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In the fall of 1999, Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) began evaluating the LINE-X® PAXCON® elastomeric polymer with concrete block walls. The LINE-X protective coating material is a proprietary elastomeric polymer that is flexible, ductile and has modest strength. It can be sprayed using standard Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) safety practices for a hazardous material. The thickness of application is relatively easy to control, and the polymer bonds to a wide variety of surfaces.
We coated an 8-foot by 8-foot wall inside and out with the LINE-X polymer, and successfully tested it against 80+ psi blast pressures. Unreinforced concrete block infill walls typically shatter and fail at 2-4 psi pressures. Although the wall experienced large deflections and the concrete block inside the LINE-X polymer coating was severely fractured, the wall remained in place and no fragments entered the cubicle (as seen in the Post-Test image above). The LINE-X PAXCON polymer coating effectively contained the shattered wall fragments and would have prevented serious injury to persons inside the building.
The information above is taken from the Air Force Research Laboratory Air Expeditionary Forces Technology Division.
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