Wacker Chemie : EUROPEAN COATINGS SHOW 2019 - WACKER to Unveil New Dispersible Polymer Powder for Easy-Use Waterproofing Membranes

Waterproofing membranes are barrier layers which are based on cement mortars and have a high content of polymeric binders (up to 30 percent). They are used to protect cellar walls, terraces and bathrooms against penetrating moisture. After they have been applied, they can be covered with other, appropriate materials, e.g. tile adhesives and tiles in wet rooms, and bituminous sheets on flat roofs. The binders are also highly adept at bridging cracks in masonry, as the high content of dispersible polymer powder makes the layer flexible as well as waterproof. This prevents cracks from spreading from the substrate to the surface and from allowing moisture to penetrate.

In German-speaking countries, waterproofing membranes are usually applied with a notched trowel. The ease with which the cement-polymer mixture can be troweled depends heavily on its rheology, i.e. flow properties. For, it is the rheology which determines how much the cement mortar slumps - and thus whether the ribs produced by the notches of the trowel remain standing or collapse after application.

Previous dispersible polymer powders were unable to impart the non-slump properties needed for application with a notched trowel. So WACKER chemists set about modifying the recipe for the dispersible polymer powders. This culminated in VINNAPAS^® 7150 E, a new binder that has vastly improved rheological properties.