The tunneling ability of the Formosan subterranean termite Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki through a cellulose insulation material containing11.1% boric acid was tested in choice and nochoice bioassays. We examined tunneling behavior and mortality of termites exposed to treated and untreated insulation material in miniature simulated wall voids. In a choice test termites tunneled through untreat...

Ireland has one of the highest rates emissions per capita in world and its residential sector is responsible for approximately 10% total national CO2 emissions. Therefore, reducing this will play a decisive role achieving EU targets by 40% 2030. To better inform decisions regarding retrofit existing building stock, study proposes Optimum Insulation Thicknesses (OIT) typical walls 25 regions Ire...

The data in this article are the simulation results of 1248 cases that were carried out to detect anti-insulation behaviour in the article titled "Anti-insulation mitigation by altering the envelope layers' configuration" (Idris and Mae, 2017) [1]. These cases are generated by a matrix of 13 climates, 6 envelope layer configurations, 4 occupancy profiles and 4 levels of insulation thickness. Th...

Hong Kong is a densely populated city suffering badly from the urban heat island effect. Green wall offers a means of ameliorating the situation but there are doubts over its suitability in Hong Kong’s unique environment. In this paper, we look at the potential for green walls in Hong Kong first by summarizing some of the Chinese green walling systems and associated vegetation in use, then by a...

Buildings account for a significant portion of a nation’s total energy consumption. To meet the global demand for greater energy efficiency, many countries are drastically strengthening insulation regulations for buildings. Thus, dramatically thicker wall insulation may be required, which can adversely affect the value of a building by reducing its effective floor area. Hence, high-performance ...

During on an extensive investigation of a multi-story timber building with light-frame construction, several stages of the building process and their impact on sound transmission were observed. The sound insulation properties of the building components were measured before and while the buildings were occupied. Furthermore, interviews with the occupants were conducted. This procedure made it po...

Many old buildings have unsatisfactory thermal performance compared to the standards of today. One way to increase the thermal performance is to add thermal insulation to the building envelope. However, many old buildings are listed and considered to be valuable for historical and esthetic reasons. This often limits the position and thickness of the additional insulation layer. Vacuum insulatio...

Ground heat is a renewable resource that is readily available for buildings in cool climates, but its relatively low temperature requires the use of a heat pump to extract it for heating. We developed a system that uses low temperature ground heat directly in a building wall to reduce transmission heat losses. The Active Low Exergy Geothermal Insulation Systems (ALEGIS) minimizes exergy demand ...

Combined experimental and computational analysis of hygrothermal performance of an interior thermal insulation system applied on a brick wall is presented in the paper. In the experimental part, the functionality of the insulation system is tested at simulated difference climate conditions using a semi-scale device. The measured temperature and relative humidity profiles are used for the calibr...