About MC-Bauchemie Oxal VP III HS

Oxal VP III HS is a one-component cement-based grouting and injection glue from MC-Bauchemie, built for masonry, concrete and rock sitting in sulphate-bearing groundwater — the kind of aggressive moisture older Delhi NCR brickwork, basements and hydraulic structures routinely face. Unlike a general-purpose non-shrink grout meant for baseplates, it carries no limestone powder filler, so the suspension stays fine enough to travel into genuinely hairline cracks rather than just bridging the wider ones. On site it handles like any bagged cement product, but the chemistry underneath does more specialised work than an ordinary OPC grout.

The binder is classed high-sulphate-resisting to EN 197-1, resisting the expansive attack that eventually cracks conventional cement grouts sitting against gypsum-bearing soils or brackish groundwater. It’s chloride-free and re-alkalising, so injecting it near carbonated or lightly corroded reinforcement pushes the surrounding pH back up instead of adding a chloride load. With a lab-verified zero volume change (DIN 4227 T5) and roughly an hour of working time at 20°C, it fills a crack once and stays there. Space Arc specifies it for heritage crack-sealing where a resin is overkill, or the crack is damp, but a bulk anchor grout is too coarse to penetrate.

The technical insight

What separates Oxal VP III HS from a shelf non-shrink grout is the binder, not the mixing method. Ordinary cement grouts get their bulk from limestone filler, which pumps easily but is too coarse for a genuine hairline crack — it bridges the mouth instead of filling it end to end. MC-Bauchemie removes the limestone filler and uses a low-active-alkali, sulphate-resisting binder instead, so the same 20:7 mix gives a finer, more consistent suspension, confirmed by an EN 14117 efflux time of about 99 seconds. The 0.35 water/solids injection ratio keeps it pumpable without bleeding. Re-alkalising matters most in older, carbonated masonry: as the grout cures, its alkalinity diffuses outward and helps restore the passive layer around embedded metalwork — a genuine repair mechanism, not just filler.

Where it is used

• Injection grouting of hairline cracks in brick, stone and rubble masonry to restore load transfer
• Sealing moisture-ingress cracks in retaining walls, basements and water-retaining structures
• Consolidation grouting of voids and honeycombing behind old masonry facades in heritage work
• Rock and fissure grouting in tunnels, shafts and foundations
• Crack stabilisation in dams, canals and hydraulic structures exposed to sulphate groundwater
• Force-fit filling of cracks and cavities in civil engineering, dry or damp conditions
• Pre-treatment grouting ahead of plastering or waterproofing on old, cracked masonry
• Re-alkalising injection around carbonation-affected embedded reinforcement

Key advantages

• High sulphate resistance (EN 197-1) suited to gypsum-bearing or brackish groundwater common across India
• Chloride-free — can be injected close to reinforcement without adding corrosion risk
• Zero volume change (DIN 4227 T5) — grout doesn’t shrink from the crack face on cure
• No limestone filler — particle size is fine enough to genuinely penetrate hairline cracks
• ~60-minute working time at 20°C allows multi-packer injection runs without rushing
• Re-alkalising chemistry helps repassivate embedded steel in older, carbonated masonry
• One-component — just add water, no resin-hardener ratio to get wrong on site
• Simple water clean-up for tools and pumps between batches

Limitations & considerations

• It’s cementitious, not a resin — active running leaks or dynamic cracks needing to bridge ongoing movement call for an epoxy/PU system instead
• Hand-mixing and partial batches are explicitly disallowed — a pan or forced-action mixer is mandatory before starting
• Needs a dedicated low-pressure injection pump and packers — not a pour-and-trowel repair mortar
• The ~60-minute working time shortens fast above 30°C, common on Indian summer sites, so batching needs planning
• 28-day strength (30 N/mm² compressive, 6 N/mm² flexural) is modest next to structural epoxy injection resins
• Minimum 5°C application temperature rules out early winter mornings at altitude

Selection & best practice

Specifications

Industry use cases

How we position MC-Bauchemie Oxal VP III HS

Within MC-Bauchemie’s range, Oxal VP III HS sits in the crack- and cavity-injection niche, distinct from the MC-Injekt resin lines for active leaks and dynamic joints, and the Nafufill/Emcekrete repair mortars for surface reinstatement once a crack is sealed. On heritage or hydraulic jobs, Space Arc typically consolidates the crack network with Oxal VP III HS first, then follows with the right surface repair or waterproofing system. The nearest thing in Fosroc’s range is the Conbextra GP precision-grout family, but the comparison only goes so far — those grouts are coarser, free-flow products for baseplates and machinery, not for penetrating hairline masonry cracks, so it isn’t a genuine swap. Where a specifier wants a non-cementitious option for a crack that’s actively leaking or needs to accommodate movement, an epoxy or PU resin (Fosroc’s Nitofill range, or MC-Bauchemie’s own MC-Injekt) is the more honest comparison, at a different price and cure profile.

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