The Fire Resistance and Heat Conductivity of Natural Construction Material Based on Straw and Numerical Simulation of Building Energy Demand

Elżbieta Janowska-Renkas, Anna Król, Sławomir Pochwała, Dawid Pałubski, Małgorzata Adamska and Igor Klementowski
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Elżbieta Janowska-Renkas: Department of Building Materials Engineering, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Architecture, Opole University of Technology, 45-061 Opole, Poland
Anna Król: Department of Process and Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Opole University of Technology, 45-271 Opole, Poland
Sławomir Pochwała: Department of Thermal Engineering and Industrial Facilities, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Opole University of Technology, 45-271 Opole, Poland
Dawid Pałubski: Department of Building Materials Engineering, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Architecture, Opole University of Technology, 45-061 Opole, Poland
Małgorzata Adamska: Department of Regional Policy and Labour Market, Faculty of Economics and Management, Opole University of Technology, 45-036 Opole, Poland
Igor Klementowski: Department of Process and Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Opole University of Technology, 45-271 Opole, Poland

Energies, 2022, vol. 15, issue 3, 1-18

Abstract: The motivation for research to help address climate change is a continuous process of searching for eco-friendly materials in the building industry, which will allow minimizing the negative impact of this sector on the environment. The main objective of the paper is to assess the properties of a natural resource such as straw as an eco-friendly material in various variants for use in low-energy demand construction. The research results will fill the knowledge gap in the field of numerical analyses of the energy demand of straw material buildings based on the results of the conducted laboratory tests. A test of a heat transfer coefficient was conducted with different orientation of straw stalks. Then, samples were subject to a fire resistance test to determine material behavior at 1000 °C. During the fire resistance test, the clay-based plaster was ‘burnt out’, which hardened its structure, effectively preventing flames from reaching the insulation layers in the form of straw stalks. As a result of shrinkage (no plaster mesh), the plaster cracked and turned brick-red in color. The insulation layer of straw under the plaster was charred to a depth of 3.0 mm due to the high temperature. However, when the torch was turned off, no fire spread was observed in any layer of the sample. The 3D models of the buildings were created for different eco-friendly materials applied to make external walls. The results of numerical simulation allowed determining the amount of final energy needed to heat the designed building at the level of 26.38 (kWh/m 2 ·year). Conclusions of the above-mentioned tests indicate very good thermal insulating properties determined using the lambda coefficient of 0.069 (W/m·K) and the possible application of straw bales as an alternative for conventional construction. Research has proven that it is possible to construct a building with low energy requirements using natural, easily available waste and completely biodegradable material.

Keywords: natural materials; straw; thermal conductivity; heat conductivity; fire resistance; low-energy buildings; eco-friendly materials (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: 2022
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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