Cellafoam 161/10 Plays Important Part in Sydney Water Project
14.4 km of large diameter pipe is being installed across Botany Bay, just to the south of Sydney, Australia.
This project, which is part of a significant investment in a modern desalination plant will eventually supply 12% of the water requirement of the city. The plant itself will run on energy derived from a nearby wind-farm. The environmentally - friendly project involves the laying of two parallel 56 inch diameter pipes from Kurnell to Kyeemagh. Already the work is well underway as 1200 pipes, each 12 meters in length, are welded together and lowered into the sea at Botany Bay.
The Nebula lay-barge is 130 meters long and 6 storeys high. It is held in position by 8 anchors which are moved each time the barge move, up to 5 times per day.
Cellafoam 161/10 from IFS Chemicals Ltd is being used to provide a light-weight open-celled field joint. This is injected into the 120mm cavity formed at the joint of adjacent pipes. Cellafoam 161/10 was chosen due to its high impact properties, its fast rate of cure and its proven performance over many years. The project is scheduled to take 9 months to complete and is well on track to achieve this.
The pipeline, which involves 180 personnel working two 12-hour shifts, will eventually carry 500 million litres if desalinated water a day.
