Fast-Growing McCordsville Expands Wastewater Treatment Capacity – and Protects Concrete Tanks with Penetron

PENETRON ADMIX SB was specified to ensure the enhanced durability of the new concrete structures exposed to the effluent. Currently, almost 9,000 inhabitants live in McCordsville, Indiana, and the town continues to grow at a rapid pace. Thanks to its convenient location near several thriving cities and towns – including Indianapolis and Fishers – it is one of Indiana’s fastest-growing communities, swelling by 8.5% from 2019 to 2020. Town officials estimate the population could surpass 19,000 by the end of the decade.

“With such dizzying growth comes more wastewater,” says Christopher Chen, Director of The Penetron Group. “McCordsville’s wastewater treatment plant was already nearing full capacity three years ago. It was time to expand treatment capacity to keep up with development in the town.”

Doubling WWTP Capacity

In 2019, the Town of McCordsville released a report with plans to double the capacity of the town’s existing WWTP – from 500,000 gallons per day to 1 million gallons per day. Whitaker Engineering, an Indianapolis-based engineering services company specialized in wastewater, stormwater, and water treatment projects, designed the $7.5 million project and Walsh Construction was the general contractor. Construction began in August 2020. “Penetron worked with Irving Maerials, Inc. (IMI), the ready-mix concrete supplier, to provide optimal concrete protection for the plant’s new structures,” adds Christopher Chen. “The attractive pricing, along with the simplified dosage with pre-measured soluble bags, made PENETRON ADMIX SB the preferred waterproofing and protection solution.”

Reducing Concrete Permeability

The concrete structures in a WWTP are continually exposed to an aggressive cocktail of chlorides, sulfates, nitrates, disinfectants, and an array of corrosive compounds and chemicals added during the plant’s treatment processes. Adding PENETRON ADMIX SB to the concrete mix reduces concrete permeability, increases chemical resistance, and enables self-sealing of any new or future hairline cracks to enhance the durability of these key concrete components. The new PENETRON ADMIX-treated concrete elements of the McCordsville plant comprise larger holding tanks and an improved wastewater process, including a headworks structure, grit chamber, aeration oxidation oval, clarifiers, and the disinfection system. Also, part of the project was a new building that prepares the sludge left over from the treatment process before it is eventually disposed of in a landfill.

The concrete structures in a WWTP are continually exposed to an aggressive cocktail of chlorides, sulfates, nitrates, disinfectants, and an array of corrosive compounds and chemicals added during the plant’s treatment processes. Adding PENETRON ADMIX SB to the concrete mix reduces concrete permeability, increases chemical resistance, and enables self-sealing of any new or future hairline cracks to enhance the durability of these key concrete components. The new PENETRON ADMIX-treated concrete elements of the McCordsville plant comprise larger holding tanks and an improved wastewater process, including a headworks structure, grit chamber, aeration oxidation oval, clarifiers, and the disinfection system. Also, part of the project was a new building that prepares the sludge left over from the treatment process before it is eventually disposed of in a landfill.

Experience Ensures Success

The new WWTP in McCordsville came online shortly after nearby New Palestine commissioned an expanded sewer plant (also a Penetron project) earlier this year. That facility now handles up to 500,000 gallons of waste per day, up from 239,000 gallons. “Thanks to the on-site support provided by Penetron and our record of success with other WWTP projects across the region, the McCordsville WWTP project went off without a hitch,” concludes Christopher Chen. The Penetron Group is a leading manufacturer of specialty construction products for concrete waterproofing, concrete repairs, and floor preparation systems. The Group operates through a global network, offering support to the design and construction community through its regional offices, representatives, and distribution channels.

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