Fosroc Nitomortar PE
Fosroc Nitomortar PE is a three-component, solvent-free epoxy resin patch repair mortar for the high-strength, chemical-resistant repair of damaged concrete in industrial environments. The product is supplied as Part A (liquid epoxy resin), Part B (amine hardener) and Part C (graded silica filler aggregate) in pre-measured kits, mixed on site to a trowel-applied paste consistency. Nitomortar PE develops compressive strength of approximately 80 MPa at 7 days and bond strength to concrete substrate exceeding the substrate's tensile capacity (concrete failure mode), with cured chemical resistance to dilute acids, alkalis, hydrocarbons and most industrial chemicals. The product cures rapidly (initial set 6 hours at 20°C, full strength at 24-48 hours) and can be returned to service within 24 hours, which is the engineering reason TRSC specifies Nitomortar PE for industrial floor repair where production downtime is the controlling commercial constraint. Application thickness is 6 mm to 50 mm in a single lift on horizontal substrates. TRSC specifies Nitomortar PE for industrial floor patch repair, chemical-exposure substrate repair, plant equipment baseplate area repair, and locations where the standard cementitious R4 mortars are inappropriate either because of chemical exposure or because the return-to-service timeline does not permit cementitious mortar cure.
Nitomortar PE is TRSC's default specification for industrial concrete repair where one of two engineering conditions controls: (1) chemical exposure makes the standard cementitious R4 mortars inappropriate (the cementitious mortars are alkaline-stable but degrade under acid attack, hydrocarbons and many process chemicals), or (2) the return-to-service timeline does not permit the 7-28 day cure cycle of cementitious mortars. The product is selected over cementitious R4 alternatives on three job profiles: (1) industrial floor repair in food-processing, chemical-handling and warehouse environments where the substrate is exposed to dilute acids, alkalis, fats, oils and process chemicals; (2) plant equipment baseplate area repair where the asset must return to operation within 24-48 hours; (3) localised repair under bearing pads and machine baseplates where high compressive strength and dimensional stability are required at sub-10 mm thickness — too thin for cementitious R4 mortars to develop their published strength. The most common pitfalls TRSC encounters in the field are: (1) substrate temperature — Nitomortar PE's pot life and open time are both temperature-sensitive; pot life is 30 minutes at +20°C and falls to 15 minutes at +30°C, which is routinely the case in unconditioned industrial environments in Queensland; mixing in smaller batches and pre-cooling the components are practical mitigations; (2) over-build in a single lift — the product can be applied to 50 mm in a single lift on horizontal substrates, but vertical application is limited to 10 mm per lift before the mortar starts to slump; the contractor's site preference for deep vertical lifts must be challenged at specification stage; (3) substrate moisture — unlike the cementitious R4 mortars, Nitomortar PE requires a dry substrate (moisture content below 4% by mass) at application; substrates that have been hydro-blasted or wet-cleaned must be permitted to dry, or pre-dried with hot-air or LPG burners, before primer and mortar application. Site QA includes batch numbers, ambient and substrate temperature recording, and a substrate moisture verification with a calcium chloride test or relative humidity probe before the primer is applied. The product was used in the Durack Tavern industrial kitchen floor repair where chemical exposure to commercial cleaning chemicals had compromised the standard cementitious topping.