The result of research by LafargeHocim R&D teams and Freyssinet, this new Ductal® Shotcrete solution represents a technological break in the field of UHPCs. It is the only one on the market that can be applied directly to vertical walls or vaults by spraying.
An application facilitated for exceptional durability
In the reinforcement of metal culvert, the application of Ductal® shotcrete does not require any extensive preparatory work besides a quick cleaning of the works by simple sandblasting. The time periods of your work sites are drastically reduced, which allows you to limit the time when works are closed.
Applied by spraying directly onto metal walls, thin layers of Ductal® Shotcrete (less than 6 centimeters), provide a rapid and durable regeneration and reinforcement of the infrastructure. This solution has the advantage of not altering the characteristics of works while ensuring that they are returned to new, almost identical, condition.
Due to its qualities of durability, its resistance to damage from chemicals and weather and from collisions and abrasion, it guarantees effective and long-lasting renovations.
Finally, renovation with Ductal® Shotcrete prevents waste. On a duct with a diameter of 2.5 meters, a 60 mm layer is sufficient (versus 15 to 30 cm for sprayed or poured concrete). Therefore, the geometry of the culvert is completely protected and the reduction of their diameter is extremely low, less than 2% for a nozzle with a 2.5 m diameter.
Therefore, the Ductal® solution lifts every constraint and obstacle posed by regular solutions. This is real technological and economical progress.
Large numbers of metal culvert have been installed during road construction for more than 50 years. Easy to implement, they can create a means of movement from one side of the road to the other. They are used in particular for the passage of agricultural machinery and animals, rainwater drainage and water flow run-off. In this last function, they provide ecological continuity by making it possible to limit the impact of infrastructure on fauna and flora.
In the framework of works intended for water run-off under a road, the initial speed of the duct is conserved, which reduces the risks of blockages or overflows during floods. In the specific case of a duct for channeling natural water flow run-off, reinforcement with Ductal® Shotcrete does not create a threshold: ecological continuity is fully protected without additional adjustment work above or below the duct.
