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Experimental Study on the Performance Decay of Thermal Insulation and Related Influence on Heating Energy Consumption in Buildings

Author

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  • Diana D’Agostino

    (Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Naples Federico II, 80125 Naples, Italy)

  • Roberto Landolfi

    (Department of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering, University of Naples Federico II, 80125 Naples, Italy)

  • Maurizio Nicolella

    (Department of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering, University of Naples Federico II, 80125 Naples, Italy)

  • Francesco Minichiello

    (Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Naples Federico II, 80125 Naples, Italy)

Abstract

The External Thermal Insulation Composite System (ETICS) is one of the most common passive strategies to obtain energy savings in existing buildings. Despite previous studies dealing with ETICS durability in real building case studies or involving accelerated ageing tests in climatic chambers, little progress has been made in the knowledge of the long-term durability and energy efficiency of the system. In this work, following previous experiments on ageing cycles, different climatic chambers are used to accelerate performance decay by simulating the natural outdoor exposure to assess the thermal transmittance decay of a building wall. After evaluating through laboratory tests the decay of the thermal performances of grey expanded polystyrene sintered (EPS) and polyurethane, the results are applied to an existing building. The case study building is virtually located in three different Italian climatic zones and an evaluation in terms of thermal transmittance values and their influence on heating energy consumption is made by using the dynamic simulation software DesignBuilder. The results show no significant variations during ETICS service life; the thermal performances are reduced little over time and therefore there is an increase in consumption for building heating of about only 2% after a time t1 equal to 8 years.

Suggested Citation

  • Diana D’Agostino & Roberto Landolfi & Maurizio Nicolella & Francesco Minichiello, 2022. "Experimental Study on the Performance Decay of Thermal Insulation and Related Influence on Heating Energy Consumption in Buildings," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(5), pages 1-19, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:5:p:2947-:d:763122
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Pajek, Luka & Košir, Mitja, 2021. "Strategy for achieving long-term energy efficiency of European single-family buildings through passive climate adaptation," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 297(C).
    2. Roberto Landolfi & Maurizio Nicolella, 2022. "Durability Assessment of ETICS: Comparative Evaluation of Different Insulating Materials," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(2), pages 1-25, January.
    3. Constantin C. Bungău & Ioana Francesca Prada & Marcela Prada & Constantin Bungău, 2019. "Design and Operation of Constructions: A Healthy Living Environment-Parametric Studies and New Solutions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(23), pages 1-19, December.
    4. Jie, Pengfei & Zhang, Fenghe & Fang, Zhou & Wang, Hongbo & Zhao, Yunfeng, 2018. "Optimizing the insulation thickness of walls and roofs of existing buildings based on primary energy consumption, global cost and pollutant emissions," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 159(C), pages 1132-1147.
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    Cited by:

    1. Ahmad Taki & Anastasiya Zakharanka, 2023. "The Impact of Degradation on a Building’s Energy Performance in Hot-Humid Climates," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(2), pages 1-34, January.
    2. Shoumik Desai & Naga Venkata Sai Kumar Manapragada & Anoop Kumar Shukla & Gloria Pignatta, 2022. "Mould-Growth Study in Building Materials Exposed to Warm and Humid Climate Using Heat and Mass Transfer (HAMT) EnergyPlus Simulation Method," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-28, July.
    3. Luay Jaf & Harith H. Al-Moameri & Ahmed A. Ayash & Arnold A. Lubguban & Roberto M. Malaluan & Tushar Ghosh, 2023. "Limits of Performance of Polyurethane Blowing Agents," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-13, April.
    4. Ahmad Taki & Anastasiya Zakharanka, 2023. "The Effect of Degradation on Cold Climate Building Energy Performance: A Comparison with Hot Climate Buildings," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-38, April.
    5. Soo-Hwan Park & Seok-Ho Kim & Ju-Yeon Jeong & Hye-Jin Kim & Dong-Hyun Seo, 2025. "Detailed Building Energy Impact Analysis of XPS Insulation Degradation Using Existing Long-Term Experimental Data," Energies, MDPI, vol. 18(13), pages 1-19, June.

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