Abstract
Plasticized poly vinyl chloride (PVC) membranes are widely used for waterproofing in civil engineering works. Such membranes are susceptible to environmental degradation and accidental damage, and may thus require localized repairs throughout their service life. These operations typically involve covering the damaged areas with new PVC membranes, prompting the need to execute joints between new and aged membranes. This paper presents an experimental assessment of the performance of two methods used for such repairs, namely hot air welding and solvent-based adhesive bonding. Plasticized PVC membranes with glass-fibre reinforcement were aged by heat weathering for up to 24 weeks in a temperature controlled chamber at 70 °C. The aged membranes were then bonded to new (unaged) membranes and subjected to shear and peel tests, while individual membranes were also tested in tension. The tensile and shear results are in agreement with experimental observations found in other studies regarding the effects of heat ageing on the tensile and shear behaviour of PVC membranes and their seams; moreover, the shear tests suggest that damage is introduced in the membranes during heat welding, resulting in reduced deformation capacity after the execution of the welds. The results of peel tests show that the overall performance of solvent-based adhesive joints is significantly better than that of hot air welded joints. Furthermore, following the heat ageing programme, even though the PVC membranes exhibited reduced elongation at break, this did not significantly hinder the effectiveness of solvent-based adhesive joints; conversely, the hot air welded joints exhibited reductions in average peeling force of up to 60% after 24 weeks of heat ageing.
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