Durability Of Polypropylene Geotextiles Exposed To Artificial Weathering Conditions

Geotextiles are widely applied in environmental structures, where various factors, such as weather, may affect their durability and consequently their useful lifetime. In this paper, non-woven polypropylene geotextiles, specially manufactured with different amounts of the additive Chimassorb 944, were exposed to controlled weathering conditions (ultraviolet rays, rain and dew) for several hours on a laboratory weatherometer. Chimassorb 944, a light and thermal stabilizer, was incorporated in the polymeric matrix of the polypropylene fibres in the amounts of 0.2% and 0.4%. Polypropylene fibres without any stabilisation were also manufactured and the corresponding geotextiles exposed to artificial weathering conditions. The tensile behaviour of the geotextiles exposed to weathering conditions was studied and the obtained results were compared with those obtained for unexposed materials. Microscopic changes on the polypropylene fibres caused by exposition on the laboratory weatherometer were characterised by scanning electron microscopy.