Mapei, as sponsor of the Consorzio Orgoglio Brescia for the creation of the Tree of Life - the symbol of Expo 2015 - has contributed to the construction of the base on which the work stands.
The Tree, designed by Marco Balich, stands in the middle of the Lake Arena, just behind Palazzo Italia. It consists of a steel structure 35 metres high and clad with wood, with a strong technological character: over 100 special effects each lasting about 10 minutes, alternate with each other every hour, and make the Tree "explode" at night.
The Tree of Life is "rooted" in a carpet of local natural stone, which reprises Michelangelo's lozenge-shaped design of Piazza del Campidoglio.
Mapei has deployed its know-how to help create the base on which the Tree of Life stands.
The prefabricated elements that make up the base of the tree were bonded using MAPEWRAP PRIMER 1, a super-fluid aqueous epoxy primer, and ADESILEX PG1 RAPID, a quick-setting epoxy adhesive for structural bonding. The levelling of the substrate, meanwhile, was done using PRIMER 3296, an aqueous, synthetic-resin-based primer with very low VOC-content, and ADESILEX P4, a levelling compound for indoor and outdoor applications.
The waterproofing was carried out using MAPELASTIC TURBO, the two-component, quick-drying, high-elasticity, cement-based mortar that can be applied at low temperatures and on substrates that are not totally dry, reinforced with MAPETEX SEL, the micro-perforated polypropylene non-woven fabric.
And for the installation of the natural stone used for tiling the base, Mapei supplied ELASTORAPID, the two-component, high-performance, high-deformability, quick-setting adhesive with zero vertical slip, classified as C2FTE S2 according to EN 12004.
The various types of natural stone were then grouted with ULTRACOLOR PLUS, the high-performance, quick-setting, quick-drying grout that's water-repellent thanks to DropEffect® and mould-resistant thanks to BioBlock technology. Class C2G2WA according to EN13008.
Lastly, to seal the expansion joints, Mapei contributed MAPEFOAM, the closed-cell expanded polyethylene foam cord, and MAPEFLEX PU20, the two-component, self-levelling polyurethane sealant.
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