Novel polymeric alloy

Novel polymeric alloy, also known as Neoloy, is a polymeric alloy composed of polyolefin and thermoplastic engineering polymer. It was developed specifically for use in high-strength geosynthetics. The first commercial application was in the manufacturer of polymeric strips used to form cellular confinement systems (geocells).

Novel polymeric alloy was developed to replace high-density polyethylene (HDPE) in geosynthetics. Although HDPE is widely used due to its low cost, ease of manufacturing and flexibility, its relatively high creep, low tensile strength and sensitivity to elevated temperatures limit its use, for example, in long-term, critical geocell applications.

Used in the manufacture of geosynthetics, such as the Neoweb cellular confinement system, novel polymeric alloy provides geocells with a higher tensile strength and stiffness, and are more durable over dynamic loading and under elevated temperatures than those made from HDPE (Han, 2011). The lifespan of novel polymeric alloy geosynthetics, such as geocells, makes them suitable for long-term design in infrastructure, such as highways, railways, container yards and high retaining walls.

Novel polymeric alloy is compounded for geosynthetic applications, such as high-modulus geocells or geogrids. In geocell applications strips are co-extruded in multi-layer strips. Outer layers are a blend of polyolefins while the core layer is formed from a high performance polymer. The blend is generally immiscible (an alloy), where the high performance polymer is dispersed in a matrix formed by the polyolefins. Since polymer blends are basically unstable, they undergo stabilization during melt processing, at a nano-level combined with compatibilized material.

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