When a storage tank fails, the bund lining — the chemical-resistant coating inside the containment wall that catches a spill if a tank ever leaks — is the last barrier between the chemical and the ground beneath your plant. Bare concrete is not that barrier: it is porous, and acids, alkalis and solvents attack it quietly until the day it matters.
Dritech Chemicals manufactures chemical-resistant bund lining and tank lining systems in Selangor, and our linings are installed in containment structures at sites regulated by DOSH (Jabatan Keselamatan dan Kesihatan Pekerjaan — Malaysia's Department of Occupational Safety and Health, the regulator for facilities storing hazardous chemicals), including the RAPID Pengerang petrochemical complex.
No single chemistry suits every containment duty. The honest comparison below covers the three lining families specifiers usually weigh: epoxy novolac — an epoxy with a phenolic backbone that cures into a denser, more chemical-resistant film than general-purpose epoxy; vinyl ester — a resin chemistry used where hot or strongly oxidising chemicals exceed what epoxies tolerate; and GRP (glass-reinforced plastic) — a laminated lining built up from resin and glass mat, similar to boat-hull construction.
| System | Chemical resistance | Substrate & application | Repair & maintenance | Typical duty |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Epoxy novolac | Broad resistance to acids, alkalis, salts and many solvents at ambient to moderately elevated temperatures. | Bonds directly to prepared concrete and steel; seamless, follows bund geometry and drainage details. | Locally repairable — damaged areas are ground back and re-coated without replacing the lining. | Bunds, tank internals, drains, sumps, wastewater structures. Dritech: Dri-Gard EP 1800. |
| Glass-flake epoxy | Epoxy resistance range with added barrier effect — glass flakes lengthen the path a chemical must travel through the film. | Solvent-free; tolerates damp substrates and can cure underwater, suiting wet-service structures. | Locally repairable, as with other epoxies. | Wastewater and underground tanks, tidal and splash zones. Dritech: Dri-Gard TZ 300GF. |
| Vinyl ester | Withstands strongly oxidising acids and higher service temperatures than epoxies. | More demanding application — styrene odour and stricter site controls; needs experienced applicators. | Repairable, but repair work carries the same handling constraints as installation. | Hot or concentrated acid service where epoxy resistance data rules epoxies out. |
| GRP lining | Resistance set by the resin used; glass laminate adds mechanical robustness. | Laminated in place or prefabricated; joint and lamination quality is critical and cost is higher. | Local repair is harder — defects usually need cutting out and re-laminating. | Severe-duty tanks and vessels where a thick structural laminate is specified. |
Resistance always depends on the exact chemical, its concentration and service temperature. Confirm against the product data sheet — and against your stored chemical, not a generic category.
Both systems are manufactured at our Selangor facility, which means batch traceability, reliable supply and direct access to the formulators when a specification question comes up.
A two-component epoxy phenolic/novolac (EPN) lining designed to protect concrete and steel against aggressive chemicals, salts and solvents. Specified for wastewater treatment plants, buried tanks and pipes, chemical plants and petrochemical refineries — including tank lining works at RAPID Pengerang.
A two-part, solvent-free epoxy protective coating reinforced with glass flake — tiny plates of glass in the film that lengthen the path any chemical must travel to reach the substrate. It adheres to wet surfaces and cures underwater, which suits wastewater tanks, underground tanks and tidal or splash zones.
Product data sheets, safety data sheets and available test reports are collected in our technical documentation library — datasheets are updated in place, so links always serve the latest revision. Background reading on containment and coating selection is in our insights articles.
Chemical-resistant tank lining works within a DOSH-regulated containment environment at the RAPID petrochemical complex in Pengerang, Johor.
Dri-Gard EP 1800 epoxy novolac bund lining with chemical-resistant drainage detailing, protecting the chemical storage containment area.
Epoxy novolac lining to industrial floor and bund areas at a specialty chemicals manufacturing plant.
A bund must be able to hold at least 110% of the volume of the largest tank it surrounds, so a complete tank failure is still contained even with rainwater or firefighting water already in the bund. The lining matters because a bund that holds the volume but lets the chemical soak into bare concrete has still failed its job.
Epoxy novolac is an epoxy built on a phenolic backbone, which cures into a denser, more tightly cross-linked film. In practice that means it withstands a wider range of acids, solvents and higher temperatures than a general-purpose epoxy — which is why it is the usual choice for bund and tank linings. Dri-Gard EP 1800 is Dritech's epoxy novolac lining.
Usually, yes. The existing surface is prepared — typically ground or blasted back to sound substrate — defects are repaired, and the new lining is applied over the prepared concrete or steel. A site inspection determines whether the substrate is sound enough to reline.
Dri-Gard TZ 300GF adheres to wet surfaces and can cure underwater, which suits wastewater tanks, sumps and tidal or splash zones. Conventional linings such as Dri-Gard EP 1800 need substrate moisture checked before application — this is confirmed during specification.
Yes. Dritech tank lining systems are installed at various Oil & Gas, petrochemical and power plant projects, where containment structures fall under DOSH oversight, and we support the documentation a regulated site requires — product data sheets, safety data sheets and available test reports.
Start with the chemical resistance data in the product data sheet, then confirm the exact chemical, its concentration and service temperature with us — resistance changes with both concentration and heat. Because our manufacturing is based locally in Malaysia, our formulators can advise on your case directly.
Service life depends on chemical exposure, temperature and mechanical wear, so there is no single number — the biggest factors are surface preparation quality at installation and inspection discipline afterwards. An annual visual check for blistering, cracking or discolouration, with local repair of any damage found, keeps a lining serviceable at a fraction of the cost of reactive replacement.
Send us the stored chemical, concentration, service temperature and structure details — we will respond with a lining recommendation and the supporting data sheets.
