Energy Use and Thermal Performance of Rammed-Earth Materials
Publication: Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 32, Issue 10
Abstract
The high rate of energy consumption in the building sector has led designers toward construction methods that consume less energy during construction through serviceability. One of these methods is rammed-earth (RE) structures due to the availability of its materials, ease of preparation, and considerable decrease in energy consumption and environmentally destructive consequences. Improving the thermal characteristics besides the mechanical parameters of RE structures develops the application of RE structures. In the current study, the dynamic thermal parameters of RE wall specimens were experimentally measured under simulated conditions and compared to those of masonry walls. Thereby, a hygrothermal chamber was designed and made, and Fourier’s law was used to determine the thermal conductivity of these materials. Moreover, the effect of the acrylic coating was investigated for increasing thermal mass and decreasing energy loss from the structural elements. The results illustrate the proper thermal performance of stabilized rammed-earth in comparison to the masonry materials besides the positive effects of acrylic coating, which leads to satisfactory thermal comfort limits based on the ASHRAE 55 standard.
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Data Availability Statement
All data, models, and code generated or used during the study appear in the published article.
Acknowledgments
This research received a specific grant from the Iran National Science Foundation (INSF).
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Published In
Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 32 • Issue 10 • October 2020
Copyright
© 2020 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jul 5, 2019
Accepted: Mar 13, 2020
Published online: Jul 17, 2020
Published in print: Oct 1, 2020
Discussion open until: Dec 17, 2020
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