High-performance drainage mats for landfill caps

EnkaDrain Wide is a multifunctional geocomposite developed for use over large areas like landfills. Here the product is installed as a drainage layer on top of the sealing membrane, and as the gas-relief layer below the geomembrane. The five-meter-wide EnkaDrain Wide consists of a drainage core connected to nonwoven filters. The core itself is made of polymeric monofilaments, which are pre-formed into an open, V-shaped, compression-resistant structure.

While product variants with thermally bonded nonwovens are available, most landfill capping systems use EnkaDrain Wide with needle-punched nonwovens.

EnkaDrain Wide substitutes filtration geotextiles in combination with thick layers of gravel, which have traditionally been used to fulfill rainwater drainage requirements for landfill caps. The typical cross-section of a landfill cap using EnkaDrain Wide consists of a layer of topsoil on top of the drainage mat followed by the barrier layer (e.g. HDPE liner). Thanks to its high discharge capacity, EnkaDrain Wide reliably avoids any build-up of hydraulic pressure in the topsoil layer, thus ensuring its stability. Depending on the specific project parameters such as local precipitation amounts or slope angle, the right drainage mat can be selected from an extensive product portfolio. This encompasses product variants with a lifetime expectancy proven for 100 years. Drainage mats with voluntary quality labels such as Asqual or technical appraisal like the German BAM are among the most frequently selected EnkaDrain Wide products for landfill caps.