the water penetration.
During the curing process of concrete, very small channels, one called ?capilarry", are formated in the concrete surface (see figure 4). Unfortunately, these
Fig. 4
capilarries have the physical attribute to rise water. Therefore, you can speak of the ?capilarry rise of water". These capilarries can be very deep, so that water can be lead also very deep into the concrete.
It is very hard to avoid the formation of capilarries during the curing process, so therefore you have to look for a mechanism, which is able to block this physical phenomenon in a different way
Of course, Renolith is providing such a mechanism, which is able to block the capilarry rise of water.
Renolith is adding micro-pores to the concrete (see figure 5), which are distributed throughout the concrete randomly.
Of course, these micro-pores are also settled in or in the near of the capilarries, building small ?caverns". These caverns break the physical attribute of the capilarries to rise water. That means, that water is only able to rise in the concrete, until the first micro-pore is reached (see figure 5).
Therefore, water is not able to rise as deep as in normal concrete, if Renolith is used.
To draw the conclusion, Renolith is able to reduce the water penetration of the road base dramatically and therefore no severe effects, caused by temperatures or the change hereof, like potholes, will occur. This is again saving time and money because of the low need for maintenance. On the other hand, Renolith based roads are very versatile in their use: You will not have any problems using Renolith based roads in tropic countries or in such countries, where you have a perma-freeze ground
