Airtightness of common wall assemblies and its effect on R-value

Simon Pallin, Philip Boudreaux, Anthony Gehl

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionpeer-review

1 Scopus citations

Abstract

One key method of decreasing the energy consumption of a building is to make it more airtight; about 13 % of the energy used in residential buildings is due to air leakage between the interior and exterior environments. This air leakage not only affects the energy consumption of a building in this direct way, it also makes the existing insulation in envelopes less effective. To understand how air infiltration affects the nominal R-value of walls, Oak Ridge National Laboratory first tested 23 homes in two climate zones using a guarded blower door method to determine the in situ leakage rate through walls of whole houses. Based on this data, an approach for determining an effective R-value that takes into account climate, air leakage rates of walls, and nominal R-value of insulation was developed. This effective R-value is a useful performance indicator to aid builders and designers in planning wall systems that maximize the thermal performance when considering all these variables.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationAdvances in Hygrothermal Performance of Building Envelopes
Subtitle of host publicationMaterials, Systems and Simulations
EditorsDiana Fisler, Phalguni Mukhopadhyaya
PublisherASTM International
Pages83-94
Number of pages12
ISBN (Electronic)9780803176478
DOIs
StatePublished - 2017
EventSymposium on Advances in Hygrothermal Performance of Building Envelopes: Materials, Systems and Simulations - Orlando, United States
Duration: Oct 26 2016Oct 27 2016

Publication series

NameASTM Special Technical Publication
VolumeSTP 1599
ISSN (Print)0066-0558

Conference

ConferenceSymposium on Advances in Hygrothermal Performance of Building Envelopes: Materials, Systems and Simulations
Country/TerritoryUnited States
CityOrlando
Period10/26/1610/27/16

Keywords

  • ACH50
  • Air leakage
  • Building envelope
  • Energy
  • Field test
  • Infiltration

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