FGI Welding Basics  Part 1: Welding Different Geomembrane Polymers

This short course provides essential guidance on welding different geomembrane polymers, a critical skill for ensuring the integrity of containment systems in landfills, mining operations, and environmental projects. The course covers the fundamental differences between welding technologies (hot wedge versus hot air combi wedge) and explains why specific polymers require specific welding approaches.

Presenters Eddie Weiser from Leister Technologies and Gus Fauci from DemTech, along with Dr. Timothy Stark from the University of Illinois, explore the unique characteristics of PVC-based materials versus polyethylene and polypropylene geomembranes, demonstrating how factors like polymer crystallinity, melt characteristics, and chemical composition directly influence welding parameters and equipment selection.
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Our team

Meet your instructors

Eddie Weiser
Eddie Weiser is an expert in the field of geomembrane welding and is frequently asked to consult with industry professionals and academics in such matters, including the analysis of welding defects. Eddie has been working at Leister Technologies AG since 2013 and has been heavily involved with the development and launch of several geomembrane welding machines. This work has taken Eddie all over the world where valuable insights and knowledge has been exchanged in all aspects of geomembrane welding.
Gus Fauci
Gus Fauci has over 29 years of welding, testing and training experience in the geosynthetic industry. He has more than 10 million square feet of installation experience including geomembranes, geotextiles, and geocomposite. Gus provides testing and technical support with numerous types of materials, such as establishing welding specifications for material manufacturers. Gus has conducted advanced training workshops for thousands of technicians and CQA personnel and proctored hundreds of Certified Welding Technician Certifications for the liner industry.
Dr. Timothy D. Stark
Dr. Timothy D. Stark is a Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with an expertise in Geotechnical Engineering. He is the Technical Director of the FGI, which is an industry sponsored research organization investigating the advantage and disadvantages of geomembranes for containment and seepage applications. His research interests include the performance of geomembranes and stability of geosynthetic lined slopes.

Course Structure

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