Tank Farm Secondary Containment Concrete Repair and Lining

This secondary containment area had severely eroded concrete, which could allow chemicals to seep into the ground in the event of a spill.

• INDUSTRY: Chemical Processing
• LOCATION: Northeast, United States
• YEAR: 2024
• Additional information available upon request for job U23-010/UB50.

Secondary Containment Regulations

Your secondary containment system must be impervious and free of cracks or gaps. According to OSHA secondary containment requirements, a secondary containment must be provided when the capacity of an individual primary container exceeds 55 gallons, or when the aggregate total of multiple containers exceeds 100 gallons.

Eroded Secondary Containment Area

This secondary containment at a chemical processing facility holds several tanks. The area was in poor condition and becoming a liability. It had fissured and was open to the ground underneath, which could potentially let the chemicals seep into the ground. It is required, in every state, that all containments with chemicals in them must be sealed and have a protective liner in the event of a container failure. 

Concrete Repair and Lining Process:

Universal Blastco’s crew of seven men and women started the 100 ft by 70 ft containment in the winter of 2023. We had to contain the area with tarps to keep the heat in to maintain operable temperatures.

We started by stripping the old liner out and ripped up two big sections of bad concrete. Then poured new concrete in the areas that were torn out. Then prepared for floor coatings by grinding the concrete. We then applied a primer coat of PPG Milamar ICO LV primer and filled in any areas where bad concrete had been torn out. We filled the cracks in with 3500 grout, applied a 618 membrane with mesh and then applied a Pumadur grout. Lastly we applied two top coats of 6850 CS Vinyl ester and finished up knowing it not only looked great but was going to be a very long lasting protection for that secondary containment area. All the products used were from PPG’s Milamar division of coatings and linings.

From start to finish, this very labor intensive schedule was executed successfully to meet our deadline.