Advantages of Soil Bentonite Slurry Walls

Soil Bentonite slurry walls have grown in popularity over the years. Constructors and excavators in the US originally used them in the mid 1940’s. Since then, slurry walls and cut off walls have been widely used in deep excavation, backfill projects, trench construction, and top down construction. The benefits of slurry walls are not questionable; several tests and studies have shed light on the properties and benefits of these walls. As a result, constructors can now apply them confidently as final barrier walls in structures, excavation, and complex construction works. Without dwelling so much on the core matter, let’s look at how you stand to gain for using soil bentonite slurry walls.
Highly Economical
Trench construction and excavation works is resource intensive. It requires several tons of soil for stabilization. Diaphragm construction is highly expensive as it denies constructors the chance to economize on materials. Fortunately, soil bentonite slurry wall mixing technology provides a cheaper and reliable alternative. That means constructors can create economical and stable cut off walls for any kind of dam construction project without incurring heavy costs.
Low Permeability
You cannot talk of soil bentonite slurry walls without highlighting one of its outstanding qualities, low permeability. Slurry walls provide long-term solutions to surface water problems. Soil bentonite backfills have a permeability of 10-8 cm/sec, which makes them suitable for complex environmental projects. To achieve low permeability, you only need to mix excavated soil with other soil components to produce backfill material with the right size grading.  The best part about soil bentonite backfill is that it functions well when it comes into direct contact with impacted surface water or pure phase contaminants.
Controlling Contaminated Water
Over the years, constructors have pondered on how to create sub-surface barriers that inhibit the flow of contaminated water and pollutants. Essentially, that’s a question and a concern for most contractors. Slurry trench technique has proven invaluable in creating cutoff walls and impervious groundwater barriers. Since they have low permeability, soil bentonite slurry walls have been applied successfully to divert contaminated ground water and solve other excavation support problems.
Greater Stability
Stability of the foundation is the hallmark of success for any complex construction a project. In reality, that’s a challenge that constructors and dam excavators face. Slurry walls have matrix that comprises majorly inert and solid materials. That makes them highly useful in stabilizing walls during excavation of trenches. When soil bentonite backfills are placed on trenches, they don’t just create the perfect cutoff wall but they create homogenized and superior walls from bottom to up. Consistent mixing eliminates the possibility of voids resulting in a wall with low permeability and high chemical resistance. The best part is that slurry walls offer greater stability because they have the ability to adapt to ground movements such as earthquakes.
Conclusion:
Soil-bentonite slurry walls are highly invaluable in complex construction and excavation works.  Their incredible properties have been tested and proven beyond doubt. Slurry walls create solid, economical, and almost impervious barriers. Since they have low permeability, they are highly effective in impeding groundwater and controlling contaminated water. Excavators and constructors can apply slurry walls to complex projects that require structural strength.