Membrane with surface structure

Abstract

A waterproof membrane, a method for sealing substructures, and a system for reflecting sunlight are disclosed. The waterproof member can include a barrier layer, which contains a thermoplastic material, and wherein an upper face of the barrier layer has an arithmetic mean roughness value R a in accordance with DIN EN ISO 4287: 1998-10 of about 0.01-0.8 μm.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A waterproof membrane comprising:
 a barrier layer, wherein the barrier layer includes a thermoplastic material; and   wherein an upper face of the barrier layer has an arithmetic mean roughness value R a  in accordance with DIN EN ISO 4287: 1998-10 of about 0.01-0.8 μm.   
     
     
         2 . The waterproof membrane according to  claim 1 , wherein the thermoplastic material is thermoplastic polyolefins or polyvinyl chloride (PVC). 
     
     
         3 . The waterproof membrane according to  claim 1 , wherein the barrier layer has the arithmetic mean roughness value R a  in accordance with DIN EN ISO 4287: 1998-10 of the barrier layer of about 0.025-0.5 μm. 
     
     
         4 . The waterproof membrane according to  claim 1 , wherein the upper face of the barrier layer comprises:
 an embossed pattern.   
     
     
         5 . The waterproof membrane according to  claim 1 , wherein a color of the upper face of the barrier layer is such that proportions of cyan, magenta, yellow and black on the upper face of the barrier do not exceed about 5% in a CMYK color model. 
     
     
         6 . The waterproof membrane according to  claim 1 , comprising:
 pigments in the barrier layer, and wherein a ratio of the pigments to a total weight of the barrier layer is about 1-40 wt/%.   
     
     
         7 . The waterproof membrane according to  claim 6 , wherein the ratio of the pigments to the total weight of the barrier layer is about 10-30 wt/%. 
     
     
         8 . The waterproof membrane according to  claim 6 , wherein the pigments are selected from the group consisting of:
 barium sulfate, zinc oxide, magnesium oxide, zirconium oxide and titanium oxide,   
     
     
         9 . The waterproof membrane according to  claim 1 , wherein a thickness of the membrane is about 20-100% of a thickness of the barrier layer. 
     
     
         10 . The waterproof membrane according to  claim 9 , wherein the thickness of the barrier layer is about 0.1-5 mm. 
     
     
         11 . The waterproof membrane according to  claim 9 , wherein the thickness of the membrane is about 0.1 to 5 mm. 
     
     
         12 . The waterproof membrane according to  claim 1 , wherein the membrane comprises:
 a fibrous material.   
     
     
         13 . The waterproof membrane according to  claim 12 , wherein the fibrous material comprises:
 a woven fabric, a non-crimp fabric, or a non-woven fabric.   
     
     
         14 . A method for sealing substructures, the method comprising:
 applying a waterproof membrane to a substructure, the waterproof membrane having a barrier layer, wherein the barrier layer includes a thermoplastic material, and wherein an upper face of the barrier layer has an arithmetic mean roughness value R a  in accordance with DIN EN ISO 4287: 1998-10 of about 0.01-0.8 μm; and   directing the upper face of the waterproof membrane away from the substructure.   
     
     
         15 . The method according to  claim 14 , wherein the substructure is a roof of a building. 
     
     
         16 . A system for reflecting sunlight, the system comprising:
 a structure; and   a waterproof membrane applied to the structure, the waterproof membrane having a barrier layer, wherein the barrier layer includes a thermoplastic material; and wherein an upper face of the barrier layer has an arithmetic mean roughness value R a  in accordance with DIN EN ISO 4287: 1998-10 of about 0.01-0.8 μm.   
     
     
         17 . The system according to  claim 16 , wherein the upper face of the waterproof membrane is directed away from the structure. 
     
     
         18 . The system according to  claim 16 , wherein the thermoplastic material is thermoplastic polyolefins or polyvinyl chloride (PVC). 
     
     
         19 . The system according to  claim 16 , wherein the barrier layer has the arithmetic mean roughness value R a  in accordance with DIN EN ISO 4287: 1998-10 of the barrier layer is about 0.025-0.5 μm. 
     
     
         20 . The system according to  claim 16 , wherein the upper face of the barrier layer comprises:
 an embossed pattern.