Thermally Anisotropic Composites for Improving the Energy Efficiency of Building Envelopes

Kaushik Biswas, Som Shrestha, Diana Hun and Jerald Atchley
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Kaushik Biswas: Oak Ridge National Laboratory, One Bethel Valley Road, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
Som Shrestha: Oak Ridge National Laboratory, One Bethel Valley Road, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
Diana Hun: Oak Ridge National Laboratory, One Bethel Valley Road, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
Jerald Atchley: Oak Ridge National Laboratory, One Bethel Valley Road, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA

Energies, 2019, vol. 12, issue 19, 1-15

Abstract: This article describes a novel application of thermal anisotropy for improving the energy efficiency of building envelopes. The current work was inspired by existing research on improved heat dissipation in electronics using thermal anisotropy. Past work has shown that thermally anisotropic composites (TACs) can be created by the alternate layering of two dissimilar, isotropic materials. Here, a TAC consisting of alternate layers of rigid foam insulation and thin, high-conductivity aluminum foil was investigated. The TAC was coupled with copper tubes with circulating water that acted as a heat sink and source. The TAC system was applied to a conventional wood-framed wall assembly, and the energy benefits were investigated experimentally and numerically. For experimental testing, large scale test wall specimens were built with and without the TAC system and tested in an environmental chamber under simulated diurnal hot and cold weather conditions. Component-level and whole building numerical simulations were performed to investigate the energy benefits of applying the TAC system to the external walls of a typical, single-family residential building.

Keywords: thermal anisotropy; building envelope; thermal management; energy efficiency; peak load reduction (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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