High-Performance, Low-Cost, Long-Life Composite Tensile Gabion

Currently, the gabions on the market are generally assembled from mesh structures made of steel wire, which are heavy and have high construction strength.

 

1. Gabion refers to a cage filled with stones to prevent river banks or structures from being washed away by water flow

 

It is generally a cage made of multi-twisted hexagonal mesh woven by double-twisted metal wires.

In 2022, the Chinese gabion market size reached 10.779 billion yuan, and the global gabion market size reached 26.947 billion yuan.

According to the forecast of Betzers Consulting, by 2028, the global gabion market size is expected to reach 37.139 billion yuan.

There is an urgent need to develop new gabion products with high comprehensive performance, long service life, low engineering cost and environmental friendliness.

 

 

2. Problems with metal gabions

 

Currently, the gabions on the market are generally assembled from mesh structures made of steel wire, which are heavy and have high construction strength.

Metal gabions are prone to rust, and galvanizing, plastic coating and other processes are required to delay the corrosion process. The anti-corrosion cost is high, the effect cycle is short, and the production efficiency is low. During the construction process, the anti-corrosion coating on the surface of the steel wire is very easy to be damaged by collision and wear, which leads to the reduction of the anti-corrosion performance of the gabion, seriously restricting the use effect and shortening the service life.

It is urgent to promote the adjustment of the gabion industry structure and product upgrading and substitution under the background of "dual carbon".

Gabion mesh breaks, construction is difficult, anti-corrosion layer falls off, etc.

 

 

3. New composite material stretch gabions that better meet market demand have emerged

 

Due to the limitations of production processes and technologies, existing plastic stretch grid gabions have low tensile strength of single ribs, which are prone to single rib fractures; low mesh connection strength, forming weak points in product bearing; complex connection process, low production efficiency; large changes in external dimensions, and difficulty in meeting the overall appearance requirements of the project.

Hebei Shuangcheng New Material Science and Technology Co., Ltd. has in-depth cooperation with Shandong University, combined with the national "dual carbon" policy and the requirements of sustainable development of the industry, adhering to the development concept of "replacing steel with plastic", and based on extensive market research and in-depth technical research, has launched a series of composite material stretch gabion products and developed a complete set of production technology in response to the performance defects of existing plastic stretch grid gabions.

 

4. Product advantages:

 

The gabion is assembled by mesh panels made of stretched composite materials. By replacing steel with plastic, the product is lightweight, which makes the comprehensive weight of the gabion reduced by more than 80%, reduces the production and transportation costs, and can effectively reduce the labor intensity of on-site assembly and construction.

The mesh surface and single rib strength of the composite stretched gabion are higher than those of ordinary grille gabions. By increasing the mesh size, the strength of the single rib is not lower than the strength of a single mesh wire of the same type of steel wire gabion while keeping the mesh surface strength unchanged.

The connection strength of the composite stretched gabion is higher than that of ordinary grille gabions, and the integrity is better. By using the connection method of interlaced polypropylene stretch strips, while ensuring strength, it can meet the requirements of beauty and uniformity.

The UV resistance of the composite stretched gabion is higher than that of ordinary grille gabions. After fifty years of open-air use under normal working conditions, the strength retention rate is as high as more than 90%.

Considering the procurement cost and investment in the same service life, the composite stretched gabion can save more than 50% of investment compared with other gabions.

 

 

5. Product performance

 

Based on national standards, static performance tests of composite tensile mesh panels were carried out using a material testing machine. The results show that the load-bearing capacity of the mesh panels can fully meet the performance requirements of gabions.

Based on national standards, anti-aging performance tests of composite tensile mesh panels were carried out using an ultraviolet aging test chamber. The test found that as the test time increases, the tensile strength retention rate of the composite tensile mesh does not decrease much, which can meet the performance requirements of gabions.

 

 

Aging days (days)	Accumulated UV radiation energy (J/cm2)	Tensile strength Maximum load holding ratio (kN/ root)	Tensile strength retention (%)	Yield elongation (%)	2% elongation force (kN/ root)	5% elongation force (%) (kN/ root)
30	1080	1.76	97.5	10.8	0.55	1.02
60	2160	1.69	93.4	10.6	0.52	0.97
90	3240	1.61	89.2	10.3	0.48	0.92
120	4320	1.52	84.3	9.8	0.45	0.87