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...

Two polyimide-matrix systems were subjected to a series of hygrothermal aging experiments at various temperatures and relative humidities. For each aging condition, we measured the microcracking fracture toughness as a function of aging time. The toughness decreased with time. The rate of decrease increased with temperature and relative humidity. All experimental results could be fit to a simpl...

Hygrothermal environments can degrade anisotropic conductive adhesive (ACA) joints by weakening the shear strength of adhesive interface. In this paper, the shear strength degradation model of ACA joints under hygrothermal conditions was formulated through experimental testing and theoretical modeling. The shear strength degradation data were obtained from different hygrothermal aging tests and...

A new hygrothermal building model is being developed within the research project GENSIM by the Fraunhofer institutes FIRST and IBP. The model implementation takes place by using the objectoriented modeling language Modelica. As a starting point for the development of the new building model, the researchers used the physical models of the simulation tools WUFI (hygrothermal wall simulation) and ...

Heating of green wood involves a complex set of deformation processes, including reversible thermal strain, reversible shrinkage due to decrease of moisture content, and irreversible viscoelatic recovery of growth stress activated by temperature called hygrothermal recovery (HTR). Experimental tests were performed on small Japanese Cypress specimens oriented in the three principal R, T, L direc...

Laminated composite structures operating in a marine environment are subject to moisture ingress. Due to the slow diffusion process of moisture, the distribution of moisture is not uniform so that the laminates can develop hygrothermal stresses. An accurate prediction of the moisture concentration and the associated hygrothermal stress is vital to the understanding of the effect of marine envir...

A long-term onsite assessment of the hygrothermal performance of a wood frame wall system is presented in this work. The system was applied in a wood demonstration house within the Lake Tai climate zone of Suzhou, China. The hygrothermal performance of the cavity insulation wall was determined from the temperature, relative humidity, and from the temperature of the wood material surface through...

The microbial contamination of central air conditioning system is one of the important factors that affect the indoor air quality. Actual measurement and analysis were carried out on microbial contamination in central air conditioning system at a venue in Dalian, China. Illumina miseq method was used and three fungal samples of two units were analysed by high throughput sequencing. Results show...

This paper investigates the hygrothermal effects on the failure mechanisms in bending of carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP) composites. Accelerated diffusion testing was carried out by immersion at 50°C constant temperature and 70 bar hydrostatic pressure to study the effects of fresh or sea water diffusion into pre-preg CFRP laminates. Consequently the composite laminates were tested in be...

This paper describes a current multi-disciplinary UK funded research project aimed at developing a hygrothermal model of house dust mite response to environmental conditions. The project involves the development of a transient hygrothermal bed model, which has been tested and validated by comparing its predictions with the environmental conditions measured in a bed in a test laboratory and in b...