Nanotechnology

For

Road bases

TYPICAL ROAD BASE DESIGN

Stone Base

(WBM / WMM)

Granular Subbase

(GSB)

Subgrade

Critical Concerns /

Issues

WATER A LUBRICANT -

PARADOX

Water acts as a lubricant to compact soil for

achieving Proctor Density > 95 % at Optimum

Moisture Content

Water ingress subsequently weakens the road

bases by

Reducing frictional values &

Lowering resistance to deformation

WET & DRY CYCLES

Wet Cycle – Expansion

Absorption & Adsorption of Water in monsoon

increases the diameter of hydrated soil causing

expansion of soil

Dry Cycle – Contraction

Evaporation of water from the wet soil leads to

contraction of soil

Expansion & Contraction of soils cause cracking of

soil bases increasing its vulnerability to water

ingress further

GOOD QUALITY SOIL

Non availability of Good Quality Soil for

subgrade with CBR > 2,5,10 & Plasticity

Index = / < 10 increases ……

…..Cost of hauling

WATER INGRESS -

SIDE SHOULDERS / SLOPES

Water ingress into side shoulders / slopes

during rains & floods …..

….weakens subgrade, granular

subbase , stone base ....

....leads to undulations, cracks &

potholes

Saturation of sub-base as snow melts in spring

Freezing of Upper layers at night, causing the

voids filled with water to expand (water to ice

volume expansion 1.1)

Melting of Ice during the day, creates evacuated

cavities and more water is sucked into these

cavities from the bottom

FREEZE – THAW EFFECT IN

SPRING SEASON

Repetitive freezing & thawing action leads to

formation of expanded cavities

With temperature warming up, the ice melts

and the asphalt layer on top collapses above

the cavities to make a large pothole

Repetitive cycles of freeze thaw during the

spring also create large cracks leading to

faster water ingress during rains

FREEZE – THAW EFFECT IN

SPRING SEASON

Stop water ingress

Maintain friction value

CBR – Dry & Wet

CAN WATERPROOFING BE DONE ?

Terrasil

Nanotechnology

Water soluble

Chemically reactive

Nano Siliconize surfaces by converting silanol

groups (water absorbing) to Alkyl siloxane

surfaces (water repellent)

Forms Si-O-Si siloxane bond (mother nature’s

strongest bond which survives for centuries)

Non leachable chemistry

Easy spray application

FEATURES

Converts Soils (all types)

Water loving (Hydrophilic polar) to

Water hating (Hydrophobic non polar)

By Nano Modification

At room temperatures using aqueous solution

THE CHEMISTRY

THE CHEMICAL ACTION

O

S i

O

S i

O

S i

O

S i

O

S i

O

S i

O

S i

O

O

S i

O

O H O H

O

S i

O

O

S i

O

O H

O

S i

O

O O

O O

O

O

S i

O

O H

O

S i

O

O H

O

S i

O

O H O H

Particle surface

-OH groups make surface very hydrophilic (water loving)

O

S i

O

S i

O

S i

O

S i

O

S i

O

S i

O

S i

O

O

S i

O

O O

O

S i

O

O

O

S i

O

O

O

S i

O

O O

O O

O

O

S i

O

O

O

S i

O

O

O

S i

O

O

S i S i S i S i S i S i S i

O

O O

O O O O O

O

O O

O O

Terrasil creates

molecular level

hydrophobic zone

(water repellent)

Particle

surface

4 - 6 nm

Alkyl

Siloxane

surface

Internal

Siloxane

bonds

O

Soil / clay / Sand / Aggregate surface silicate structure

Soil / Clay / Sand / Aggregate surface silicate structure after Terrasil reaction

SURFACE TENSION EFFECT

Water molecules remain in droplet form on a

hydrophobic surface

Prevents the water molecule (0.18nm) to enter into

the pore structure(2000nm), as the droplet size

(100,000nm) is larger by an order of magnitude

SOIL CLASSIFICATION

Classification based on particle size & plasticity index

G=Gravel, S=Sand, C=Clay, M=Silt, O=Organic

P=poorly graded, W=well graded, L=Low plasticity,

H=High plasticity

Classification : ML, CL, OL, MH, CH, OH, CW, Peat

Technology works with all

silicate containing

materials

Can be applied to almost

all types of soil since 99 %

soil contains silicates

Waterproofs Bentonite

also

SOIL COMPOSITION

Element % Composition

O 46.7

Si 27.0

Al 8.1

Fe 5.0

C (total) 3.0

Ca 6.7

Mg 1.4

All Others ~2.1

Retains strength by maintaining frictional

values between silt, sand, clay particles and

resists deformation

BENEFITS- MAINTAINS FRICTIONAL

VALUE

BENEFITS- MAINTAINS BREATHABILITY

One Way Barrier – Water drop cannot go in but

Water Vapor can come out

Terrasil being a nano modification keeps the

pores open to allow vapors to escape while

preventing water to come in

BENEFITS- REDUCES WATER

PERMEABILITY

Permeability reduced

by 500 folds

CH (Black Cotton) Soil, Khandwa, M P, India

Cm

/sec

Issue

Cement stabilized soil bases are moisture

susceptible leading to loss of strength with time due

to Alkali Silica Reaction (ASR) & Carbonation

Solution

Terrasil prevents capillary rise and water ingress

from top & sides. It eliminates ASR & Carbonation to

help maintain strength for a longer period

CEMENT SOIL STABILISATION

On Site

Quality Control

Tests

Put water drops on the treated soil surface

Waterproofing is confirmed if the water drop

remains on surface for at least 15 to 20 min

DROP TEST

Cut 6 inch deep channels and continue to

fill water for 6 to 8 hours

A dry top surface confirms effective

waterproofing & elimination of Capillary rise

CAPILLARY RISE TEST

Untreated Treated

CH Soil

Scratch Terrasil treated top 2 to 5 mm soil surface

& put water drops on the scratched surface

Retention of the water repellency confirms effective

depth of waterproofing

Continue scratching and testing as above to arrive at

actual depth of waterproofing achieved

PENETRATION DEPTH TEST

Application Methodology

for

Soil Subgrade

Technique Spray – Dry –Spray, on soil

compacted to Proctor Density > 95% at OMC

First Spray Waterproofs 90- 95% of the soil

surface

Second Spray Waterproofed membrane

formation with 100% saturation, deep

penetration and micro-cracks waterproofing

APPLICATION TECHNIQUE

APPLICATION METHOD

Hydro-seeder

Sprayer Tank

Manual Spraying

MULTILAYER ENVELOPE -

PAVEMENT ON EMBANKMENT

MULTILAYER ENVELOPE -

CUT SECTION PAVEMENTS

PAVEMENTS ON EMBANKMENT /

CUT AREAS – BOTTOM LAYER

FIRST SPRAY

Embankment Pavement

Spray Terrasil solution on the compacted bottom layer

and sun dry for 1 to 3 hours

Pavement on Cut Area

Dig trench as specified (min. 400 mm). Spray Terrasil

solution on the compacted bottom layer & vertical side

walls (from the top edge) and sun dry for 1 to 3 hours

PAVEMENTS ON EMBANKMENT /

CUT AREAS – BOTTOM LAYER

SECOND SPRAY

Spray Terrasil solution on the treated layer and allow it

to fully dry. Complete drying of the bottom layer is

critical to stop capillary rise especially in semi-wet

areas

Do Drop Test to confirm that the surface is dried

Lack of repellency indicates incomplete drying. Ensure

complete drying and passing of the Drop Test before

laying next layer

PAVEMENTS ON CUT AREAS –

BOTTOM & INTERMEDIATE & LAYERS

VERTICAL WALL

Saturate 15 cm of the top edge of the cut area and the

vertical walls with the spray dry spray technique

for every layer

Let the run down of the spray be absorbed at the

bottom

Sun dry and check for water repellency by Drop Test

It is critical to dry the bottom layer completely, since it

is the key to stop capillary rise especially in semi-wet

areas

PAVEMENTS ON EMBANKMENT /

CUT AREAS – INTERMEDIATE & TOP

LAYERS

Waterproof with the Spray-Dry-Spray technique

the intermediate and top compacted layers and

vertical side walls from top edge (in case of cut

area)

Dry the treated layers for 30-60 minutes before

starting new earth work, without waiting for

complete drying of treated soil

PAVEMENTS ON EMBANKMENT / CUT

AREAS – SHOULDERS & SIDE SLOPES

Spray Terrasil solution on compacted side slopes till

saturation and allow it to dry

Do the second spray on the treated layer till

saturation and allow it to dry

Cover the treated slopes and build shoulders with

regular soil

For extra binding of the side slopes mix 5 kgs of

cationic asphalt emulsion binder with 100 liters

Terrasil solution.

DILUTION & DOSAGE

Soil Layer Soil

type

(clays &

silts)

Terrasil :

Water

(<1000 ppm

TDS) Ratio

Liter /m2

or up to

saturation

No. of

Applications

Bottom,

Intermediate

and Top

CH & CI 1 kg : 300

liters

1.5–3 2

ML & CL 1 kg : 600

liters

1-2 2

Shoulders &

Side Slopes

ML & CL 1 kg : 600

liters

2–3 2

Application Methodology

for

Stone Base

WET MIX MACADAM (WMM) –

FULL DEPTH

Use Terrasil solution to prepare the specified WMM,

compact and allow the stone base to dry completely

Saturate the top surface with Terrasil solution and

allow it to dry

WATER BOUND MACADAM (WBM) -

SURFACE

Saturate spray Terrasil solution on top surface of the

compacted stone base layer and dry for 3 to 4 hours

Spray Terrasil solution again on the treated layer. Dry

completely to form a waterproofed breathable

membrane

DILUTION & DOSAGE

Layer Terrasil : Water

(<1000 ppm

TDS) Ratio

Dosage No. of

applications

WMM

On

aggregates

mix

1 kg : 500 liters 4 - 6% by

weight

1

On

compacted

layer

1 kg : 500 liters 2 – 3 liter /m2 1

WBM

On

compacted

layer

1 kg : 500 liters 2 – 4 liter /m2 2

Applications

Road bases for asphalt and concrete

pavements

Dirt Roads – Rural, Mining, Waste Sites

Solar Farms

APPLICATIONS

Executed Projects

Runway Extension Subgrade,

Enugu Airport, Nigeria Soil surface leveling Untreated compacted soil layer

Spraying Waterproofing confirmation

Rural Road Vadodara, India

Subgrade

Untreated compacted

bottom layer Spraying Waterproofing

confirmation

WBM after two

compacted soil layers Compacted WBM

Terrasil Prime coat with

bitumen emulsion

Waterproofing

confirmation

Zycosoil Tack coat with

bitumen emulsion

Compaction of

Zycosoil asphalt layer

Stone base (WBM), Prime &

Tack coat and Asphalt additive

POST MONSOON ROAD CONDITION

Treated asphalt surface

Untreated – Stripped asphalt surface with cracks and depression

Thank You