Hygrothermal assessment of diffusion open insulation systems for interior retrofitting of solid masonry walls

Jensen, Nickolaj Feldt; Odgaard, Tommy; Bjarløv, Søren Peter; Andersen, Birgitte; Rode, Carsten; Møller, Eva B.

doi:10.1016/j.buildenv.2020.107011

Cited by 24 publications

(44 citation statements)

References 50 publications

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“…A comparison between the diffusion-tight Phenolic foam, the semi diffusionopen PUR-CM, and the highly diffusion-open AAC support the findings in Jensen et al (2020a), Jensen and Bjarløv (2019) and Odgaard et al (2018a), that the diffusion resistance of the insulation systems is of importance for the hygrothermal performance when combined with hydrophobisation. Similar to the PUR-CM, the Phenolic foam experienced a positive effect from the hydrophobisation on walls facing south-west, which contrasted the highly diffusion-open AAC system that experienced a mixed effect that differed between locations and with the season (Figures 7-9).…”

Section: Effect Of Exterior Hydrophobisationsupporting

confidence: 71%

“…Wall plate (Figure 5): The internal Phenolic foam and CorkPlaster caused increased RH levels in the wall plate as the temperature decreased and inward drying was reduced. Wetting of the wall plates was observed in summer due to solardriven inward moisture flow, while drying occurred in winter, as reported in Jensen et al (2020a). These tendencies were observed also for the beam ends.…”

Section: System Comparison (Non-hydrophobised Walls)supporting

confidence: 71%

“…This has led to increased focus on alkalinity of the adhesive mortars. Morelli and Møller (2019) and Jensen et al (2020a) found high pH-value and no fungal growth behind internal insulation after 2 and 4½ years respectively.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 95%

“…It should be noted that no temperature data was available for the masonry/insulation interface in the CorkPlaster wall facing south-west for the VTT predictions. Predictions were therefore carried out using average values based on the five remaining southwest facing insulated bare brick walls, as the interface temperatures were rather similar between the test walls and for the CorkPlaster wall during the period preceding the VTT predictions, see Jensen et al (2020d). In Figure 10, the modelled mould index for the masonry/insulation interface shows unacceptably high risk of fungal growth (M .…”

Section: Fungal Growthmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This was probably due to the more suitable pH-levels as no adhesive mortar was used for the installation and easy access to nutrient from the wooden studwork. In Jensen et al (2020a) the risk of fungal growth was assessed by the Mycometer Ò method in the MW + VB, PUR-CM, AAC and CaSi systems after 3½ and 4½ years. A high amount of fungal biomass was observed only in the MW + VB and the AAC systems.…”

Section: Effect Of Exterior Hydrophobisationmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Hygrothermal performance of six insulation systems for internal retrofitting solid masonry walls

Jensen

Bjarløv

Rode

et al. 2021

Journal of Building Physics

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The study investigated the hygrothermal performance and risk of fungal growth in a phenolic foam system with a closed cell structure and a diffusion-open and capillary active lime-cork based insulating plaster, for internal retrofitting purposes. The setup comprised two 40-feet (12.2 m) insulated reefer container with controlled indoor climate, reconfigured with 24 holes (1 × 2 m each) containing solid masonry walls with embedded wooden elements on the interior side. Focus was on the conditions in the masonry/insulation interface and embedded wooden elements, and the performance of the two systems were compared to three diffusion-open insulation systems and one diffusion-tight. The effect of exterior hydrophobisation was also investigated. Relative humidity and temperature were measured in several locations in the test walls over 2½ years, and the risk of fungal growth was evaluated by on-site measurements and the VTT mould-growth model. The findings indicate that internally insulated walls with bare brick exterior surfaces performed poorly with high risk of fungal growth. The effect of exterior hydrophobisation was found to vary with the orientation and the installed insulation system, with a generally positive effect on walls facing south-west but limited effect for north-east. Furthermore, the more diffusion-tight insulation systems were found to perform better in combination with exterior hydrophobisation than the highly diffusion-open systems. The lime-cork insulating plaster showed high relative humidity and risk of moisture-induced problems. The on-site fungal tests showed no growth in the masonry/insulation interface inside the two insulation systems, probably due to high initial pH-value.

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Section: Effect Of Exterior Hydrophobisationsupporting

confidence: 71%

Section: System Comparison (Non-hydrophobised Walls)supporting

confidence: 71%