Electrokinetic Ltd, based in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England, is pioneering
the commercial use of Electrokinetic Geosynthetics (EKG) in an ever increasing
number of applications in material dewatering, ground consolidation and sports
turf. It has been found that EKG potentially offers unique solutions to problems
as varied as processing of sewage sludge and promotion of plant growth in
the shaded areas of modern sports stadia.
EKG can provide solutions to a number of problems associated with the demands
of businesses operating in today’s society. These include compliance
with the EU Landfill Directive, the 1990 Environment Act, bio-remediation
and the use of brown field land, land reclamation and the turf problems associated
with modern stadia.
Electrokinetic is a technology company. By itself, it does
not seek to bring products to market. Its business strategy is to work with
partner companies in each of its market sectors to create market ready products
to harness and deliver the benefits of EKG technology. Electrokinetic
will generate income from consultancy and the granting of licences to these
partners.
Electrokinetic Limited is a geotechnical engineering consulting and
knowledge-based company. It has exclusive access to the IPR (intellectual
property rights) surrounding the Electrokinetic Geosynthetics (EKG) platform
technology which offers novel solutions to ground improvement and material
handling problems in the construction, extractive, sewage, environmental and
sports turf industries.
The EKG concept combines two well-established technologies of electrokinetics
and geosynthetics to create ‘geosynthetic electrodes’.
The ability of electrokinetic phenomena to transport water, charged particles
and free ions through fine-grained soils has been well established since their
discovery by Reuss in 1809.
The water content of fine-grained soils is a fundamental physical characteristic
of the material and has a large impact on the material's strength. Controlling
water in fine-grained soils, such as clay, is therefore of paramount importance
but presents recurrent problems owing to the very low hydraulic permeability
of the materials.
In 1939, Casagrande (1952) demonstrated that applying electrokinetics to fine-grained
soils with high water contents resulted in an increase in the effective stress
within the soil through the generation of negative pore water pressures. He
used this to increase soil shear strength and thus stabilise steep railway
cuttings.
Since that time, however, the widespread application of electrokinetics has
been prevented by a variety of technical problems, typically related to the
limitations of available electrodes. Many of these problems have been eliminated
by the development of geosynthetic materials known as Electrokinetic Geosynthetics
(EKG).
