Numerical Study of Fire and Energy Performance of Innovative Light-Weight 3D Printed Concrete Wall Configurations in Modular Building System

Thadshajini Suntharalingam, Perampalam Gatheeshgar, Irindu Upasiri, Keerthan Poologanathan, Brabha Nagaratnam, Heshachanaa Rajanayagam and Satheeskumar Navaratnam
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Thadshajini Suntharalingam: Department of Mechanical and Construction Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Environment, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 8ST, UK
Perampalam Gatheeshgar: Department of Mechanical and Construction Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Environment, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 8ST, UK
Irindu Upasiri: Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Ratmalana 10390, Sri Lanka
Keerthan Poologanathan: Department of Mechanical and Construction Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Environment, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 8ST, UK
Brabha Nagaratnam: Department of Mechanical and Construction Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Environment, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 8ST, UK
Heshachanaa Rajanayagam: Department of Mechanical and Construction Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Environment, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 8ST, UK
Satheeskumar Navaratnam: Depertment of Civil and Infrastructure Engineering, School of Engineering, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC 3000, Australia

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 4, 1-20

Abstract: 3D Printed Concrete (3DPC) technology is currently evolving with high demand amongst researches and the integration of modular building system (MBS) with this technology would provide a sustainable solution to modern construction challenges. The use of lightweight concrete in such innovative construction methods offers lightweight structures with better heat and sound insulation compared to normal weight concrete. It is worth noting that fire and energy performance has become central to building design. However, there are limited research studies on the combined thermal energy and fire performance of 3DPC walls. Therefore, this study investigates fire performance of 20 numbers of varying 3DPC wall configurations using validated finite element models under standard fire conditions. The fire performance analysis demonstrated that 3DPC non-load bearing cavity walls have substantial resistance under standard fire load and its performance can be further improved with Rockwool insulation. There is significant improvement in terms of fire performance when the thickness of the walls increases in a parallel row manner. Previous thermal energy investigation also showed a lower U-value for increased thickness of similar 3DPC walls. This research concludes with a proposal of using 3DPC wall with Rockwool insulation for amplified combined thermal energy and fire performance to be used in MBS.

Keywords: 3D printed concrete wall panels; fire performance; energy efficiency; finite element modelling; insulation fire rating; and standard fire (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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