Project Name:   CACHI Hydro Power Plant

Location: San Jose, Costa Rica

Application: Shotcrete Description

The Cachi hydro power plant project is an extension of the existing plant with the aim to produce more electricity power. For this it was necessary to build a 6 km tunnel from the reservoir to the hydro power plant station for installing a high pressure water pipeline.

The requirement energy absorption was 700 Joule based on EFNARC guideline. The original design for the security concrete layer was based on steel bars. The client was interested in an economical optimized solution based on synthetic macrofibers. Driven by the project schedule the fiber solution was the best and easiest way to save time and money and get also several different additional benefits on top.

Outcomes:

• Excellent working capacity even at low quantity of fibers
• Preserves machines, hoses and nozzles and thus extends their service life
• No damage to cables, pipes, etc. due to sticking out fibers
• Long service life, corrosion resistant, alkali resistant and no creeping
• Reduction of working time, because no installation of steel mesh and due to faster wall thickness growth
• Significantly lower fiber and concrete consumption due to much lower rebound compared with steel fibers

Author:  Robert Bader robert.bader@contecfiber.com