Asset International Ltd offers marine applications such as outfalls, intakes and water crossings. The pipes can be delivered in long lengths, welded on site and then submerged. Weholite is a structured-wall polyethylene pipe with smooth internal and external surfaces for low-pressure applications up to 1.5 bar internal pressure. It is one of the few polyethylene pipes in the world that can be produced in dimensions larger than two metres.
In fact, it is manufactured in sizes ranging from 400mm to 3,500mm internal diameter, and can be supplied in ring stiffness classes up to from 2 to 8kN/m2 .
Pipe lengths are normally 12m – 18m, but pipes can be supplied in even longer lengths depending on transportation capabilities. Weholite is extremely suitable for intakes and outfalls for power plants, sewage treatment plants, refineries and desalination plants. The main benefits of Weholite compared to alternative materials are that it is durable and lightweight, and has outstanding resistance to chemicals and corrosion, making it ideal for use in marine projects. Weholite provides all the technical advantages of equivalent PE solid wall pipes, but with substantial savings in weight, combining greater ease of installation with increased cost effectiveness.
Part of the installation preparation involves a patented grouting process.
This innovative methodology eliminates the need for heavy concrete collars to ballast the strings. This traditional way of installing marine pipelines can often be extremely risky during submersion. Filling the hollow Weholite profile with an inexpensive and pumpable grout is much safer and affords for a much quicker preparation time. With no concrete collars a smaller trench is needed, the dredging operation is minimised and the volume of excavation is therefore drastically reduced.
Since submarine excavations are much more expensive than on dry land, the advantages of Weholite are transparent. By using the grouting system, Weholite submersion is much easier to control and ultimately safer. Installation is quick and reliable, with the pipes easily transported to the job-site, even in poor ground conditions. Weholite pipes have a natural ability to ‘flex’, which enables them to adjust to different loading conditions, vibrations, stress and soil movements, without causing damage to the pipe.