[Technical Note] Thermal Insulation System Made of Wood and Paper for Use in Residential Construction

Abstract

This article introduces an insulation system that takes advantage of the low thermal conductivity of still air and is made of wood and paper. The insulation, called the Mirrorpanel, is constructed as a panel of closely spaced layers of coated paper and held together in a frame of wood or fiberboard. Panels have been fabricated and tested at the laboratory scale, whole wall scale, and the building scale. A 1.2-m by 2-m by 0.185-m-thick wall section had an apparent thermal conductance of only 0.204 W m À2 K À1 including the structural wood frame, which is equivalent to a US R-value of 27.9 h ft 2 8F Btu À1 (3.8 h ft 2 8F Btu À1 in. À1 for the 7.3-in.-thick wall section). The Mirrorpanel could be used as an environmentally friendly alternative to foam insulation in high-performance residential buildings and would fulfill the continuous insulation requirements in the 2012 version of the International Energy Conservation Code.

Review Article: Gas and vapor sorption measurements using electronic beam balances

“…[127][128][129] Researchers at the Forest Products Lab have used the IGAsorp to measure the water vapor permeance in their innovative paper layered insulation system. 130 In addition to observing direct moisture trends, researchers have also used the IGAsorp to calculate the mass transfer coefficients of water in polymers such as polydimethylsiloxane and polyurethanes [131][132][133][134] and in residential materials such as insulations. 130,135 The IGAsorp is an ultrasensitive electrobalance with 0.05 μg resolution and a 1 g weighing capacity.…”

“…130 In addition to observing direct moisture trends, researchers have also used the IGAsorp to calculate the mass transfer coefficients of water in polymers such as polydimethylsiloxane and polyurethanes [131][132][133][134] and in residential materials such as insulations. 130,135 The IGAsorp is an ultrasensitive electrobalance with 0.05 μg resolution and a 1 g weighing capacity. It operates at temperatures ranging from 278 to 573 K (with the optional preheater) and ambient pressure.…”