Completed in January 2023, the US$ 1 billion expansion of the ADI semiconductor fab in Hillsboro, Oregon, doubled the facility’s capacity. PENETRON ADMIX SB, a crystalline waterproofing admixture, was used as a concrete waterproofing solution for all containment structures.
Located near Beaverton, Oregon, on the west side of the Portland metropolitan area, Hillsboro is the fifth-largest city (pop. >107,000) in the state of Oregon. The region hosts many high-tech companies and is known locally as the Silicon Forest. Analog Devices Inc. (ADI), an American semiconductor company, expanded its production capacity in Oregon through the 2021 acquisition of the Hillsboro semiconductor fab as part of its $21 billion purchase of rival Maxim Integrated Products. Now, with the addition of 25,000 ft2 (2,273 m2) of cleanroom space, the Oregon factory is ADI’s largest and employs about 800 people.
“ADI makes the unheralded semiconductor chips that are key components for a range of industrial, automotive, communications and consumer products,” explains Christopher Chen, Director of The Penetron Group. “Recently, the company has seen a huge spike in demand amid the ongoing chip shortage that blocked supply chains for everything from automobiles to video game consoles.”
Semiconductor fabs, like the ADI facility in Hillsboro typically, use aggressive chemicals, such as sulfuric acid, sodium chloride, and hydrochloric acid in their production processes. These chemicals are stored in steel tanks. However, if any accidental spillage occurs, specific concrete containment areas are configured to contain the spill and prevent the chemicals from seeping into the groundwater below the concrete factory slab.
Because of the presence of chemicals and the high groundwater levels encountered at the Hillsboro site, Glacier Northwest a CalPortland Company, the project’s ready-mix concrete supplier, was asked to provide a concrete waterproofing solution to ensure the facility’s slab on grade (SOG), stem walls, and containment areas would be impermeable.
PENETRON ADMIX SB, a crystalline waterproofing admixture, was specified over a competitive product to treat about 1,200 yds3 (920 m3) of concrete mix for the slab on grade, stem walls, and containment areas. Added to concrete in premeasured soluble bags during batching and unaffected by climatic conditions, PENETRON ADMIX SB reduces permeability by permanently sealing microcracks, pores and capillaries, effectively protecting the concrete against water penetration and the effects of deterioration, even under high hydrostatic pressure.
“The Hillsboro fab’s concrete structures are now resistant to concrete deterioration caused by water penetration, certain chemical attacks, and corrosion, while withstanding hydrostatic pressure from the groundwater below,” concludes Christopher Chen.
