The June 2024 completion of the $5.3 million Populatic Water Treatment Plant in Medway, Massachusetts (USA), now ensures a sufficient supply of drinking water for the growing community – and meets public health guidelines iron and manganese levels. PENETRON ADMIX SB, an NSF-61-certified crystalline waterproofing admixture, was specified to waterproof the concrete walls and foundation slab exposed to high groundwater levels and hydrostatic pressure of the treated drinking water.
Shaped by the waterpower of the Charles River and Chicken Brook, the former farming community of Medway grew into a regional manufacturing hub with cotton and paper mills, straw and boot factories, and a range of smaller industries. Today, this suburban town of around 14,000, just over 30 miles (48 km) southwest of Boston, features a downtown with restaurants, coffee shops, parks, a highly rated public school system, and a growing population of young professionals.
“The town’s public drinking water supply is drawn entirely from the Charles River Basin through four gravel packed groundwater wells,” explains Richard Farmer, Eastern Region Sales Manager for Penetron USA. “In the past, safe iron and manganese levels in the drinking water were maintained through treatments of polyorthophosphate.”
However, this treatment proved less effective with one of the groundwater wells (Charles Street), where unacceptable levels of iron and manganese stubbornly held at >1.0 mg/l. As a result, the town mandated the design and construction of a new centralized drinking water treatment plant at Populatic Street for all four wells to ensure a sufficient drinking water supply with acceptable levels of iron and manganese for the growing community.
During the planning phase, a competitive concrete waterproofing solution was specified for the Populatic Street project. Penetron recommended PENETRON ADMIX SB, a crystalline waterproofing admixture, to Dauphinais Concrete, the ready-mix concrete supplier, for the walls and foundation slab of the treatment and holding tanks to maximize the service life of the new facility.
“PENETRON ADMIX SB is non-toxic and NSF 61-certified for potable water applications,” adds Richard Farmer. “Dauphinais Concrete has successfully used the Penetron admixture for several years and appreciates our service and on-site support.”
PENETRON ADMIX SB-treated concrete is impermeable, stopping water and chemicals from entering the concrete, even under the constant hydrostatic pressure encountered in a water treatment plant. Its ability to permanently self-heal any future microcracks mitigates deterioration from occurring over the service life of the concrete.
New transmission mains now bring raw water from all of Medway’s groundwater wells to the Populatic Street site for treatment. Designed by Wright Pierce, the project architect/engineer, the new 2.12 MGD capacity facility provides iron and manganese treatment, disinfection, and will have the ability to remove per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the future.
