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Degradation of Mechanical Properties of Geotextiles and Geomembranes Exposed to Outdoor Solar Radiation under Various Exposure Conditions—Part I: Results of UV-Degradation



Author(s)

Dr. Vivek Ganesh Bhartu

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DOI:10.17265/2328-2193/2015.04.002

Geosynthetics when exposed to UV-radiation lose their mechanical properties viz. tensile strength. The degradation of strength depends upon the exposure period and more significantly the conditions under which material is exposed. Geosynthetics when used in the field are in contact with soil, water or in contact with soil and water. The degradation of strength may not be necessarily same when the material is freely exposed to UV-radiation under various exposure conditions. Experimental study has been performed on eight geotextile and eight geomembrane test specimens exposed to various exposure conditions under outdoor solar radiation. Results for degradation show that the same material has different loss of tensile strength when exposed to UV-radiation under different exposure conditions. A degradation coefficient has been introduced to evaluate actual degradation of strength for various exposure conditions. In the first part of the paper, results of degradation of tensile strength due to UV radiation are discussed and in part II results are analyzed to obtain generalized solution for assessing UV degradation for various geotextiles/geomembranes exposed under different exposure conditions.

UV-Radiation, geotextiles, geomembranes, solar radiation