Most customers buy HDPE Geocell, but they don’t know the specifications of ESCR. And most manufacturers also don’t know what ESCR is. Today, I will let you know all the questions and answers about ESCR of HDPE Geocell. Please check all my questions and answers as follows:

1, What is ESCR?

2, Why ESCR is important?

3, How to test ESCR? And test method?

4, How long and how much for the testing of ESCR?

5, Which application of Geocell needs ESCR 5000 hours?

6, How to reach ESCR 5000 hours in Geocell production?

7, What’s the real situation of ESCR on production?

8, Our Excell Geocell’ ESCR can reach how many hours?

1, What is ESCR?

ESCR is Environmental Stress Crack Resistance, which is one of the common causes of unexpected brittle failure in thermoplastic. This ability of a polymer to resist slow growth in cracks or environmental stress cracking is popularly known as Environmental Stress Cracking Resistance (ESCR).

2, Why ESCR is important?

Stress cracking results in the failure or breakdown of plastic materials. For HDPE Geocell, the life cycle of a project is decades, so it is quite essential for the ESCR properties.

3, How to test ESCR? And test method?

The ESCR testing must be tested by a professional Third-party testing agent.

ASTM D 1693 is the most common testing method.

ASTM D 5397 is also one testing method for ESCR.

Our engineer said for HDPE Geocell, the value of 5000 hours under ASTM D 1693 is equivalent to the value of 400 hours under ASTM D 5397.

4, How long and how much for the testing of ESCR?

For HDPE Geocell, the method of ASTM D 1693 needs to test 5000 hours, and ASTM D 5397 needs to test 400 hours.

We tested our Geocell under ASTM D 1693 before, and the price is very high, needing USD7500-USD22000, based on different testing hours.

5, Which application of Geocell needs ESCR 5000 hours?

Our Engineer said for Geocell retaining wall projects, must pay more attention to ESCR and OIT(Oxidation Induction Time), because the retaining wall out layer is exposed to the sun for a long time, so OIT and ESCR are very very important values.

For other applications like slope protection, channel protection, and soil stabilization, considering the high cost, most customers do not have requirements for ESCR. It is also no problem for the projects, because these Geocells are buried in the soil, so even with no extra ESCR, they still can last long for 30 years.

6, How to reach ESCR 5000 hours in Geocell production?

If you want to improve the specifications of ESCR, not only need to use a special imported HDPE resin(the material itself must have ESCR 5000 hours) but also need to add additional additives(like light stabilizers and antioxidants).

7, What’s the real situation of ESCR on production?

Due to the price of the special imported resin and additives are very high, so in order to save cost, many manufacturers always do not change the formula. Another reason it is not easy to test ESCR, it will need a real 5000 hours. So for ASTM standard Geocell, even some manufacturer shows ESCR ≥5000 hours on their TDS, 90% of suppliers can’t reach it, this is the real situation.

Our factory produce HDPE Geocell since year 2004, already have 20 years’ experience, we know this industry and we know the real situation.

8, Our Excell Geocell’ ESCR can reach how many hours?

Our Excell Geocell’s raw material ESCR can reach 5000 hours, so we 100% can reach your requirement of 5000 hours, as long as you or your customer can accept the corresponding price.

Here I’d like to attach our ESCR testing report for your reference.

By the way, in year 2021, I received an inquiry from an Egypt customer, who wanted me to help them fix their failure Geocell retaining wall. Based on that customer’s project case, I wrote an article about the importance of ESCR. I’d like to attach the link here, hope you can check it at your convenience.

Any further questions, let Claire know freely. I’m the Geocell expert to answer any of your questions.

Based on my 15 years of experience in the Geocell field.