20100233417 | IMPREGNATED FABRIC - The invention provides a knitted spacer fabric having a tightly knitted bottom layer, a more loosely knitted upper layer and pile yarns extending across the space between the lower and upper faces. Settable material, e.g. cement, is introduced into the space between the upper and lower faces and can be caused to set by the addition of a liquid, e.g. water. Until set, the fabric is flexible and can be shaped but after the material in space has set, the fabric is rigid and can be used as a structural element in a wide range of situations, e.g. to form a cover of a prefabricated shelter, a track-way for vehicles, pedestrians or animals; a shelter by applying the fabric to a framework; formwork for casting concrete; barriers, e.g. to line tunnels; to repair structures, e.g. roofs; to form floors or damp proof structures; to reinforce earth structures, e.g. river banks; to provide flood defences; or to repair existing pipes, including buried water pipes or to construct new pipes. | 09-16-2010 |