Technical Guide
Geosynthetics Types: Geotextile, Geogrid, Geomembrane and Geocell
Geosynthetics are polymer sheets, grids and cells used in the ground: geotextile, geogrid, geomembrane, geocell, and the nets and composites built from them. A geotextile or a geogrid is often drawn next to a gabion retaining wall. Neither one is gabion mesh. Gabion mesh holds stone in a basket. Geogrid reinforces soil. This page keeps those jobs apart.
Technical Knowledge Team · Updated 3 October 2026 · 8 min read
What the word covers
A geosynthetic is a polymer product placed against soil or rock to separate, filter, reinforce, drain or contain. Polypropylene, polyethylene and polyester are the usual polymers. The form matters more than the polymer name. A grid, a fabric and a liner do not swap.
The names buyers meet most often are geotextile, geogrid, geomembrane and geocell. Geonet and geocomposite are the drainage and the combined products. Pick the one whose job you can say in one sentence. If the sentence is 'hold the stone in a gabion box', you are talking about gabion mesh, not this list.
Geotextile
A geotextile is a permeable fabric. Non-woven, needle-punched sheet is the usual filter and cushion: water passes, soil is held, and the sheet can protect a liner from sharp stone. Woven sheet is stronger in tension and is used to separate a soft subgrade from road stone, and sometimes to reinforce.
Behind a gabion wall or under a gabion mattress, the geotextile is the filter. The gabion mesh is the cage. Specify the fabric for the soil. Do not assume the basket replaces it.
Geogrid
A geogrid is an open grid. Soil or aggregate locks into the apertures and the grid takes tension. Uniaxial grid is the usual choice for a reinforced slope or a reinforced soil wall, with strength in one direction. Biaxial grid is the usual choice under a road, with strength in both directions.
Shuangcheng makes polypropylene biaxial and multiaxial geogrid for that soil-reinforcement job, and it makes polypropylene composite gabion mesh for baskets. They are different products. Do not cut a geogrid into a cage and call it a gabion, and do not call the gabion mesh a geogrid because both are polymer grids. A gabion face with a reinforced backfill uses both, on purpose, as two layers.
Geomembrane, geocell and the combined sheets
A geomembrane is a liner. It is there to stop liquid. HDPE is the common landfill and pond sheet. Thickness, seams and the cushion geotextile over it are the specification. It is not a gabion and it is not a filter.
A geocell is a honeycomb that confines fill in three dimensions. It is used on soft ground and on some slopes. It is not a gabion box. A gabion box is a stone-filled cage with a lid and connections. Similar words, different details.
A geonet drains in its own plane. A geocomposite sticks a filter fabric to a net or a grid so one roll does two jobs. They show up under liners and behind walls. They do not hold gabion stone.
Choosing without mixing the names
Separate two soils: a geotextile. Keep fines out of a drain or out of a gabion: a geotextile or a graded filter, designed for the soil. Reinforce a road or a reinforced soil block: a geogrid. Hold water: a geomembrane. Confine a thin fill on a very soft subgrade: look at geocell as well as geogrid, and let the designer choose. Hold stone in a basket: gabion mesh.
This site's gabion mesh is the polypropylene composite stretched mesh used as a steel-wire alternative in a gabion box. It is not sold here as a geotextile or a geomembrane. If the drawing asks for those, specify them as themselves.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a geotextile and a geogrid?
A geotextile is a fabric, used to filter, separate or cushion. A geogrid is an open grid, used to reinforce soil or aggregate. Neither is gabion mesh.
Is gabion mesh a type of geogrid?
No. Gabion mesh contains stone in a basket. Geogrid is buried to reinforce soil. Polypropylene composite gabion mesh is an alternative to steel-wire gabion mesh, not a geogrid with a new name.
When is a geocell considered instead of a geogrid?
When the designer wants a three-dimensional cell to confine fill, often on very soft ground. It is a project choice. This page does not rank them by cost or by a CBR number.
Which liner polymer should I use?
The containment specification should say so. HDPE is common. Flexibility and chemical exposure can push the choice elsewhere. Do not take a liner grade from a gabion page.
Does Shuangcheng supply every geosynthetic on this list?
The products to ask about here are polypropylene composite gabion mesh and the company's geogrid range. A geotextile or a geomembrane on the same drawing is a separate line. Do not assume it is in the gabion quotation.
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