Concrete Towers - Solid and High Quality Solution
Wind turbine towers need to support any loads and deal with durability issues, including resisting in the rough and corrosive marine environment.
The high quality of concrete used to erect wind turbines is therefore key, but not only. All elements of the tower play together a central role. Sika offers an all in one soltution from the top of the blade to the base foundations.
Our products for concrete towers include bonding and sealing solutions, grouting and chemical anchoring, protecting as well as repair work.
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The concrete used in erecting wind turbines must be of a particularly high quality. The precast tower elements are assembled on site and must provide a long term tight structure. Thanks to Sika’s 100 years of experience and success, you can rely on our solutions.
Strong and durable adhesion of the sealant to the substrate is the essence of joint sealing. No adhesion means water ingress. Therefore, we recommend pre-treating the joints before the sealant application. This primer application does not replace the usual joint preparation, and before it is applied, the joint must be well cleaned from all processing agents, dirt and dust. In the case of concrete, the laitance must be removed by grinding. Lose particles like dust etc. must be removed. The substrate surface must be capable to withstand the elastic forces from the sealant movement. If this is not carried out, the substrate will crack near the surface. Therefore a thorough and comprehensive substrate preparation is essential.
Element bonding adhesives provide a rigid bond between elements to transfer load. Sikadur® epoxy adhesives have already been used for decades effectively to bond precast concrete elements together and provide a waterproof seal.
For the construction of concrete towers Sika provides a large variety of concrete admixtures and auxiliary products. Mould release agents for easy de-moulding, superplasticizer for improved workability, strength and durability accelerators for a faster production process. Fibers can be used to reduce crack-width and to replace steel reinforcement. The use of curing compounds leads to higher durability as the concrete surface is protected after de-moulding.
Protecting the reinforced concrete elements prolongs longevity and prevents expensive damages and repairs. Coating systems are used to enhance the appearance and meet relevant regulations and standards.
Sikagard® hydrophobic impregnations, a rigid and flexible coating system is proven to protect reinforced concrete from the ingress of deleterious substances harmful to steel reinforcement.
Chemical Anchors are used in a wide range of structural and non-structural applications. They can be found in different grades of concrete, different masonries, and other substrates. Threaded rods aswell as rebars and other fixing system can be installed with chemical anchors.
Repairing damages in the concrete foundation or due to spalling, or damages created during production and transportation of the pre-cast elements can be done with our Sika MonoTop® and Sikadur® range.
Where is your construction most vulnerable to water ingress? At the joints!
The assembly of structures from building blocks such as concrete or steel elements requires the joints to be sealed to ensure water and air tightness. Joint sealants compensate and bridge the individual movement of the elements due to temperature changes, moisture, sound, wind and vibrations. Sikaflex® and SikaHyflex® stand for best-in-class and high quality envelope sealants. To achieve best performance for your application our assortment comprises of all major sealant technologies. Advanced polyurethane sealants for porous substrates and innovative silicones for non-porous substrates, or where a high adhesion is required, our unique silane-modified polymer range.
Elastic joint sealing
Engineering structures consist of individual elements which exhibit relative movements to each other. There are different kinds of such movements: Thermal movement originating from the thermal expansion, mechanical movements originating from stress on the structure like wind load or vibrations and structural movements as a consequence of permanent deformation of the structure. Movement within the joints is a reality and the long-term solution to compensate for movement is high-performance elastic joint sealants. These sealants retain their original functionality and good adhesion to the substrate throughout their whole life cycle.
Elastic sealants for movement joints
For porous substrates
- SikaHyflex®-250 Facade: Our low modulus PU sealant with the highest movement classification
- SikaHyflex®-160 Construction: Our high modulus PU sealant with good movement classification
For non-porous substrates
- SikaHyflex®-905: This product has the highest movement classification. All our silicone range is low modulus
- SikaHyflex®-605 or -305: Widely applied in the glass and metal facades all over the world this product convinces with unique application properties and good performance
- SikaHyflex®-105: It can be used as weather sealant but is also often applied for generic applications
Sikaflex® PRO-3 and PRO-3 SL are ideal products for floor joints. Due to their mechanical properties (tough and elastic) they are highly recommend and the first choice for many.
The use of epoxy adhesives for bonding concrete segments represents a challenge to the resin technology in many ways. The application and product characteristics must be carefully matched so that the adhesive can transmit safely compressive and shear forces from segment to segment, to develop sufficient strength within a defined period so that the segments can be erected as rapidly as scheduled in the program and to seal the joints between the segments against future ingress of water, also to protect the prestressing cables against corrosion.
Structural Bonding
Element bonding adhesives provide a rigid bond between elements to transfer load. Sikadur® epoxy adhesives have already been used for decades effectively to bond precast concrete elements together and provide a waterproof seal.
- Sikadur®-31 is a moisture
tolerant, thixotropic, structural 2-component adhesive and repair mortar, based on epoxy resins and special fillers. The non-sag adhesive has excellent adhesion to concrete and steel as well as high mechanical values. Different reactivity versions are available for the use at different ambient temperatures.
Reinforced concrete is a composite material especially used in civil engineering structures for its strength and durability. To increase the durability of the reinforced concrete, the ingress of water and deleterious elements such as CO2 or chloride shall be prevented so the embedded reinforcement steel is not at risk of corrosion. We have developed and produced protection systems (coatings or invisible protection) that are used all around the world to protect concrete surfaces and structures for many decades. This includes the protection of all types of buildings and structures, in various types of environment and climatic conditions.
Protective coatings
According to the exposure conditions (e.g. marine or urban environment, resistance to freeze-thaw etc.), and the requirements of the owner in terms of aesthetics , level of protection and durability , the responsible design consultant can determine and specify considering the characteristics of the protective coating systemto be used.
- Sikagard®-675 W
- Sikagard®-680 S
- Sikagard®-690 W HD
Hydrophobic impregnations
Deep penetrating hydrophobic impregnations help to increase the durability of concrete structures by reducing the water uptake behavior and preventing the ingress of water-dissolved contaminants such as chlorides. The aesthetic appearance of the concrete surface will not be changed.
- Sikagard®-705 L
- Sikagard®-706 Thixo
Bonded anchoring cartridge systems offer a variety of unique benefits against other anchoring techniques. In many cases the achieved bond strength of the fixing is stronger than the substrate it is bonded to providing an excellent capacity for very high loads. They are stress free systems that are ideally suited for installation of anchors in close proximity applications as well as close to the edge of the base material. They are flexible in terms of embedment depth and a deeper embedded anchor will provide a greater load capacity.
Anchoring
Chemical Anchors are used in a wide range of structural and non-structural applications. They can be found in different grades of concrete, different masonries, and other substrates. Threaded rods as well as rebars and other fixing system can be installed with chemical anchors.
- AnchorFix-1: Fast curing anchoring adhesive Solvent- and styrene free based two part polyester anchoring adhesiveThreaded rods in concrete or masonry
- AnchorFix-2: High-performance anchoring adhesive: Solvent- and styrene free, epoxy acrylate based, two part anchoring adhesiveThreaded rods or rebars in concrete
- AnchorFix-2+: (Tropical, Arctic) High-performance anchoring adhesive: Solvent- and styrene free, epoxy acrylate based, two part anchoring adhesiveArctic or Tropical hardener grade availableThreaded rods or rebars in concrete (also in cracked concrete and seismic zone)
- AnchorFix-3001: High-performance, professional epoxy anchoring adhesive Solvent-free, thixotropic, two part epoxy resin-based, high performance anchoring adhesiveThreaded rods or rebars in concrete (also in cracked concrete and seismic zone)
Deterioration of concrete may happen due to corrosion, structural damage, water infiltration, freeze and thaw cycles, seismic activity, reactive aggregates etc. Years of research plus decades of practical experience have enabled Sika to develop a fully comprehensive solution to restore and rehabilitate concrete structures. Sika customer advice and support is second to none, from concept to successful completion on site. This is all based on more than 100 years of experience on large and small projects all over the world.
Bonding primer and corrosion protection
Bonding Primers are used in specific cases to promote the bonding behavior of repair materials reinforcing bars and existing concrete. Sika provides products for small area and large-scale applications.
- Sika MonoTop-910: cementitious polymer modified one-component coating material containing silica fume used as bonding primer and reinforcement corrosion protection
- SikaTop Armatec-110 EpoCem: cementitious epoxy resin compensated
3.component coating material with corrosion inhibitor, used as a bonding primer and reinforcement corrosion protection.
Repair Mortars
Sika provides a full range of high quality cementitious, polymer-modified mortars and epoxy based repair materials for different repair works and demanding requirements.
- Sika MonoTop-412 N: 1-component, sulphate resistant, fibre reinforced, low shrinkage repair mortar meeting the requirements of class R4 according to EN-1504
- Sika MonoTop-412 NFG: 1-component, sulphate resistant, polymer modified, fibre reinforced, very low shrinkage repair mortar with corrosion inhibitor meeting requirements of class R4 according to EN-1504
- Sika MonoTop-723 N: polymer modified cementitious surfacing and finishing mortar, sulphate resistant with low cracking sensitivity meeting requirements of class R3 according to EN-1504