Masterthesisreport:

Comparativeassessmentofinsulatingmaterialsontechnical,
environmentalandhealthaspectsforapplicationinbuilding
renovationtothePassivehouselevel

Student: Supervisor: SecondAssessor:

MelchertDuijve Dr.MartinPatel Dr.EvertNieuwlaar
BalthasarvanderPolweg174 Budapestlaan6 Budapestlaan6
2628AXDelft 3584CDUtrecht 3584CDUtrecht
Phone:+31655380944 Phone:+31302537634 Phone:+31302537607
Email:melchertduijve@gmail.com Email:m.k.patel@uu.nl Email:e.nieuwlaar@uu.nl
Studentnumber:3645622

Date:10February2012
Credits:30ECTS
Study:EnergyScience,UtrechtUniversity



Tableofcontents
Listofabbreviations......................................................................................................................................4
Preface..........................................................................................................................................................5
Summary.......................................................................................................................................................7
1 Introduction..........................................................................................................................................9
1.1 Researchquestion.......................................................................................................................10
1.2 Methodology...............................................................................................................................11
1.3 Structureofthereport................................................................................................................12
2 Lifecycleassessmentofinsulatingmaterials.....................................................................................13
2.1 Propertiesofinsulatingmaterials...............................................................................................13
2.1.1 Categoriesofinsulatingmaterials.......................................................................................14
2.2 Selectionofmaterials.................................................................................................................21
2.3 FunctionalUnitandimpactsofinterest.....................................................................................22
2.4 Sourcesandassessment.............................................................................................................23
2.5 Inputparameters........................................................................................................................25
2.6 Results.........................................................................................................................................26
2.7 Alternativerecyclingoptions......................................................................................................33
2.8 Healthaspects.............................................................................................................................34
2.9 Discussion....................................................................................................................................36
3 Renovationpotential..........................................................................................................................39
3.1 Requirementsfornewlyconstructedhouses.............................................................................39
3.2 Estimationofrenovationpotential.............................................................................................41
3.3 Estimationoftheamountofinsulatingmaterial........................................................................44
3.4 Passivehouserenovation...........................................................................................................45
3.4.1 DescriptionofaPassivehouse............................................................................................45
3.5 Passivehouserenovation...........................................................................................................49
3.6 MethodsofinsulatingexistinghousestothePassivehouselevel.............................................50
3.6.1 Roofinsulation....................................................................................................................50
3.6.2 Facadeinsulation................................................................................................................51
3.6.3 Floorinsulation...................................................................................................................54
3.6.4 EstimationofinsulatingmaterialneedforPassivehouserenovation...............................54
3.7 Discussion....................................................................................................................................56
4 Savingpotentialofcavitywallinsulation............................................................................................59
4.1 Energysavings.............................................................................................................................59
4.2 GHGemissionssavingpotential.................................................................................................63
4.3 Discussion....................................................................................................................................65
5 Conclusion...........................................................................................................................................67
6 References..........................................................................................................................................69
7 Appendices..........................................................................................................................................75
A. CommonbuildingmethodsintheNetherlands.........................................................................77
B. Overviewofinsulatingmaterials................................................................................................89

Listofabbreviations

Abbreviationsusedineqations
Rc Thermalresistanceofaconstruction [m2K/W]
Thermalconductivity [W/mK]
Watervapourdiffusionresistancefactor []
k Heattransmissioncoefficient(1/Rc) [W/m2K]
EPC Energyperformancecoefficient []

Insulatingmaterials
EPS Expandedpolystyrene
UF Ureaformaldehydefoam
PF Phenonformaldehyde
PIR Polyisocyanurathe
PLA PolylacticAcid
PUR Polyurethane
XPS Extrudedpolystyrene

Others
CED Cumulativeenergydemand
EPD Environmentalproductdeclaration
GHG Greenhousegas
GWP Globalwarmingpotential
HBCD Hexabromocyclododecane
IBU InstitutBauenUndUmwelt
LCA Lifecycleanalysis
ODP Ozonedepletionpotential

Preface
Thisthesiscouldnothavebeenwhatitisnowwithoutthehelpandknowledgeofthefollowingpeople:
AgnesSchuurmans,ChiefengineeratRockwoolinsulation
ArjanVellekoop,ProjectmanageratBAMWoningbouw
ClineLustig,MarketingmanagerBeneluxatKnaufinsulation
ChrisZijdeveld,ChairmanofthePassiefbouwenfoundation
GeertVerlind,TechnicalconsultantatCagerito
HannieStappers,ManagerlongtermmarketdevelopmentatRockwoolinsulation
IvovanRooy,TechnicalengineeratSaintGobainIsover
MartinLamers,TechnicaladvisoratIsobouwSystems
RobertvanRede,TechnicalprojectleaderatAlleeWonen
PierrevanderWoude,TechnicalserviceconsultantatKingspaninsulation
Youropennessandwillingnesshascontributedalottothisfinalreport.

SpecialthanksgoouttoDr.MartinPatel,forhiscriticalreviewandquestionsduringthisthesisperiod,
evenintheweekends.

Summary
Overthelast30years,therequirementsforthethermalinsulationofbuildingsintheNetherlandshave
beenincreased.In2006,theprimaryenergydemandforspaceheatingwas660PJ.Thefactthatthis660
PJ is approximately 20% of the total Dutch primary energy use strongly indicates the importance of
improvedthermalinsulationoftheexistingbuildingstock.Insulatinganexistingbuildingwiththermal
insulationcanbecomplex,costlyandtimeconsuming.Duringabuildingrenovationorrefurbishment,
theappliedthermalinsulationmustprovideahighlevelofthermalresistancestothebuildingenvelope,
inordertolowertheenergydemandforspaceheatasfaraspossible.

ThePassivehouseconceptdefinessuchlevelsofinsulationforbothnewandexistingbuildings,resulting
inthicklayersofinsulatingmaterials.ThePassivehouseconceptisanintegralconceptinwhichnextto
thermalinsulation,alsoventilationstandardsareprescribedwithwhichasolidbasisislaidforenergy
efficientbuildingrenovations.BeforethePassivehouseconceptisusedonalargescale,thetechnical,
environmental and health aspects of the insulating materials used within the concept must be
investigated.
Themainresearchquestionthereforeis:
Which insulating materials are most suitable to reach the energy efficiency level of a
Passivehouse,whentakingtechnical,environmentalandhealthaspectsintoaccount?
By means ofinterviews with producers and experts in the field, literature research and a quantitative
assessment of LCA studies, it was found that glass and rock wool (mineral wool) together with
Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) are the most suitable insulating materials for application within Passive
houserenovation.Thisisbecauseofthefactthatforbothmineralwool(glasswoolandrockwool)and
EPS, multiple endoflife scenarios are available. EPS can be recycled or incinerated, whereas mineral
wools can be recycled into new mineral wool, but also into other products such as facade panels or
sound insulation. For both EPS and mineral wool recycling facilities are already in place and used in
practice. Materials such as PUR/PIR and PFfoam do not have these recycling options yet, which only
leavesincinerationastheendoflifesolution.Inthestudyalsohempandflaxwoolwereexamined.It
turnsoutthattheenvironmentalimpactofthesematerialsisoftenhigherthanthatofEPSandmineral
wool. Additionally, the use of polyester support fibres in hemp and flax wool makes it impossible to
recyclethesefibres,leavingincinerationastheonlyendoflifeoption.Fromahealthpointofview,both
EPSandmineralwoolsshouldbeimprovedfurther.Especiallytheformaldehydebasedbindersusedin
mineralwoolandthefireretardanthexabromocyclododecaneusedinEPSshouldbereplacedbyother
materialsonashortterm.Thedevelopmentsthereofarealreadyinprogressandinanadvancedphase.

Besides the LCA assessment, two other quantitative assessments were made. The focus of both
assessments was the insulation of existing cavity walls. The first assessment provides insight into the
amount of insulating material needed for both normal and Passive house renovation. The second
assessmentestimatesthesavingsofinsulatingemptycavitywalls.Theresultsofthisassessmentshow
that filling the empty cavity walls in the Netherlands would require approximately 10 million m3 of
insulating materials versus 54 million m3 for renovation to the Passive house level. The estimated
savings of insulating the existing empty cavity walls by filling the air cavity, is about 69 PJ/year which
annuallyavoidstheemissionof3.9GtCO2eq.IfthecavitywallwouldberenovatedtoaPassivehouse
level,thesavingsandavoidedemissionswouldbe96PJ/yearand5.3GtCO2eq.Inthisestimation,the
energy and GHGemissions of the insulating materials are discounted over a lifetime of 50 years. The
emissionsandenergyuseduringtherenovationcouldnotbetakenintoaccount,becausedatathereof
was not available. Overall, the emissions and energy use of the insulating materials is compensated
withinayearbytheemissionreductionandenergysavingsofinsulationtheexistingwalls.

1 Introduction
Overthelastthirtyyears,theDutchgovernmenthasbeenpromotingthermalinsulation.Thispromotion
started in the year 1978 with the introduction of the national insulation programme. Buildings
constructed before 1978 had not been subjected to any regulation regarding insulation and were
therefore not fitted with insulating materials. The goal of the national insulation programme was to
have 2.5 million houses (54% of the 1978s residential building stock) retrofitted with insulating
material,todecreasetheirtotalnaturalgasusageby1.6billionm3/year(EntropandBrouwers,2007a).
Thisisequivalenttoa14%reductionofthenaturalgasconsumptionbyhouseholdsin1978(Entropand
Brouwers, 2007b). In succession to the national insulation programme, the Dutch government
introduced the energy performance standard in 1995. Apart from other requirements, the energy
performance standard requires the building envelope (roof, walls and floor) to be constructed with a
thermal resistance of at least 2.5 m2K/W. This requirement is also recorded into the 2003 building
decree(Bouwbesluit,2003).In2012,thenewlyrevisitedbuildingdecreewillcomeintoeffect,inwhich
the thermal resistance standard for the building envelope will be raised to 3.5 m2K/W (Concept
Bouwbesluit2012,2011).

These new requirements are needed to lower the amount of energy needed for space heating. The
primary energy needed for space heating in both utility buildings and households was approximately
660 PJ in 2006 (Menkveld and Beurskens, 2009). This accounts for 20% of the total primary energy
consumptionintheNetherlands,whichwas3233PJin2006(StatisticsNetherlands,2011a).Since the
existingbuildingsintheNetherlandsalreadyaccountfor20%ofthetotaldomesticprimaryenergyuse,
thefocusofthisresearchisoninsulatingmaterialsforexistingbuildings.

During the design and construction of new buildings, insulation solutions can be incorporated. For
existing buildings however, the options for insulating existing structures are limited (Jeeninga and
Volkers, 2003). Renovating or refurbishing a building can be complex, costly and time consuming.
Becauseofthis,itisnecessarytoinsulatethesebuildingstoahighstandard,oratleasttheminimum
standard set by the building decree. However, considering the fact that the theoretical lifetime of a
houseis50years,insulatingtoahigherstandardispreferable.

One way of ensuring a high standard of insulation is the Passive house concept. Passive houses are
insulatedinsuchaway,thatthemaximumamountofenergyneededforspaceheatingisnomorethan
15kWh/m2afornewbuildingsand25kWh/m2aforrenovations.Thebuildingenvelopeofthebuilding
musthaveathermalresistanceofatleast6.5m2K/W(DeBoeretal,2009).Insulatingabuildingtosuch
an energy level with a commonly used insulating material such as mineral wool, requires a building
envelopewithaninsulationlayerofupto300mm(Passipedia,2011).

Beforeusingsuchlargequantitiesofinsulatingmaterials,theenvironmentalandhealthimpactsofthe
different materials must be known. These impacts are investigated for the production, use and waste
phase of the materials so that future problems with these materials can be foreseen and avoided.
Against this background it is one of the objectives of this study to provide an overview of different
insulatingmaterialscurrentlyavailable.Inasubsequentstep,theenvironmentalimpactsoftheentire
lifecycleofdifferentmaterialsareassessed.Togetanimpressionoftherenovatingpotentialandthe
amountofinsulatingmaterialneededintheNetherlands,anestimationismadebasedonuninsulated
cavitywalls.Ontopofthis,theCO2andenergysavingpotentialareestimatedbaseduponinsulatingthe
emptycavitywallvolumeintheNetherlandsforbothcommonandPassivehouserenovation.

1.1 Researchquestion
Whentheaspectsmentionedabovearecombined,thefollowingresearchquestioncanbeposed:
Which insulating materials are most suitable to reach the energy efficiency level of a
Passivehouse,whentakingtechnical,environmentalandhealthaspectsintoaccount?
Toanswertheresearchquestionposedabove,answersareneededtothefollowingsubquestions:
1. Whichbuildingsmethodsarecommonlyappliedtoinsulatethebuildingenvelope?
Theanswertothisquestiongivesinsightintothedifferentmethodsofconstructingabuildingenvelope
commonlyusedintheNetherlands.Thedifferentconstructionmethodscouldrequiredifferenttypesof
insulating materials. Understanding the difference between the different types of building envelopes
providesinsightinthepracticalapplicationofdifferenttypesofinsulatingmaterials.
2. Whataretheimportantpropertiesforinsulatingmaterials?
This question is aimed at finding the important properties of insulating materials. A comparison
betweeninsulatingmaterialsshouldbebasedonitsmostimportantproperties.
3. Whatarethecommonlyusedornew(hightech)insulatingmaterials?
For this sub question the research will focus on the properties and practical application of insulating
materials that are currently on the market, but also on materials that are not yet market ready, but
could become so in the near future. New materials could have a higher thermal resistance than the
already existing materials, which could reduce the thickness of the insulating layer. For the common
materialsthemarketshareisalsolookedinto.
4. How do the new and commonly used insulating materials perform from a technical,
environmentalandhealthpointofview?
The following technical aspects will be considered: thermal conductivity, density, water vapour
resistance, fire resistance, practical application, and any other material specific aspects. From an
environmentalpointofviewthefollowingaspectsareconsidered:energyforproductione.g.energy/kg
material,endoflifeoptions(waste phase)e.g.incineration,reuse/recycleorlandfill.Thelifecycleof
thematerialsshouldbeclearfromcradletograve.Otherenvironmentalaspectsthatmustbetakeninto
account are: greenhouse gas and other gaseous or particle emissions. Also other aspect that might be
importantforspecificmaterialssuchashealthissuesaretakenintoaccount.
5. WhataretherequirementsforrenovatingabuildingtothePassivehouselevel?
TorenovatetothePassivehouselevelrequiresathoroughunderstandingofitscriteria.Thesecriteria
mustbeknownforbothnewaswellasexistingbuildings.
6. Whatarethepracticaldifferencesbetweeninsulatingaccordingtothebuildingdecreeandthe
Passivehouselevelofinsulation?
An assessment should be made of the practical differences (e.g. manner of ventilation, air tightness,
energydemand)betweeninsulatingaccordingtothe2003buildingdecreeandinsulatingaccordingto
thePassivehouselevelofinsulation.
7. Whatsavingscanbeachievedbyinsulationandhowmuchinsulatingmaterialdoesthisrequire?
This questions aims at estimating the amount of material that is needed for the insulation of existing
buildingsintheNetherlandsandthesavingpotentialthereof.
8. Which insulation materials can best be used during the renovation of a building, taking into
accounttheaspectsoftheprevioussubquestionsandthelevelofinsulationofthePassivehouse
concept?
Withthetechnical,environmentalandhealthaspectsfoundforthedifferentmaterialsandthePassive
houserequirements,thebestsuitedmaterialscanbeidentified.

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1.2 Methodology
Theinformationrequiredtoanswerthemainandsubresearchquestionswascollectedbymeansof:
Literatureresearch
Expertinterviews
Quantitativeassessments

Literatureresearch
A wide variety of literature was consulted, ranging from academic literature to product leaflets from
producersandsuppliers.Buildingdecreesandotherregulationswerealsoofimportance,sincebuildings
have to meet certain legal requirements. Academic literature was consulted to find information
consideringtheenvironmental,healthandtechnicalaspectsoftheinsulatingmaterials.
Producers of insulating materials also provided such information. Literature of several independent
sourcessuchastheDutchInstituteforbuildingbiologyandecology(NIBE)andtheGermanInstitutefor
constructionandtheenvironment(IBU)wasusedtofindlifecycledataandhealthaspectsforinsulating
materials.Theinformationfromboththeproducersandtheindependentsourcesarecomparedtosee
what differences between the values occur and what could be an explanation for these differences.
Technical information was obtained from the producers of insulating materials and textbooks on
construction.Governmentalstudieswereusedtofindinformationonthecurrentstateofinsulationof
theexistingbuildingstockanditsenergyuse.

Expertinterviews
During the research, producers of insulating materials were interviewed in order to obtain data and
products specific aspects which are hard to find in literature (alternative recycling options, or other
developments). Next to producers, also other experts from different sectors were interviewed. The in
dept knowledge of the interviewed experts provided valuable insight into the practical problems of
renovation.
Belowisalistofexpertinstitutesandcompanieswhichwereinterviewedduringtheresearch:
Producersofinsulatingmaterials:
o Kingspan(PFfoam,PIR)
o Knauf(Woodwool,Glasswool,Rockwool,EPS)
o Isover(Glasswool)
o Rockwool(Rockwool)
o Isobouw(EPS,ExpandedPLA)
DutchPassivehousefoundation(StichtingPassiefbouwen)
SocialhousingcorporationAramis(Passiverenovationof246houses)
BAM(Passiverenovationof14apartmentswithprotectedcityscape)
EUMEPS(EuropeanbranchorganizationforEPSproducers)

Apartfromtheinterviews,theproducersofinsulatingmaterialswerealsocontactedforfurtherdetails
abouttheirproducts.NIBEdidnottakepartinaninterview,butwasoftencontactedforexplanationof
theirresearchmethodsandtheresultsthereof.

11

Ownquantitativeassessment
Inordertocomparethedataobtainedfromthedifferentsources,afunctionalunitisdefinedwhichis
used as the basis of the assessment. As a functional unit, a cavity wall was chosen with a thermal
resistanceof3.5m2K/W.Thisfunctionalunitisalsousedinthecalculationofthepriceofthedifferent
insulatingmaterials.Furthermore,thefunctionalunitisusedtoallowforafaircomparison:alllifecycle
analysis(LCA)dataisconvertedtothefunctionalunit.Inaddition,aseparationismadebetweencradle
togateandcradletograveanalyses.Nexttothis,anestimationismadeoftherenovationpotentialof
cavitywallinsulationintheNetherlands.ThisestimationisbasedontwostudiesbytheDutchministry
ofpublichousing,environmentalplanningandenvironmentalmanagement(VROM).Inthesestudies,a
reflection is given of the amount and types of houses together with their grade of insulation (VROM,
2009). By combining the results from these studies an estimation of the renovation potential and the
amount of insulating material needed for the insulation of empty cavity walls in the Netherlands is
obtained. The results from the LCA assessment and the estimation are combined to investigate the
impactoftheproductsinrelationtothesavingpotential.

Boundaries
Thefocusofthisthesisliesoninsulatingmaterialsforthebuildingenvelopeofbuildings.Thebuilding
envelopecoverswalls,roofsandfloors.Inthisthesis,thefocuswillbeliedonwallinsulation,because
wallsrepresentthelargestsurfaceofabuilding.Doorsandwindowsarenotinsulatedwiththetypeof
insulating materials important for this thesis and will therefore receive little attention. Buildings of
interest are existing residential buildings. The outcome of the research should be applicable to such
buildings.

1.3 Structureofthereport
ThefirstsubresearchquestionisusedtoobtainanunderstandingoftheDutchmethodsofconstructing
thebuildingenvelope.AnoverviewthereofisprovidedinappendixA.InappendixBanextensive
summarycanbefoundofbothcommonandnewtechnologyinsulatingmaterials.Fromthissummary,
twooverviewsaredistilledthatformtheanswertosubresearchquestions2and3andcoverthe
technicalaspectsofsubquestion4.Theoverviewscanbefoundinsection2.1.Fromsection2.2
onwards,differentLCAdatasetsareassessedtofindtheenvironmentalaspectsfromsubquestion4.
Section2.7dealswiththedifferentendoflifeoptionsofinsulatingmaterials,whereassection2.8
elaboratesonthehealthaspectsfromsubquestion4.TherequirementsforrenovatingtothePassive
houselevelandthedifferencesbetweenthePassivehouserequirementsandthebuildingdecreecanbe
foundinsection3.4.Theserequirementsresultinanestimationfortheamountofinsulatingmaterial
neededforPassivehouserenovation(section3.6.4).Inchapter4thetwoassessmentsmentionedabove
arecombined,afterwhichinchapter5ananswerisformulatedtosubresearchquestion8andthemain
researchquestion.

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2 Lifecycleassessmentofinsulatingmaterials
This section focuses on the comparative assessment of life cycle analyses (LCA) of different insulating
materials. The goal of the assessment is finding the differences between the environmental, technical
andhealthaspectsofinsulatingmaterialsbyassessingmultipleLCAstudies.Todoso,firstanoverview
iscreatedoftheinsulatingmaterialsthatarecurrentlyonthemarketandthepropertiesthereof.With
thisoverview,aselectionofmaterialswillbemadeforwhichanassessmentofdifferentLCAstudieswill
bedone.TodemarcatethematerialsfortheLCA,thefocuswilllieonmaterialssuitableforcavitywall
constructions,sincecavitywallsareacommonelementofbothexistingandnewlybuilthouses(VROM,
2009).

2.1 Propertiesofinsulatingmaterials
Foramaterialtobeconsideredaninsulatingmaterial,itmustholdcertainproperties.Fourimportant
properties for insulating materials are listed below. In appendix B, these properties are explained in
detail.
1. Thermalconductivity()
The raison d'tre of insulating materials is their thermal conductivity. Because of the low thermal
conductivity of insulating materials, the heat flow through the materials is limited. The unit of the
thermalconductivityisW/mK.Thethermalconductivityofaninsulatingmaterialisofgreatinfluence
onthetotalthermalresistanceofaconstruction(Rc).ThisisexplainedindetailinappendixB.

2. Density
Afactorthatisofinfluenceonthethermalconductivityofamaterialisthedensityofamaterial.Alower
densitymeansthatthereislessmaterialwhichcanconductheat,resultinginmoreairorgastoresist
theheatflow.However,forcertainpurposeslikeflatroofsorcavitywalls,selfsupportingmaterialsor
materials with a high compressive strength are needed. This can only be achieved by a more dense
materialstructure.Overall,adenserstructureresultsinahigherthermalconductivity.

3. Watervapourdiffusionresistance()
When the building envelope of a building is insulated, moisture problems must be avoided. These
problems are the result of condensing water vapour and can lead to structural damage (rotting of
wood),coldbridgesorwetspotsthatformabreedingplaceformould.Ifwarmairwithahighhumidity
diffusesfromtheinsideofabuildingtothecolderoutside,thewatervapourcouldcondensewithinthe
insulatingmaterial.Thisdiffusionofwarmwatervapourtothelesshumidoutsideenvironmentoccurs
becauseofadifferenceinvapourpressure.Thevapourpressureinsidethebuildingishigherthanthe
vapour pressure outside. By the diffusion of water vapour from the high to the low pressure, this
unbalance is cancelled out. The high humidity inside buildings is due to the users of the building:
cooking, showering, plants and the water vapour exhaled by humans, contribute to an increasing
humidity(VandenHoutetal,2005).
The value of an insulating material gives the relation between how much water vapour diffuses
throughalayerofair,andalayerofmaterialofthesamethickness:

vapourdiffusionresistanceofamaterialwiththicknessd

vapourdiffusionresistanceofanairlayerwiththicknessd

isthereforeausefulindicatorforinsulatingmaterials,becauseitprovidesagoodfirstimpressionofa
materialsvapourdiffusionresistance,whichcanbeofinfluenceonitspracticalapplication.

13

 4. Resistancetofire(fireclass)
Thermalinsulatingmaterialsmusthaveafireclassification.Thisclassificationisimportantbecauseofits
influenceontheapplicationofinsulatingmaterials.AfireclassificationispartoftheCEmarkingthatall
constructionmaterialsareobligedtohave(Bouwbesluit,2003c).Theclassificationisprescribedinthe
EuropeannormEN135011.Inthenorm,sevenmainclassesarespecified:A1,A2,B,C,D,EandF,in
whichA1isnonflammableandEishighlyflammable.Ifaproducthasnospecification,orisextremely
flammable,itwillreceiveclassF.Besidesthemainclasses,therearetwootherclasses:smokegrowth
rate (s1, s2 or s3) and flaming droplets or particles (d0, d1 or d2) (NEN135011, 2009). During this
research,onlythemainclasseswillbereported(A1,A2,Betc.),becausethelattertwoclassesaremore
productspecificthanmaterialspecific.Nexttothat,itistheentireconstructionthatisassessedforits
fireclass,nottheseparatematerials.MaterialswithalowfireclassofforinstanceEorF,canstillbe
usedwithinaconstruction,aslongastherequiredclassificationfortheentireconstructionisachieved.
However, although the requirements differ per construction and residential function, the minimal
classification is D, with smoke class s2. For flaming droplets, there is no requirement in the Dutch
buildingdecree(Staatscourant,2005).

5. Price
Perhapsthemostimportantfactorinpracticeisthepriceofinsulatingmaterials.Forthedetermination
oftheprices,thepriceofinsulatingacavitywalltoacertainthermalresistancewillbedetermined.This
isdonepermaterial,sothatinsightisprovidedinboththepracticalapplicationsaswellasthecosts.

2.1.1 Categoriesofinsulatingmaterials
Tocomparetheinsulatingmaterials,adivisionismadebysettingupmaterialcategories.Accordingto
Papadopoulus(2005,pp.79)fourcategoriescanbedefinedthatarebasedonthechemicalcomposition
ofthebasematerialfromwhichtheinsulatingmaterialisproduced.Thesefourmaincategoriesare:
1. Inorganicmaterials
2. Organicmaterials
3. Combinedmaterials
4. Newtechnologymaterials
For this research, the third category combined materials is not used, because it lists insulating
materials that consist out of multiple materials (e.g. foam with plasterboard). Since the focus lies on
commonlyusedandnewinsulatingmaterials,thefourthcategoryisused,togetherwithcategoryone
and two from the above list. This allows both new (hightech) and commonly used materials to be
dividedintocategorieseasily.

The three categories that remain are still very general and should be more detailed. To do so, the
organic materials are split into two groups: materials made from a petrochemical base (e.g. polymers
like polystyrene, polyisocyanurate) and materials made from renewable resources (e.g. sheep wool,
flax). This separation is useful, because the renewable materials are not common materials yet, but
mightbecomeso.Theinorganicinsulatingmaterialshaveamineralbasematerial(e.g.culletorbasalt)
(VIBE, 2007). Another division that can be made according to Papadopoulus is the structure of the
materials(e.g.foamy,fibrous).Thisdivisiondoesnotcoverallmaterials.CalciumSilicateforinstance,is
amaterialthatisinorganic,notfibrous,butalsonotfoamy.Thereforethecategorycellularisused(Al
Homoud,2005).Sincethestructureofthematerialcouldbeofimportanceforitspracticalapplication,
thisdivisionismadeaswell.Theorganizationchartinfigure2.1.1showstheclassificationschemethatis
derived from both Papadopoulos and AlHomoud. No fibrous petrochemical materials were
encounteredduringthesearchformaterials,thereforethecategoryfibrousisleftout.

14

 Insulating
Materials

Inorganic Organic NewTechnology

materials materials materials

Cellular
Fibrous Petrochemical Renewable

Foil
Cellular
Cellular Fibrous

Cellular

figure2.1.1categorizationofinsulatingmaterials

Categorizingtheinsulatingmaterialsallowsaconvenientlyarrangedoverviewtobecreated.Basedon
the division of materials as showed in figure 2.1.1, two overviews are created of commonly used and
new technology insulation materials. The first overview (table 2.1) presents all the materials with the
properties described in the previous section. The second overview (table 2.2) shows the practical
applicationoptionsofthedifferentproductvarietiesofinsulatingmaterials.Forthecompleteoverview
andexplanationofdifferentmaterialsandtheirproductionprocess,seeappendixB.Foranoverviewof
commonmethodsusedtoconstructthebuildingenvelopeofabuilding,seeappendixA.

15

16

table2.1overviewofinsulatingmaterialsandtheirproperties

Material Basematerials Thermal Density FireClass Watervapour PricewhenusedinRc=3.5 Flocks Panels Rolls Injectable Granules
Conductivity resistancefactor() cavitywall foam
()[W/mK] [kg/m3] NENEN13501 [] [/m2]
Inorganic:fibrous
Glasswool Cullet,quartzsand,dolomite 0.0300.040 12150 A1 1 9.3014.70 X X X
Rockwool Diabase,basalt 0.0300.040 25200 A1 15 12.2520.05 X X X
Inorganic:cellular
CalciumSilicate Chalk,sand,cellulosefibres 0.0590.065 200240 A1 620 X
Foamglass Cullet,feldspar,dolomite 0.0380.055 100200 A1 46.4662.37 X
Perlite Silicondioxide,aluminiumoxide 0.0400.060 32176 A1 35 38.2542.41 X X
Vermiculite Magnesiumaluminiumsilicate 0.0400.064 64130 A1 35 X X
Organicpetrochemical:cellular
Expandedpolystyrene(EPS) Benzene,ethylene,pentane 0.0320.045 1080 EF 20100 8.6017.35 X X
Extrudedpolystyrene(XPS) Benzene,ethylene,pentane 0.0250.040 1585 EF 80300 18.0023.10 X
Phenolformaldehyde(PF) Phenol,formaldehyde 0.0200.021 3540 BD 3050 23.00 X
Polyurethane(PUR) Isocyanate,(polyether)polyol 0.0220.035 30160 DF 50100 24.91 X X
Polyisocyanurate(PIR) Polyesterpolyol,MDI 0.0200.035 2840 DF 50100 20.5123.50 X
Ureaformaldehyde(UF) Ureaformaldehyde 0.045 15 DE 1.52.4 X
Organicrenewable:fibrous
Cellulose(paperwool) Recycledpaper,woodfibre 0.0380.040 3070 E 23 24.60 X X
Coconut Coconutfibres 0.0400.045 140 E 110 84.35 X
Flax(flaxwool) Flaxfibres,supportfibres 0.0350.040 28 C 12 15.18 X X
Hemp(hempwool) Hempfibres,supportfibres 0.0380.040 3042 E 12 15.1319.45 X X
Recycledcotton Recycledclothing,support 0.038 18 E 15 19.32 X X X
Sheepwool Sheepwool,supportfibres 0.0350.40 2560 E 12 24.00 X X
Woodwool Wastewoodorvirginwood 0.0380.058 55140 E 5 26.6037.83 X
Organicrenewable:cellular
Expandedcork Corkoakbark 0.0370.043 100120 E 530 25.5844.68 X X
Newtechnologymaterials:foil
2
Thermosheets Polyester,aluminium 0.0380.045 17g/m F 68,000 X
2
Thermoscushions Polyester,aluminium 0.0380.045 17g/m F 68,000 X
Newtechnologymaterials:cellular
Aerogel Siliconalkoxide 0.0130.021 100150 A1 25.5 61.50111.12 X X
Expandedpolylacticacid Sugarcane,cassava 0.034 35 EF 20100 X X
Vacuuminsulatingpanels Fumedsilica,metalizedpolymer 0.008 180210 A2 90172.5 X

17

18

table2.2applicationofthedifferentinsulatingproductvarieties

Facades Roofs Floors

Newconstructions Existing Newconstructions Existing New Existing
structures structures constructions structures

Woodenfloor

Woodenfloor
Timberframe

Insulationon
construction
Drycladding

Pitchedroof

Pitchedroof
Wetrender

Prefabroof
Cavitywall

Cavitywall

theInside

Concrete

Concrete
Flatroof

Flatroof
element
systems

systems

floor

floor
Material

Inorganic:fibrous
Glasswool
Flocks X X X X X
Panels X X X X X X X X X X X1 X X1 X
Rolls X X X X2 X X X2 X1 X1 X1 X1
Rockwool
Flocks X X X X X
Panels X X X X X X X X X X X1 X X1 X
Rolls X X X X2 X X X2 X1 X1 X1 X1
Inorganic:cellular
CalciumSilicate
Panels X
Foamglass
Panels X X X X X3 X3 X X
Perlite
Panels X X3
Granules X X X X4 X5 X5 X5
Vermiculite
Panels X X
Granules X X5 X5 X5
Organicpetrochemical:cellular
Expandedpolystyrene(EPS)
Panels X X X X X X X X X X3 X1 X X1 X
Granules X X X X
Extrudedpolystyrene(XPS)
Panels X X X X X X X X3 X1 X X1 X
Phenolformaldehyde(PF)
Panels X X X X X X X X X3 X1 X X1 X
Polyurethane(PUR)
Panels X X X X X X X X3 X1 X X1 X
Injectablefoam X X
Polyisocyanurate(PIR)
Panels X X X X X X X X X3 X1 X X1 X
Ureaformaldehyde(UF)
Injectablefoam X6
Organicrenewable:fibrous
Cellulose
Flocks X X X X X
Panels X7 X X X X2 X X
Coconut
Panels X X X
Flax(flaxwool)
Flocks X X X X
Panels X X X X X2 X X X2 X X
Rolls X X X X2 X X X2 X X
Hemp(hempwool)
Flocks X X X X X X X
Panels X7 X X X X X X X X X X X X1 X
Rolls X X X X2 X X X2 X X1
Recycledcotton
Flocks X X X
Panels X7 X X X X X2 X X X2
Rolls X7 X X X X2 X X X2
Sheepwool
Panels X X X X X2 X X X2 X1 X1 X1 X1
Rolls X X X X X2 X X X2 X1 X1 X1 X1
Woodwool
Panels X X X X X X X X X X X1 X X X1
Organicrenewable:cellular
Expandedcork
Panels X X X X X X X X X X X X
Granules X X X X
Newtechnologymaterials:foil
Thermosheets X X X X X X X
Thermoscushions X X X X X X
Newtechnologymaterials:cellular
Aerogel
Rolls X X X X X X X2 X X X X X X X
Granules X X X X
Expandedpolylacticacid
Panels X X X X X X X X X X X1 X X X
Granules X X X X
Vacuumpanels X X X X X X X X X X X X X X

1
Insulationmustbefittedunderneaththefloor
2
Insulationmustbefittedontheinsideoftheroof
3
Insulationmustbefittedontheoutsideoftheroof
4
Incombinationwithbitumen
5
Canbeusedasadditiontomortarsoraslevellinggranules
6
OnlyusedtorestoreexistingcavitywallsfilledwithUFFoam
7
Possibleifprotectedagainstwater(foil,materialcoating,oraircavitybetweeninsulatingmaterialandouterwall)
19

20

2.2 Selectionofmaterials
TolimitthenumberofmaterialsforwhichtheLCAdatawillbecollected,aselectionwillbemade.This
selectionwillbebasedonfourproperties:
1. Price
2. Thermalconductivity/thickness
3. Resourceavailability
4. Practicalapplication

Twoofthesepropertiesarealreadymentionedintable2.1,namelypriceandthickness.Bycombining
these two properties into a graph, a first selection can already be made. In figure 2.2.1 the price and
thicknessofthematerialssuitableforapplicationinacavitywallaredisplayed.

Fromthegraphitisclearthatanumberofmaterialshavealowthermalconductivityandthusperform
wellonthickness(e.g.vacuuminsulationpanelsandaerogel).However,thepriceofthesematerialsis
high.Thishighpricewillbeabarrierintheuseofthesematerials.Largescaleusageofthesematerialsis
thereforenotexpectedontheshortterm.Othermaterialshaveabadperformanceonboththickness
andprice,andforthatreasonwillnotbeusedforinsulationinlargequantitiesaswell.Thesematerials
are coconut and perlite. Foam glass, wood wool and cork do not perform well on both price and
thicknessandarethereforenottakenintoaccountfortheLCAassessment.
MaterialthicknessandpriceforRc=3.5m2K/Wcavitywall
115
110 VIP
105
100
95
90
85 Coconut
80
75
70
Price[/m2]

65
60 Aerogel
55 Foamglass
50
45 Perlite
Cork
40
35
30 Woodwool
Sheepwool
25 PUR Cellulose
PF
20 PIR XPS Flax Recycledcotton
15 Rockwool Hemp
10 EPS
5 Glasswool
0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 130 140 150 160 170 180 190 200
Thickness[mm]

figure2.2.1priceandthicknessofmaterialsinordertoreachRc=3.5m2K/W

21

Resourceavailabilityandpracticalapplication
When looking from a resource availability point of view, sheep are not an option to deliver large
quantitiesofinsulatingmaterial.Inthemostfavourablesituation,asheepdelivers4kgofwoolperyear
(Hasselaar,2004).Calculatingwiththelowestsheepwooldensityof25kg/m3resultsin6.25sheepper
m3ofinsulatingmaterial.Thenumberofsheepneededtofilltheemptycavitywallvolumeestimatedin
section 3.3, would be 62.5 million. As a comparison: the amount of sheep in the Netherlands in 2010
was1.13million(StatisticsNetherland,2011c).Asimilarcalculationcanbedoneforrecycledcotton.In
2010,theamountofcollectedtextilewas67millionkg(StatisticsNetherlands,2011c).Thisdividedby
thedensityofrecycledcottoninsulationgives3.7millionm3ofinsulatingmaterial.However,notallthe
collectedtextileiscotton,whichwouldmeanthatthetotalamountofinsulatingmaterialthatcanbe
producedfromrecycledtextileisevenlower.Bothsheepwoolandrecycledcottonarenotsuitablefor
massproductionofinsulatingandarethusnottakenintoaccountfortheLCAassessment.
Cellulose insulation is made from recycled paper. The amount of recycled paper in the Netherlands
alonewas1076millionkgin2010(StatisticsNetherlands,2011d).Intheory,theresourceavailabilityfor
celluloseinsulationisgood.Sincecelluloseinsulationishardtouseinacavitywall(needsgoodsupport
andrainshelter)itisnottakenintoaccount.
XPS is a material that is often used for perimeter (area of a wall or foundation that is partly
underground)insulationandnotsomuchfortheinsulationofcavitywalls.SincethepriceforXPSisonly
just below that of PUR, PIR or PF foam products, it is not likely to be used within cavity walls and is
thereforenottakenintoaccount.

The remaining insulating products (glass wool, rock wool, EPS, Flax, Hemp, PFfoam, PUR, PIR) will be
assessed.EspeciallymineralwoolandEPSneedtobeaddressed,inviewofthefactthatthesematerials
representalmosttheentireEuropeaninsulationmarket.MineralwoolshaveaEuropeanmarketshare
of60%.EPSandotherpetrochemicalderivedfoamsform27%oftheEuropeanmarket.Theremaining
materialshaveatotalmarketshareof13%(Pappadopoulus,2005).IntheNetherlands,this13%ismore
likelytobe12%,sincetheDutchinsulationmarketisdominatedbymineralwoolsandpetrochemical
foamproducts(LustigandVerlind,2011).ThehardfoamproductsPIR,PURandPFfoamaretakeninto
account because of the low thermal conductivity and the relatively low costs of the materials. For
renovationswherelessspaceisavailableforinsulation,thesematerialscouldprovideasolution.Hemp
andflaxaretakenintoaccountbecausetheserenewablematerialscanbeusedinacavitywallagainsta
reasonableprice.

2.3 FunctionalUnitandimpactsofinterest
FortheassessmentoftheLCAstudies,afunctionalunithastobedefined.Insection2.1,acavitywall
constructionisusedtodeterminethethicknessandthusthepriceofinsulatingmaterials.FortheLCA
assessment,thecavitywallconstructionisagaindecisivefortheamountofinsulatingmaterialneeded.
Thechosenfunctionalunitfortheassessmentistheinsulatingmaterialneededfortheinsulationof1m2
cavitywallsurfacetoanRcvalueof3.5m2K/W:
Themanufacture,useanddisposalofinsulationmaterialfora1m2cavitywallsurface
ofaDutchdomestichousetoanRcvalueof3.5mK/Wforalifetimeof50years.
According to VROM (2007, pp. 24), the cavity wall is the most common wall construction in the
Netherlands.Approximately78%oftheexistinghousingstockisconstructedwithcavitywalls(VROM,
2009). Furthermore, almost all newly built houses are constructed with cavity walls. The thermal
resistancevalueof3.5m2K/Wistakenfromthecomingbuildingdecreefor2012.Thisvalueisvalidfor
newlyconstructedhouses,renovationsandbuildingextensions.Renovationandbuildingextensionscan
onlytakeplacewithapermitofthelocalmunicipality.Toobtainthispermit,therequirementsofthe
building decree have to be met, including the requirements for insulation. The lifetime of 50 years is

22

chosenbecausethisisthedesignlifetimeofhouses,afterwhicharenovationorrefurbishmentisoften
needed(Vellekoop,2011).Afterthislifetime,thehouseiseitherrenovatedordemolished.Inthecaseof
demolishment, the endoflife options of the insulating materials need to be investigated. Because of
thedifferentsourcesfromwhichthematerialsoriginate(e.g.petrochemical,organic,orinorganic),the
endoflife options may differ per material. Therefore the disposal of the insulating materials is also
takenintoaccountnexttothemanufactureanduseofthematerials.

2.4 Sourcesandassessment
BecausefullLCAsofinsulationmaterialsarealreadyconductedbydifferentinstitutesandcompanies,it
is not useful to perform an own cradletograve LCA once more. Therefore, multiple LCA studies are
used to create an assessment of the environmental and health impacts of the selected insulating
materials.
Multipledatabasesandsourcesareused,becausenosinglesourcecontainsLCAdataforalltheselected
materials.Furthermore,itisinterestingtoseeif,andhowlargevariationsbetweenthedifferentsources
anddatabasesare.BesideLCAdata,alsohealthaspectsofinsulatingmaterialsarelookedinto.Health
aspects are usually not part of an LCA, meaning that for information on health aspects, a variety of
sourcesneedtobeconsulted.Thedatabasesandreferenceworkslistedbelowareusedtoassessthe
differentinsulationmaterials:
Environmentalproductdeclarations
Producers and branch organisations provide environmental product declarations (EPDs) for their
products.TheGermaninstituteforBauenundUmwelt(IBU)hasdevisedaformatfortheseEPDs(IBU,
2009a). Via the institute, the EPDs can be obtained. The EPDs contain information on the production,
useandwastephaseoftheproductsandtheemissionsandenergyusethereof.TheEPDsalsoprovide
informationabouttheendoflifeoptionsofthematerialsandhealthissues.

NIBEreferenceworks
TheDutchinstituteforconstructionbiologyandecology(NIBE)hascreatedreferenceworksofbuilding
materials. In these reference works, the building materials are sorted per application. Cavity wall
insulation for instance has its own paragraph in the reference work. In the reference works, the
materialsforacertainapplicationarecategorisedinEnvironmentalclasses,rangingfrom1a(b,c)to7c,
inwhich1arepresentsthelowestenvironmentalimpact.Thereferenceworksareveryextensive.Not
theusual three,butfivelifephasesareindicatedforthe construction materials:rawmaterialsphase,
production phase, construction phase, use phase, demolish/waste phase. This leads to very extensive
environmental indicators as well. Next to emissions, also nuisance (light, sound, stench, risk of
calamities)anddepletion(biotic,abiotic,energycarriers,landuse)areconsidered.Byexpressingallof
these values in shadow prices, the environmental index is calculated for the product. Information on
healthissuesisalsoprovidedforthematerials(Haas,2008).

kobau.dat8
ThisisaGermandatabasecreatedbyPEinternationalfortheGermanministryofTraffic,Construction
andUrbandevelopmentandcontains650processes,allofwhicharerelatedtobuildingmaterials.Since
thedatabaseiscreatedin2009,mostoftheprocessesareuptodate.Inthedatabaseinformationcan
befoundonenergyuseandemissionsduringproduction.Themajorityoftheprocessesarecradleto
gate,butthedatabasealsocontainsendoflifeprocessestoobtainacradletograveanalysis.

8
Thekobaudatabaseisapublicallyavailabledatabase.Itcanbefoundat:
http://www.nachhaltigesbauen.de/baustoffundgebaeudedaten/oekobaudat.html

23

 Producerspecificinformation
Someproducersprovidedproductspecificinformationfortheirproducts.ThiscouldbeLCAs,butalso
specificinformationonthewastephaseoftheproduct,orcertaincomponentsintheproducts.Thisis
valuableinformation,sinceitisthemostuptodateandproductspecific.

Ecoinvent(SimaPro)
AnotherLCAdatabaseinwhichinsulatingmaterialscanbefoundisEcoinvent.However,theEcoinvent
databasedoesnetspecializeonbuildingmaterials.Thismeansthatsomeofthedatamightbeoutdated
ornotusablebecausetheEcoinventdatabaseoftenusesSwissproductionstandards.

(Academic)literature
Whereneeded,literatureisusedtofindadditionalormissinginformation.

Theoverviewoftable2.3showsthedatasourceusedpermaterialandanalysistype.Productspecific
informationwasprovidedbyIsoverandtheassociationofEPSproducers(EUMEPS)intheformofEPDs.

table2.3datasourcespermaterialandanalysistype(X=dataavailable,=nodata)

Cradletogate Cradletograve
Material Ecoinvent kobau EPDs kobau EPDs NIBE Literature
Glasswool X X X X X
Rockwool X X X X X X
GrayEPS X X
WhiteEPS X X X X X
Flax X X X X
Hemp X X
PUR/PIR X X X X
PFfoam X

Thedatabasesandsourceslistedabovewillbeconsultedtoassessthematerialsontheenvironmental
impactscategorieslistedbelow.Consideringthatthesearetheimpactcategoriesforwhichalmostallof
thedatasourcesprovidedata,acomparisonispossible.
Cumulativeenergydemand(MJ)
Greenhousegasemissions(kgCO2eq,GWP100)
Acidification(kgSO2eq)
Eutrophication(kgPO4eq)
Ozonedepletion(kgCFC11eq)
Healthaspectscanbeproductspecific (e.g.fibresinmineralwoolproducts), itisthus not possibleto
defineastandardfortheseaspects.Thereforethehealthaspectswillbediscussedseparatelyfromthe
environmentalimpacts.

24

2.5 Inputparameters
In table 2.1 a number of properties are given for insulating materials. For some materials in table 2.1
larges differences can be seen between for instance density and thermal conductivity. Rock wool for
exampleisproducedwithmanydifferentdensities,rangingfrom25200kganditsthermalconductivity
ranges from 0.030 to 0.040 W/mK (IBU, 2008). The density and thus the thermal conductivity of an
insulatingmaterialdependsonitsapplication.Forflatroofsinsulatedontheoutside,adifferentdensity
is needed than for the insulation of pitched roofs or cavity walls. Since the functional unit is the
insulationofacavitywall,thecorrespondingpropertiesofinsulatingmaterialssuitableforcavitywalls
areused.

Thepropertiesoftheinsulatingmaterialssuitableforapplicationwithinacavitywallandtheresulting
mass of the functional unit are listed in table 2.4. These are the properties used to establish the
functionalunit.Ascanbeenseeninthetable,rockwoolcavitywallproductshaveawidedensityrange.
A higher density results in a somewhat lower thermal conductivity. For the assessment, an extra
separationismade.EPSissplitintwotypesofEPS,namelywhiteEPSandGrayEPS.Thereasonfor
this separation is because of the enhanced properties of gray EPS. Gray EPS contains graphite, which
actsasaradiationabsorber.Asaresultofthisabsorption,thethermalconductivityforgrayEPSislower
thanthatofwhiteEPS.Thecalculatedthicknessesofthefunctionalunitsareconvertedintothetrade
thicknessesoftheproducts(equaltothepricecalculationmethodofappendixB).

table2.4inputparametersofinsulatingmaterials

Material Density Thermalconductivity Massoffunctionalunit

[kg/m3] [W/mK] [kg]
Glasswool 2528 0.0330.035 2.993.30
Rockwool 4570 0.0330.035 5.408.10
GrayEPS 1516.6 0.032 1.651.83
WhiteEPS 1516.6 0.0360.040 1.902.25
Flax 3038 0.0380.042 4.204.94
Hemp 38 0.040 5.32
PUR/PIR 3033 0.0240.028 2.463.05
PFfoam 35.6 0.021 2.71

25

2.6 Results
Forthelifecycleofinsulatingmaterialsthreelifephasesaredefinedandinvestigated:
1. Resourceextractionandproductionphase
2. Usephase
3. Wastephase
After applying the materials to the functional unit (the cavity wall is insulated), no more energy or
materials are used. Consequently, the use phase is negligible. In order to assess the different sources
andmaterials,thedatafromtheLCAsourceslistedaboveisconvertedtothefunctionalunit.Infigure
2.6.1,thecumulativeenergydemand(CED)ofthedifferentinsulatingmaterialsisgivenperfunctional
unit for a cradletogate analysis. The CED includes both renewable and non renewable energy use.
Hemp and flax have the highest share of renewable energy (2530%) in their CED. For the other
materials,theshareofrenewableenergyintheCEDislessthan10%,withEPS,andPUR/PIRscoringthe
lowestvalues:between13%.Inthegraph,theeffectoftheradiationabsorberingrayEPSisvisible.The
useofgraphiteinEPSdoesnotaffectitsdensity,butlowersthethermalconductivity,resultinginless
materialforthefunctionalunit,andconsequentlyalowerCED(EUMEPS,2011).
Cumulativeenergydemand,cradletogate
[MJ/FU]
300

200

100

0
Glasswool Rockwool GrayEPS WhiteEPS Flax Hemp PUR/PIR

figure2.6.1cumulativeenergydemandforinsulatingmaterials,cradletogate

DuetoabsenceofdataforPFfoam,nocradletogatedataispresentedforPFfoam.Fromfigure2.6.1it
canbeseenthatthemineralwoolsusetheleastamountofenergyperfunctionalunitwhileflax,hemp
and PUR/PIR use the most. In appendix B a description of the production processes of the different
materialsisgiven.Glassandrockwoolareproducedinasimilarmanner,whichduetoitsbulksizeand
resources (recycled glass for glass wool, diabase and basalt for rock wool) results in the lowest
cumulativeenergydemand.Nexttothat,theoutputproductsoftheproductionprocesshavealower
densitythantheinputmaterials.Forinstance,fortheproductionofrockwool,1m3ofbasaltisturned
intoapproximately90m3ofrockwoolinsulation(dependingontherockwooldensity).

Since the different LCA data sources provide different numbers, there is a spread in the calculated
results.Thisspreadisindicatedwitherrorbarsinfigure2.6.1.Themainbarindicatestheaverageofthe
calculatedresults.Forrockwoolalargespreadisfound.Thisspreadisaresultoftwofactors.Onefactor
is the density of the material. For cavity walls, multiple products are available with a density varying
from45to70kg/m3.Bothdensitiesaretakenintoaccounthere,causingpartofthespread.Thesecond
factor is the difference in LCA values. An EPD for rock wool presents a CED of 13 MJ/kg rock wool,
whereasKellenbergerpresentapproximately22MJ/kgrockwool(IBU,2008;Kellenberger,2007).This
differenceinvaluescanbeexplainedbythefactthatIBUandKellenbergerassumedifferentproduction
facilitiesintheiranalysis.KellenbergerusesaSwissplant,whereasIBUusesdatafromGermanplants.

26

Anotherexplanationistheageofthedata.ThedataprovidedbyKellenbergerstemsfrom2002,while
thedataintheIBUEPDissaidnottobeolderthanfiveyears.
Flax,hempandPUR/PIRmaterialshavethelargestCED.Forflaxandhemp,theCEDwasonlyderived
from the kobau database, since kobau is the only database containing cradletogate LCA data for
thesematerials.AccordingtotheEPDforPUR/PIRbytheIBU,thehighCEDforPUR/PIRfindsitsoriginin
therawmaterials:only1%oftheCEDisrelatedtotheproductionprocess(IBU,2010).

Cumulativeenergydemand:cradletograve
Whentaking intoaccount thewaste phaseoftheinsulatingmaterials,thegraphchanges infavourof
EPS. In figure 2.6.2 the CED for the total life cycle of the products is depicted. In all of the LCA data
sources, incineration is chosen as the endoflife solution for EPS and the recovered energy from
incineration is deducted from the other life phases. Due to the heating content of EPS, the cradleto
graveCEDislowerthanthecradletogateCED.
Cumulativeenergydemand,cradletograve
[MJ/FU]
400
350
300
250
200
150
100
50
0
Glasswool Rockwool GrayEPS WhiteEPS Flax Hemp PFFoam PUR/PIR

figure2.6.2cumulativeenergydemandforinsulatingmaterials,cradletograve

In the case of rock and glass wool, the CED remains nearly the same. As an endoflife solution, land
fillingisusedinallbutoneofthedatasources.Schmidt(2010,p.56)usesroadfillasarecyclingoption
forrockwool.Sincemineralwoolsareinorganicmaterialswithaverylowheatingcontent,incineration
oftheproductsisnotfeasible.Whenincinerationisusedastheendoflifesolution,theefficiencyofthe
wasteincinerationfacilitiesusedintheLCAanalysesbyfortheIBUEPDsandkobauarebetween60
65%(Spang,2012).NIBEassumesathermalefficiencyof20%andanelectricalefficiencyof7%forwaste
incinerationfacilities(NIBE,2012a).Forallthematerials,theentirecalorificvalueofthefunctionalunit
isdeducted.

Flax and hemp based insulating materials perform better from a CED point of view when the full life
cycle is taken into account. This is primarily because of the energy recovery during the waste phase
whichagainisincineration.Forhemp,thedataavailabilityispoor.Inordertosimulatethefulllifecycle,
the kobau database advises to use an incineration process for chipboard (EOL Holzwerkstoffe in
Mllverbrennungsanlage).Bycombingthisendoflifeprocessandtheprocessforhempproduction,a
cradletograveanalysiswasmodelled.

Forflax,cradletograveanalysesareperformedbybothNIBEandSchmidt.Schmidtassumesroadfill
as the waste scenario for flax, where NIBE uses incineration as the waste scenario. Despite of the
differenceinwastescenario,thecalculatedvaluesforthefunctionalunitdonotdiffermuch(166MJ/FU

27

forSchmidtand146MJ/FUforNIBE).Equaltohemp,thekobaudataforflaxarecombinedwiththe
advisedincinerationscenariomentionedabove.ThisresultsinaCEDof154MJ/FU,sothesameorderof
magnitudeasNIBEandSchmidt.
Similartohemp,LCAdataforPFfoamisalmostunavailable.OnlyNIBEcanprovideafullcradletograve
analysisfortheuseofthematerialinacavitywall.AlsoforPFfoam,thewastescenarioisincineration
withdeductionofenergyrecovery.DuetothelowthermalconductivityofPFfoam,aproductofonly
76mmthickisrequired,resultinginalowCED.

The material with the highest average CED and the largest spread is PUR/PIR. The LCA data used is
providedbyanEPDcreatedbyboththeIBUandthebranchorganisationforPUR/PIRproducersanda
cradletograveanalysisbyNIBE.Betweenthecalculatedresultsforthefunctionalunitadifferenceofa
factortwoisfound.ThisdifferenceoccursbecauseofthefactthatthePUR/PIRbranchorganisationhas
been calculating with the newest and most favourable figures, where NIBE used older data (NIBE,
2012b).AnotherfactorthatplaysaroleisthefactthatwhenNIBEencountersanuncertaintywithinits
analysis,italwayschoosestheworstcasescenario(Haas,2008),wherePUR/PIRproducersarelikelyto
choose the most favourable scenario. Both the waste scenarios are the same: incineration with a
deduction of the recovered energy. As mentioned above, NIBE uses a lower efficiency for the waste
incinerationfacilities,whichalsocauseapartofthespread.AsimilarsituationisencounteredforEPS,
wherethelargespreadissolelybecauseofthehighvaluesprovidedbyNIBE.

28

Greenhousegasemissions
In the graph of figure 2.6.3 the greenhouse gas emissions (GHGemissions) of the insulation materials
aregivenforboththecradletogate(leftcolumn)asthecradletograve(rightcolumn)analysis.Alarge
spreadinvaluesisfoundforrockwool,butthisisbecauseofthevariationindensitybetweentherock
woolcavitywallproducts.BetweentheGHGemissionsofglassandrockwooladifferenceisobserved.
Althoughinfigure2.6.2theCEDforglassandrockwoolarealmostequal,thedifferenceinproduction
processcausesadisparityfortheGHGemissionsofthewools.Glasswoolisproducedwiththeuseof
naturalgas(occasionallyelectricity),whereasrockwoolisproducedinacupolaovenfedwithcokes.The
differenceinemissionfactorbetweenthefuelscouldbethecauseforthedifferenceinGHGemissions.
For EPS, flaxand hemp the increase in GHGemissions in the waste phase isas a result of the chosen
wastescenario(incineration)andthefactthattheCO2uptakeduringthegrowthoftheplantsistaken
intoaccountinthecradletogateanalyses(deducted).ForPFfoamNIBE(2008,pp.128)assumes90%
incineration, but since there is no cradletogate analysis available, a comparison is not possible.
PUR/PIR materials have the highest GHGemissions, which according to the IBU (2010, pp. 14) can be
allocated for over 95% to the raw materials needed for the production (MDI and polyol). A way of
reducing the GHGemissions would be to recycle the PUR/PIR products. This is further discussed in
section2.7.
Greenhousegasemissions
[kgCO2eq/FU]
15
14
13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
Glasswool Rockwool GrayEPS WhiteEPS Flax Hemp PUR/PIR PFFoam

Cradletogate Cradletograve

figure2.6.3globalwarmingpotentialofinsulatingmaterials

29

Eutrophication
SimilartotheGWP,theeutrophicationpotential(EP)oftheinsulatingmaterialsispresentedgraphically
infigure2.6.4.Again,boththecradletogateasthecradletograveanalysisresultsarepresented.The
most prominent spread in results are found for PUR/PIR products in the cradletograve analyses. For
thePUR/PIRcradletogateanalysis,thevaluesfromanEPDareused.ThisEPDiscreatedbytheGerman
associationofPUR/PIRproducers(IVPU)incollaborationwiththeIBUandshouldberepresentativefor
the entire branch (IBU, 2010). The EPD provides a cradletogate as well as a cradletograve analysis.
Forthecradletograveanalysis,theanalysisbyNIBE(Haas,2008,pp.126)wasalsoconsidered.Values
fromboththeIVPUandNIBEcradletograveanalysisareused,resultinginadiscrepancybetweenthe
calculatedresults.Fortheiranalysis,IVPUhasusedthreemodernproductionfacilitiesandcombinedthe
valuesfromthethreeplantsintooneanalysis.Fortheiranalysis,NIBEusesSimaprowhichisbasedon
theecoinventdatabase.Intheanalysis,theecoinventdataisusedafteradaptingthetransportfigures
to the Dutch situation (NIBE, 2012b). As said before, NIBE assumes the worst case scenario in case of
uncertaintiesintheanalysis.SincetheusedEPDisrelativelynew(2010)itmightbethatprocessspecific
data was not yet available at the time of the NIBE analysis, causing more uncertainties and therefore
higherestimations.
Euthrophicationpotential
[kgPO4eq/FU]
3.0E02
2.5E02
2.0E02
1.5E02
1.0E02
5.0E03
0.0E+00
Glasswool Rockwool GrayEPS WhiteEPS Flax Hemp PUR/PIR PFFoam

Cradletogate Cradletograve

figure2.6.4eutrophicationpotentialofinsulatingmaterials

A similar issue is found for the glass wool cradletograve analysis. The highest value found for glass
wooliscomingfromtheecoinventdatabase,whichmodelsaprocessoutoftheyear1991,withdata
dating back to 19931995, which is clearly outdated (Kellenberger et al, 2007). For rock wool the
ecoinventdataisalsorelativelyold(2001).Inaddition,thedatafromecoinventoriginatesfromaSwiss
facility,whereasthedatafromtheEPDcomesfromGermanfacilities.

Apartfromtheageofthedataset,thespreadforglasswoolisalsoexplainedbythe usedproduction
processandsubsequentlythefuelthatisusedfortheprocess.Glasswoolcanbeproducedinanelectric
furnace(rare),butalsoinanaturalgasfiredfurnace(commonpractice).MultipleLCAanalysesareused
basedupondifferentproductionfacilitiesinwhichbothprocessesareused,resultinginlargedifference
invaluesforglasswool.AccordingtoKellenbergeretal(2007,pp.427)andtheEPDforKnaufglasswool
(IBU, 2011) natural gas only accounts for 40% of the production energy, the rest is electricity. The
chosenelectricitymixisthusofgreatinfluenceontheenvironmentalimpacts.

30

Acidification
In figure 2.6.5 the results for acidification are presented. For acidification the spread between the
resultsarelargeforglasswool,rockwool,EPSandflax.Forrockwool,thespreadisagaincausedbythe
variation in density. The reason for the high acidification potential of rock wool is the use of cokes
during the production. The results for flax deviate because of the difference in waste scenario. NIBE
assumes95%incineration(Haas,2008,pp.134)whereSchmidt(2004,pp.55)assumesroadfillasthe
wastescenario.Forglasswoolthedifferenceinvaluesoriginatesfromthedifferencesinvaluesfoundin
theEPDsfromSchwenk(IBU,2011a),Knauf(IBU,2011b)andIsover(Isover,2011)andthevaluesfrom
NIBE. However, for glass wool this time it are the producers (Knauf and Isover) that provide higher
valuesthanthekobaudatabase,theNIBEreferenceworksandtheecoinventdatabase.Accordingto
Isover, the data provided by the producers themselves is the most correct and up to date data. An
explanationforthedifferencebetweentheproducersandthedatabasesisagaintheusedenergymix
(gasorelectricity)andtheageofthedata(vanRooy,2011;Medard,2012).
Acidificationpotential
[kgSO2eq/FU]
1.0E01
8.0E02
6.0E02
4.0E02
2.0E02
0.0E+00
Glass Rockwool GrayEPS WhiteEPS Flax Hemp PUR/PIR PFFoam
wool

Cradletogate Cradletograve

figure2.6.5acidificationpotentialofinsulatingmaterials

ThereasonforthedifferenceinvaluesforwhiteEPSisbecauseoftheantiqueddatabaseusedbyNIBE,
whichresultsinhighvalues.Atthismoment,theEPSproducersandNIBEarediscussingtheoptionsof
combining their knowledge into a new dataset for EPS. For now, the values provided by the EUMEPS
EPD and the IBU EPS EPD (the values at the lower end in figure 2.6.5, are the most realistic (Lamers,
2011).

31

Ozonedepletionpotential
Infigure2.6.6theozonedepletionpotential(ODP)oftheinsulatingmaterialsisdepicted.Inordertobe
abletodisplaytheresultsproperly,theresultsbasedonthevaluesfromtheNIBEreferenceworksfor
PUR/PIRandwhiteEPSproductsareleftoutofthegraph.AccordingtoNIBE(Haas,2008,pp.126)the
ODPforPUR/PIRproductsis1.14105kgCFC11eq.ThisvalueismuchhigherthantheODPvaluesperkg
productprovidedbyIVPU(2010,pp.3)thatrangebetween2.8108and6.6108kgCFC11eq.Sinceno
PUR/PIR producer participatedinthe research,itishardfindasolidexplanationforthisdifference. A
possibilitycouldagainbetheageofthedatasetusedbyNIBE,aswasindicatedtobetheproblemfor
glasswoolasopposedtoEPS.ForthecaseofEPS,NIBE(Haas,2008,pp.124)providesanODPof8.7107
kgCFC11eq,whereboththeIBU(2009,pp.3)andEUMEPS(2011,pp.2)presentvaluesintherangeof
1.7109and5.11010kgCFC11eq.
Ozonedepletion
[kgCFC11eq/FU]
1.2E06
1.0E06
8.0E07
6.0E07
4.0E07
2.0E07
0.0E+00
2.0E07
Glasswool Rockwool GrayEPS WhiteEPS Flax Hemp PFFoam PUR/PIR

Cradletogate Cradletograve

figure2.6.6Ozonedepletionpotentialofinsulatingproducts

Duetocreditsfromtheincinerationprocess,theinsulatingmaterialsforwhichincinerationwasusedas
the waste phase solution, have a lower ODP in the cradletograve analysis than the cradletogate
analysis. For gray EPS a negative value is obtained for the waste phase, due to the lower thermal
conductivityofgrayEPScomparedtowhiteEPS.

32

2.7 Alternativerecyclingoptions
Inmostthecradletograveanalysesfound,incinerationorlandfillingarethemostcommonendoflife
solutions.Inpracticehowever,landfillingandincinerationdonotneedtobethesolutionofchoice.For
manymaterials,alternativesolutionsarealreadypossibleorunderdevelopment.

Glassandrockwool
For glass and rock wool the chosen waste scenarios are either land filling or recycling it as road fill
materials. However, other waste options are also available for both rock and glass wool, particularly
recycling the postconsumer material back into the production process. For both rock and glass wool
thisisalreadycommonpractice.Especiallyinthecaseofrockwool,whereusedplantsubstratesmade
out of rock wool are returned to the production plant periodically. Contamination of the rock wool
products is not a problem, since the temperatures inside the cupola oven will burn any organic
contaminations and melt inorganic contaminations. For glass wool, very contaminated wool cannot
directlybeusedandneedscleansingfirst.Thisisbecausetheglasswoolproductionismoresensitiveto
impurities(Schuurmans,2011;vanRooy,2011).

ThemajorityoftheCEDusedformineralwoolscanbeallocatedtotheproductionprocess(smeltingof
raw materials, spinning of fibres and curing the binder) (IBU, 2008). Recycling mineral wools will
therefore not cause a large reduction of the CED. According to Schmidt (2004, pp. 59) the maximum
reductionpotentialis0.67MJ/kgrockwool.Forglasswoolnosuchvaluesareavailable,butbecauseof
thesimilaritiesbetweentheproductionofglassandrockwool,asavinginthesameorderofmagnitude
isexpected.

Anotheroptionalreadyinuseforbothglassandrockwoolisusingmineralwoolasafillermaterialin
the production of bricks (IBU, 2008; IBU, 2011, van Rooy, 2011). Mineral wools are not only used for
their thermal properties. Acoustic insulation of interior walls or other constructions can also be done
with mineral wool. From used rock wool, other products than thermal insulation wool can be made.
Rockwool (the company) for instance produces facade elements, which are made from the same
materialsasrockwool,onlymuchdenserandpreparedagainstweatherelements(Schuurmans,2011).

EPS
InalloftheLCAdatasources,incinerationischosenastheendoflifeoptionsforEPS.IncineratingEPSis
howevernottheonlysolution.AnotheroptionforEPSisrecyclingEPSbyshreddingtheEPSandadding
it to the thermoforming process. Up to 20% shredded EPS can be added to virgin EPS pearls before
thermoforming without any quality loss (the damaged EPS pearls do not insulate as well as the virgin
pearls). Shredding EPS can be done 57 times, after which the product needs to be disposed (Lamers,
2011).DespitethefactthatEPScanberecycled,thisdoesnottakeplaceonalargescaleyet.According
toLamers(2011)thisisbecauseofthelowamountofusedEPSreturnedtotheproductionfacility.EPS
producersarekeenonrecyclingEPS,buttodayssupplyofusedEPSistoolowtogetevennearthe20%.
AnalogoustoPUR/PIRproducts,therawmaterialsarelargelyresponsiblefortheCED.Byusingrecycled
EPS,thisenergydemandcanbereduced,asisshownwithtwonewprocessesintheecoinventdatabase
byHischier(2010,pp.25).TheCEDforEPSmadeoutof45%recycledEPSis40%lessthantheCEDfor
virginEPS.When100%recycledEPSisused,aCEDreductionof87%isachieved,comparedtotheCED
for virgin EPS, also from the ecoinvent database (Kellenberger et al, 2007). A similar reduction is also
foundfortheotherenvironmentalimpacts.Duringtherecycling,nodistinctionhastobemadebetween
grayandwhiteEPSfromaproductionpointofview.GrayEPSpearlsarealreadymixedwithwhiteEPS
pearlsforestheticalreasons(Lamers,2011).

33

Flaxandhemp
Theendoflifeoptionsforhempandflaxaresimilar,sothematerialscanbediscussedtogether.Inthe
foundLCAdatasetsforhempandflax,thematerialsareincineratedattheendoftheirlifetime.Another
option that comes to mind when dealing with materials from renewable sources is composting.
Compostingofthesematerialsishowevernotpossible.Thisisbecausebothflaxandhempareproduced
with (polyester) support fibres (around 15%, see appendix B) which are melted around the natural
fibres.Separatingthepolyesterfromthenaturalfibresisthereforedifficult.Itisalsopossibletoproduce
the support fibres out if renewable materials. A study done by the University of Stuttgart and PE
Internationalhasresultedinapolylacticacid(PLA)supportfibreinsteadofpolyester.UsingPLAinstead
of polyester decreases both the CED as well as the GHGemissions (Deimling and Bos, 2008). Next to
that,replacingthepolyesterfibresbyPLAfibresallowsthehempinsulationproductstobecomposted
(Holzhey,2011).

PFfoamandPUR/PIRinsulation
Also for PFfoam and PUR/PIR insulation the chosen endoflife option is incineration. For PUR/PIR
insulation there is a recycling option: glycolysis. By the use of glycolysis, the polyurethane bonds are
broken, converting PUR into one of its raw materials: polyol (Molero et al, 2006). The process of
glycolysisisunderdevelopmentandhasnotbeenappliedonalargescaleyet.Itisthusnotyetpossible
toindicateif,andtowhatextentthisprocesswillcontributetodecreasingtheCEDandenvironmental
impactsofPUR/PIRproducts.ThesamegoesforPFfoam,forwhichchemicalseparationprocessesare
alsounderdevelopment.EspeciallyforPFfoamsuchaseparationprocessiswelcome,becausePFfoam
onlycharsinincinerationfacilities(vanderWoude,2011).

2.8 Healthaspects
Thermalinsulatingmaterialsareusedtoinsulatehousesandbuilding.Sincepeopleresidewithinthese
buildings,thehealthimpactsduringtheusephaseoftheproductsmustbeknown.Alsothehazardsof
workingwiththeinsulatingmaterialsintimesofconstructingthebuildingareimportant,becauseofthe
directcontactthatconstructionworkershavewiththematerials.

Glassandrockwool
Mineral wool consists of vitreous fibres which are bonded together with a binder. Health aspects
concerning mineral wool arise from both the fibres and the binder. As can be read in appendix B,
formaldehydeisacommonlyusedasacompoundofmineralwoolbinders(phenolureaformaldehyde).
These binders can emit formaldehyde which negatively impacts the indoor air quality. Formaldehyde
can lead to irritation of the eyes and the respiratory system (Haas, 2008). In the building decree, a
limitationof120g/m3atanexposureof30minuteshasbeensettotheamountofformaldehydein
indoor air (RIVM, 2007). Because of the formaldehyde emission, the RIVM (2007, pp. 75) mentions
insulatingmaterialsasapossiblecontributortotheindoorformaldehydeconcentration.Thisismainly
because of UFfoam, which is (almost) not used anymore in the Netherlands. Other materials such as
chipboard,mediumdensityfibreboard(MDF)andtextiles(curtains,carpets)arealsoresponsibleforthe
indoorconcentrationofformaldehyde.Knauf,alargeproducerofglasswoolhasdevelopedanewbio
basedbinderthatdoesnotcontainformaldehyde.AlloftheglasswoolproducedbyKnaufisproduced
with a formaldehydefree binder. The binder can also be used in the production of rock wool.
Unfortunately,Knaufwasnotwillingtodisclosethecompositionorrawmaterialsusedforthisbinder
(LustigandVerlind,2011).Untilnow,Knaufistheonlyproducerworkingwithabiobasedbinder.Both
Isover and Rockwool however expect that in the near future, also their products will make use of a
formaldehydefreebinder.

34

Thefibresusedforglassandrockwoolaredifferentinsize.Glasswoolfibreshaveadiameterbetween
29m,whereasthediameterofrockwoolfibresrangesfrom36m.Mineralwoolfibrescancause
healthissuesintwoways:skincontactandfibreinhalation.AccordingtotheRIVM(2007,pp.153)skin
contactwiththefibrescancauseirritationbecausethefibrespiercetheskin.Thisphenomenonisworse
forglasswool,sinceglassfibresaresharperthanrockwoolfibres.Whenfibreswithadiametersmaller
than 45m are inhaled there is a chance on lung fibrosis (RIVM, 2007). Mineral wool fibres are not
consideredcarcinogenic(RIVM,2007;Lipworthetal,2009).Duringtheproductionandtheconstruction
phase the fibre concentration is the highest. For the construction phase the RIVM (2007, pp. 153)
advisestocutthemineralwoolproductsoutside,sothatnofibresendupindoors.Aftertheproducts
areinstalled,nomorefibresarereleased.Duringtheinstallationofmineralwool,itisadvisedtocover
unprotectedskin,weargoggles(whenworkingoverhead)andtomakeuseofdustcapswhenworkingin
unventilatedspaces(IBU,2011b).

EPS
InEPSinsulatingmaterials,hexabromocyclododecane(HBCD)isusedasafireretardant.Thefractionof
HBCDusedinEPSis0.5to1%ofthetotalproduct.HBCDisphysicallyboundinthematerialwhichlimits
the amount of HBCD offgassing to 0.001% (Lustig and Verlind, 2011). So only a very little amount of
HBCDisreleasedbyEPS.However,HBCDislipophilic,causingbioaccumulationinfattissue.Humanscan
come into contact with HBCD via inhalation and skin contact. HBCD can disrupt the human hormonal
balanceandmayactasaneurotoxin(RIVM,2007).Becauseoftheseproperties,theEuropeanChemicals
Agency(ECHA)hasplacedHBCDontheSubstancesofVeryHighConcernconcernlistwithintheREACH
framework (ECHA, 2012). HCBD has also been placed on the Substitute it now! (SIN) list (ChemSec,
2012).Replacementproductsarecurrentlyunderdevelopment,butdonotyetprovidethesameflame
retardingpropertiesasHBCD(LustigandVerlind,2011;Meuwissen,2011).

Flaxandhemp
Forflaxandhempnosignificanthealthissueswerefound.AstudybyKoivulaetal(2005,pp.812813)
shows that both volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions and emissions of bacteria are negligible.
The study also shows that emissions of moulds can be present at a high relative humidity (90%).
Althoughtheflaxandhempproductsaretreatedwithammoniumphosphateorboraxtoprotectthem
againstfireandorganism,correctplacementofthematerialsisofgreatimportance.Ifthematerialsget
wetandareunabletodry,thegrowthoforganismisinevitable.

PFfoam
AccordingtotheNIBEreferenceworks(Haas,2008,pp.128)theuseofPFfoamdoesnotleadtoany
healthissues.OnlyduringtheproductionofPFfoamhealthhazardscouldexistbecauseoftheuseof
phenolformaldehyde(Haas,2008).

PUR/PIRinsulation
DuringtheproductionofPUR/PIRproducts,thetoxicchemicalsMDIandTDIareused.Insitufoamingof
PURfoamthereforecreatesariskofexposuretoMDIandTDI(Haas,2008).Forpanels,thisriskisnot
present, since there is no proof for offgassing of MDI and TDI at normal circumstances (IBU, 2010).
WhenPUR/PIRproductsareheated,whenthepanelsarecutormachinedforinstance,MDIandTDIcan
howeverbereleased(RIVM,2007).

35

2.9 Discussion
Cumulativeenergydemand
The graphs from section 2.6 provide a clear image of the environmental impact and CED for both a
cradletogateasacradletograveassessmentofthematerials.InananalysisofthecradletogateCED
of insulating materials by Papadopoulos et al (2006, pp. 7), the same results were found as in figure
2.6.1.ThecradletogateCEDisthelowestforglasswool,followedbyrockwoolandEPS.Inthestudyby
Papadopoulos, PUR/PIR has the highest CED. Flax and hemp were not assessed by Papadopoulos.
AccordingtoSchmidt(2004,pp.122)thereductioninheatlossbyusinginsulatingmaterialssavesover
100 times the environmental impacts and energy associated with the production and disposal of the
insulatingproducts.Inchapter4,thiswillbeinvestigatedinmoredetail.

Density
Animportantremarkthathastobemadeontheresultsfromsection2.6,isthattheresultscanonlybe
usedforcavitywallinsulationproducts.Thisisbecauseofthedifferencesindensitybetweencavitywall
productsandproductsforotherapplications.Forexample,ifaflatroofisinsulatedonwhichitmustbe
possibletowalk,verydifferentproductsandthusdensitiesareneeded.Forexample,rockwoolsuitable
fortheuseonflatroofshasadensitybetween140180kg/m3,whereasEPSsuitableforflatroofshasa
densityofapproximately25kg/m3(IBU,2008;Lamers,2011).Thesedifferencesindensityaredependent
on the practical application and can be of influence on the CED and other environmental impacts.
Anotherremarkisthattheresultsaretheretoprovideinsightinhowthematerialsperformcompared
toeachotherandnottoobtainexactvaluesforCEDorenvironmentalimpacts.

Another density related issue occurs for rock wool. For a cavity wall, the density of rock wool ranges
from45to70kgwithathermalconductivityof0.035and0.033W/mKrespectively.Despitethelower
thermalconductivityfortheproductwiththehighestdensity,theenvironmentalimpactoftheproducts
is higher. This means that the reduction in thickness of the insulating material does not lead to a
reductioninenvironmentalimpacts.ForeveryassessedimpactcategoryandCED,theheaviestproduct
showed the highest impacts. However, the difference in thermal conductivity results in a thickness
reduction of 5 cm. In practice, this reduction in insulation thickness means a slimmer cavity wall and
therefore also a slimmer foundation. Whether this foundation reduction will result in a lower overall
environmentalimpactforthebuildingisquestionable.

Flaxandhemp
Surprisingly,theenvironmentalimpactsandCEDforthebiobasedmaterialflaxandhemparerelatively
high compared to the other materials. For these high values two reasons are presented by Schmidt
(2004, pp. 122126) and Deimling and Bos (2008). The first reason is the use of fertilizer for plant
growth.TheenergyrequirementandtheemissionsofN2Oduringtheproductionoffertilizercontribute
tothehighenvironmentalimpactsandCED(Schmidt,2004).Thesecondreasonistheuseofpolyester
supportfibresasabinderandtheadditionofflameretardants,whichbothrequirefossilfuelsfortheir
production. On top of that, the support fibres are melted before they are added to the hemp or flax
fibres.Themeltingofthesupportfibresalsorequiresfossilfuelsasanenergysource.WhenPLAisused
instead of polyester, the CED becomes 14% lower, but is still relatively high (Schmidt, 2004; Deimling
andBos,2008).

36

Practicallimitations
Forbothrenovationsandnewconstructions,thechoiceofinsulatingmaterialsdependsonthetypeof
application.Differentapplicationsaskfordifferentmaterials.Ifforinstanceawallisnotcompletelyflat,
usingstiffinsulatingpanelscancreatepocketsofairbehindthepanel,whichhasanegativeeffecton
the thermal resistance of the wall. In such a case, flexible materials like mineral wools provide a
solution.Theirflexibilityallowsfollowingthecontoursoftheobjecttobeinsulated,thuseliminatingair
pocketsbehindthematerials(vanRooy,2011).Forrenovationprojects,thisisausefulproperty.Onthe
other hand, the flexibility of mineral wools also makes them vulnerable. Especially for rock wool,
compressionofthematerialwilldamagethefibrestructurewithanincreasedthermalconductivityasa
result.Also,mineralwoolscansagout,resultinginalowthermalresistance.Mineralwoolcavitywall
productsareengineeredinsuchawaythatthisdoesnotoccuranymorethesedaysprovidedthatthe
productsaremountedcorrectly(Schuurmans,2011).RigidfoamproductssuchasEPSareeasytousein
automatedprocessesliketheproductionofroofingelements9,becausetheycaneasilybetrimmedor
planedtosizeandglued(Lamers,2011).

Dataavailability
Someoftheresultsfoundinsection2.6showlargespreads.Thisisaresultofthedifferenceinvalues
found in the assessed LCAs. Most of the high results are because of data that is either coming from
ecoinventorNIBE.SinceNIBEusestheecoinventdataformanyoftheiranalyses,theirvaluesareoften
high (NIBE, 2012b). In the case of PFfoam, company specific data is used by NIBE (van der Woude,
2011). Unfortunately, the LCA data by NIBE is the only data available for PFfoam insulation, so a
comparison to other sources was not possible. Data availability is also a problem for hemp and flax
wool.Forhemp,theresultsarefullybasedonacradletogateprocessforhempwoolcombinedwithan
endoflife process, both from the kobau database. For flax exactly the same procedure is used, but
thenwithaflaxwoolcradletogate process.Thevaluesfortheflaxcradletograveanalysescouldbe
supplementedwithdatafrombothNIBEandliterature,ascanbeseenintable2.3.
The used EPDs from the IBU are created under supervision of the IBU, but often contain company or
sector specific data. Although the IBU is an independent institute, it could be that the data used is
somewhatoptimistic,butmoreuptodatethantheecoinventdata.

Endoflifescenarios
Asdiscussedin2.7,theusedendoflifescenariosintheLCAdatasourcesarenotalwaysareflectionof
what actually happens in practice. Some of the recycling alternatives discussed in section 2.7 are
promising and need to be developed further. For EPS, the recycling of used EPS has a large reduction
potentialforbothenvironmentalimpactsastheCED.Nonethelessthereisahurdletoovercomebythe
EPS producers: the fire retardant HBCD. Although developments are well on the way for finding a
replacement for HBCD, recycling of EPS containing HBCD in the future could form a problem
(Meuwissen, 2011; Lamers, 2011). In the coming years, the European Union will continue the REACH
process for HBCD, which means that one day its use will be prohibited (Meuwissen, 2011). If this
happens,itisnotcertainthattheEPSproducedinthepastdecadescanberecycled(shredded)intonew
EPS that may not contain HBCD anymore. In future decisions the toxicity of HBCD must be assessed
againstthesavingspotentialofusingrecycledEPSintheproductionprocessinsteadofvirginEPS.
Take back schemes could serve as important alternative to current endoflife options. Although such
schemesalreadyexistforwastesandcutoffsfromtheconstructionsite,itisnecessarytoalsodevelop
takebackschemesforwastefromdemolishment.

9
SeeappendixAforanexplanationontheuseofroofingelements

37

Healthaspects
Compared to other materials used inside homes (furniture, paints, textiles, chipboard and MDF),
insulatingmaterialsarenotresponsibleforabadindoorquality(RIVM,2007).Especiallynotwhentaken
into account that insulating materials are never placed in sight, but always behind other materials.
Materials used for the insulation of cavity walls are almost completely sealed off from contact with
indoorair.Inthecaseofrenovation,insulationcouldbeusedontheinsideofthewalls.Hereoffgassing
or fibres could get in contact with the indoor air. However, if a house is renovated according to the
Passivehousecriteria,thematerialsarecompletelycoveredinfoilsinordertogetthebuildingairtight.
On top of that, the balance ventilation systems required for Passive houses will make sure that the
concentrationofimpuritiesintheairwillstayatalowlevel(FeistandSchienders,2009).Becausethe
discussedmaterialsallhavedifferenttypesofhealthhazards,itisnotpossibletorankthemaccordingly.

38

3 Renovationpotential
Ofthe660PJneededforspaceheating,325PJcanbeallocatedtohouseholds,indicatingthatthespace
heatingofhouseholdsisresponsiblefor10%oftheDutchprimaryenergyuse(MenkveldandBeurskens,
2009). By renovating or replacing the thermal insulation in the existing building stock, the amount of
energyneededforspaceheatingcanbereduced.Otheroptionsintheareaofmoreefficientboilersand
installationsareofcoursealsowaystodecreasetheenergyuse.However,thelifetimeofmanyofsuch
componentsisaround15years,indicatingthatmanyoftheinstallationshavealreadybeenreplacedby
more efficient ones. For thermal insulation this is not the case, since it cannot break down or needs
replacement. Especially when there is no insulation fitted during construction. As will be shown in
section 3.2, insulation of the existing building stock has not been common practice, which results in
largerenovationpotential.

3.1 Requirementsfornewlyconstructedhouses
The main reason for the high energy demand for space heating is the poor insulation of the existing
dwelling stock. Mandatory building insulation did not come in to force before the year 1975. Today,
roofs,floorsandwallsofnewlyconstructedhousesarefittedwithalayerofinsulatingmaterialsof80
100 mm thick when mineral wool or EPS is used in order to reach a thermal resistance (Rc)10 of 3.5
m2K/W. Ever since the introduction of the building decree in 1992, the requirements for thermal
insulationandtheoverallenergyperformanceofbuildingshavebeensubjectedtoregulation.Withthe
introduction of the Energy Performance Norm in 1995, it became mandatory to express the energy
performance of a house into a number, the so called energy performance coefficient (EPC). For every
newbuildhouseintheNetherlandsanEPCcalculationhastobeprovidedtoobtainabuildingpermit
from the municipality. The calculation of the EPCvalue must be done in accordance with the Dutch
normNEN5128:2004.Toensurethattheallcalculationsaredoneinthesameway,acalculationtool
has been devised, in which the required data for the calculation can be inserted. From this input, the
EPC(adimensionlessnumber)iscalculatedwiththeuseofequation3.1.
Q pres;total 1
EPC=
(330 A g,livingarea 65 A g,loss ) cEPC

equation3.1calculationoftheenergyperformancecoefficient(NEN5128:2004).

Inwhich:
Qpres,total=totalannualprimaryenergy(inMJ)usedbybuildingboundinstallations.Thisincludes:heating
ofthehouse,domestichotwater,ventilation,pumps,fans,lightingandcoolinginstallations(ifpresent).
Thetotalprimaryenergycanbereducedbyaddingsolarpanelsorsolarwaterheaterstothehouse.
Ag,livingarea=livingareaofthehouse(groundfloorsurfaceplusstoreysurface)[m2]
Ag,loss=surfacethroughwhichenergyislost(buildingenvelope)[m2].
cEPC=correctionfactortoalignearlierversionoftheEPCcalculationtoolwiththecurrentversion.At
thismoment,thecEPCisdeterminedat1.12.Onthe1stofJanuary2012,normNEN5128:2004willbe
replacedbyanewnorm(NEN7120)inwhichthecalculationmethodwillberevisited.

10
InappendixBthecalculationandmeaningoftheRcvalueareexplained

39

AttheintroductionoftheEPCin1995,itsvaluewas1.4andhasbeenloweredeversince.In2011,the
EPC has once again been lowered, this time to a value of 0.6. In 2015 the EPC should reach 0.4
(AgentschapNL,2011).AccordingtotheEuropeandirectiveonenergyperformanceofbuildings,newly
constructedhousesshouldbenearlyzeroenergybuildingsbytheyear2020(EC,2010).AnEPCvalue
of0wouldmeanthatabuildingisproducingjustasmuchenergyasitisusing.AbuildingwithanEPCof
0 can thus be considered a nearly zeroenergy building. The development of the EPCvalue over the
yearscanbeseeninfigure3.1.1.Inthefigure,thedeclineinnaturalgasusage(forspaceheating,tap
waterandcooking)overtheyearsforterracedhousesisalsoshown.
DevelopmentofEPCfrom1995to2020withannualnaturalgas
usageofa125m2 terracedhouse[GJ/a]
1.6
45GJ/a
Energyperformancecoefficient

1.4
39GJ/a
1.2
32GJ/a
1
27GJ/a
0.8
18GJ/a
0.6
11GJ/a
0.4
0.2
0GJ/a
0
1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020
Year

figure3.1.1developmentoftheEPCsince1995andannualgasusageofterracedhousewith125m2floorsurface
[GJ/a](Gerdes,2010;VreemanandtenBolscher,2009;GuerraSantinandItard,2010).

Vreeman and ten Bolscher (2009) have developed multiple concepts for reaching substantially lower
EPCvalues for the medium and longer term. In these concepts, also thermal resistance values are
providedforthewallsandroofsofthehouses.Thesethermalresistancevaluesarelistedintable3.1.
Thenewthermalresistancerequirementof3.5m2K/Wofthe2012buildingdecreeistoolowtoreach
thecurrentEPCvalueof0.6,especiallyforroofelements.WhentheEPCisloweredoncemorein2015,
thethermalresistanceofthe2012buildingdecreeisabouthalfofwhatisneededtoreachanEPCof
0.4.Ascanbeenseenintable2.1,theRcvalueneededforanEPCof0.4is6m2K/Wforwalls,whereas
thebuildingdecreeprescribes3.5m2K/W.AnEPCcalculationisonlyrequiredfornewhousesandnot
forrenovationsorbuildingextensions.Thebuildingdecreeisvalidfornewhousesaswellasrenovations
and building extensions. The low EPCvalues for new building result in measures that exceed the
demandsofthebuildingdecree.Thereforeitisnecessarythatthebuildingdecreeisrevisitedintime,so
thatalsorenovationsandbuildingextensionsareinsulatedaccordingthehigheststandards.Theenergy
performance norm and the building decree should be adapted to each other, so that the mismatch
betweenexistingandnewhousesislimited.

table3.1EPCvalueswithcorrespondingRcvalues[m2K/W](VreemanandtenBolscher,2009)

EPC=0.8 EPC=0.6 EPC=0.4 EPC=0

Rcwall 2.5 4 6 8
Rcroof 2.5 6 8 10

40

3.2 Estimationofrenovationpotential
In 2010, the number of houses in the Netherlands was 7.2 million compared to just over 1 million in
1899(StatisticsNetherlands,2011b).Duringthepast110yearsover6millionhouseshavebeenbuiltin
theNetherlands.Infigure3.2.1thisdevelopmentisplottedinagraph.
NumberofhousesintheNetherlands(x1000)

7000
Numberofhouses(x1000)

6000
5000
4000
3000
2000
1000
0
1899 1929 1939 1949 1959 1969 1979 1989 1999 2009
Year

Subjectedtoregulation Notsubjectedtoregulation

figure3.2.1developmentoftheamountofhousesintheNetherlands(StatisticsNetherlands,2011b)

Besides the development of the amount of houses in the Netherlands, figure 3.2.1 also shows the
amount of houses that have not been subjected to any regulation regarding thermal insulation (the
largedarkarea).FromthegraphitisclearthatthemajorshareofDutchhousesisbuiltintimewithout
regulation regarding thermal insulation. In figure 3.2.2, the share of buildings from different time
periods in the 2009 housing stock (7.104.518 houses) is presented. According to Vellekoop (2011),
housesaredesignedtohavealifetimeofabout50years(oftenusedasthedepreciationperiodbysocial
housingcorporations).Thisimpliesthatthehousesbuildintheperiod19601970areallattheendof
theirlifetimeandinneedof,orwouldbenefitfromarenovation.Accordingtofigure3.2.2,thisis16%of
the2009housingstock,whichisequalto1.13millionhouses.
Percentageofhousesinexistinghousesstockperconstructionperiod
25% 21%
20% 16% 17%
15%
15% 11% 12%
10% 8%

5%
0%
Pre1945 19451959 19601970 19711980 19811990 19912000 20012009
Constructionperiod

figure3.2.2shareofhousesfromdifferentperiodinhousingstock(VROM,2010)

41

Intheory,thegraphsfromfigure3.2.1andfigure3.2.2couldgiveanindicationoftheamountofhouses
that need to be renovated from an insulation point of view. However, with the introduction of the
requirementsfornewbuildings,thenationalinsulationprogrammecameintoforce,asismentionedin
theintroduction.Thegoalofthenationalinsulationprogrammewastoinsulate2.5millionhousesin10
yearstime(800thousandprivatelyownedhousesand1.7millionrentedhouses),byofferingsubsidies
for insulation. Although the programme was stopped prematurely, around 602,000 privately owned
housesandover1.2millionrentedhomesweregrantedasubsidy.Intheperiodbeforetheprogramme
(from 1974 until 1978) already 420 thousand houses had been retrofitted with insulating material
(EntropandBrouwers,2007).Thefactthatinsulationofexistinghouseshasalreadytakenplace,makes
thegraphfromfigure3.2.1unsuitabletoestimatetheamountofuninsulatedhouses.

Awayofestimatingtherenovationpotentialoftheexistinghousingstockisbycombiningtwotypesof
datasets.BothdatasetsarepublishedbytheDutchgovernment,albeitbydifferentauthorities.Thefirst
dataset used is from 2006. In 2006, the ministry of public housing, environmental planning and
environmentalmanagement(VROM)hasmadeaninventoryofthesocalledIsolatiegraad(ordegreeof
insulation) of houses in the Netherlands. This was done by annual surveys of 5000 houses that are
representative for the Dutch housing stock. The degree of insulation represents the percentage of
houses in the total stock of which a certain element is at least insulated for more than 50%. Four
elements are distinguished: the ground floor, closed facade, roof and glazing. When 50% of a facade,
roof or ground floor surface is insulated, it is considered insulated. Glazing counts as insulated when
50% of the glass in a house is double glazing. Single glazed windows are considered not insulated
(VROM,2009).Animportantnotehereisthatthedegreeofinsulationdoesnotsayanythingaboutthe
qualityorthicknessoftheinsulationitself.Since1995,thedegreeofinsulationhasbeenmonitored.The
developmentinthedegreeofinsulationuntil2006canbeseeninfigure3.2.3.
Developmentindegreeofinsulation
[%]
90
80
70
60
50 Roofinsulation
%

40 Doubleglazing
30
Wallinsulation
20
10 Floorinsulation
0
1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
Year

figure3.2.3developmentdegreeofinsulation(AgentschaptNL,2011;VROM,2007)

Nexttothedegreeofinsulation,aninventoryisalsomadeofthetypeoffaadeconstructionsusedfor
houses.Itturnsoutthat78%oftheDutchclosedfaadeelementsisacavitywallconstruction11.15%of
the houses has a solid brickwork construction. Construction types other than cavity wall or solid
brickwork (e.g. prefab concrete or wood timber frame) form the remaining 7% (VROM, 2009). The

11
SeeappendixAforadescriptionofcommonconstructionmethodsintheNetherlands

42

reasonforthelargeshareofcavitywallsishistoric.Houseswereoftenbuiltwithmaterialsthatcouldbe
foundnearbyandonhand.Thiswasthecaseforclayneededforbrickwork.However,solidbrickwork
walls are not waterproof, causing water to leak through. To prevent this, the cavity wall construction
wasdeveloped.AccordingtoJeeningaandVolkers(2003,pp.22)thecavitywallwasusedin80%ofthe
housebuiltbetween1930and1940andin95%ofthebuildingbuiltin1999.Thefactthatthemajority
oftheclosedfaadeelementswerebuiltascavitywallsandthelowdegreeofinsulationthereof,makes
thecavitywallconstructionaninterestingelementindeterminingtherenovationpotential.

TheseconduseddatasetispublishedbySenterNovem.SenterNovemhasdevelopedsocalledreference
houses to represent houses in the existing housing stock. These reference houses contain multiple
versionsofcommontypesofhousesbuiltinacertainperiodintheNetherlandsandtheirproperties.For
astandalonehouseforexample,sixtypesaredefined:smallandlargestandalonehousesbuiltpre1966,
in the period 19661988 and in the period 19892000. Other common types of houses are terraced
houses,2under1roofhouses,maisonettes,galleryapartmentsandporchapartments.Foralltypesof
housesandtheirspecificbuildingperiods,theclosedfacadesurfaceisgiven,asistheirvolume(number
ofhouses)inthe2006buildingstock(SenterNovem,2007a;Novem,2001).

Combiningthedatasets
Whentheclosedfacadesurfaceofthedifferenttypesofhousesandtheirvolumeintheexistingbuilding
stock are multiplied and summed, an estimation of the total closed facade surface of houses in the
Netherlandsisobtained.Thissurfacecanbemultipliedwiththepercentageofthissurfacethatiscavity
wall(the78%mentionedabove)whichgivesanestimateofthetotalcavitywallsurface.Accordingto
VROM(2007,pp.31),thepercentageofuninsulatedcavitywallsis40%.Multiplicationoftheestimated
totalcavitywallsurfacebythepercentageofuninsulatedcavitywall,thetotaluninsulatedcavitywall
surfaceisobtainedaspresentedbyequation3.2.
(Closedfacadesurfaceofreferencehousenumberofhouses) % cavity wall %uninsulated cavity wall
equation3.2estimationofthetotaluninsulatedcavitywallsurfaceintheNetherlands

Theestimateduninsulatedcavitywallsurfacethenbecomesjustover201millionm2.Whencompared
to the total uninsulated roof surfacegiven by VROM (2009, pp. 32), it turns out to be almost double
thatsurface(109millionm2against201millionm2.)The109millionm2isthetotalsurfaceofbothflat
andpitchedroofs,wherethe200millionm2isonlycavitywallsurface.

43

3.3 Estimationoftheamountofinsulatingmaterial
AccordingtoMeeusen(2006,pp.13)thethicknessoftheaircavityinacavitywallisbetween5and7
cm.Togetanestimationoftheamountofinsulatingmaterialneededtofilltheemptycavitywallsinthe
existing housing sector, the outcome of equation 3.2 must be multiplied with this thickness. If an air
cavity of 5 cm thick is used throughout the Netherlands, over 10 million m3 of insulating material is
needed. This is equal to 41% of the German insulation production of 2005 (Wecobis, 2011). This is of
course a rough estimation. Apart from that, filling up existing cavity walls will only reduce the energy
neededforspaceheatingminimally.Thiscanalsobeseeninfigure3.3.1,wheretheRcvaluesofacavity
wall filled with either mineral wool flocks or EPS pearls are depicted. None of the materials is able to
meettherequirementsforcavitywalls(Rc=2.5 m2K/W)setby thebuildingdecreeof2003.Ifanew
technologymaterialsuchasaerogelgranulesisused,fillinganaircavityof6cmisenoughtoreachthe
current 2003 building decree requirements. However, the 2012 building decree requires a higher
thermalresistanceof3.5m2K/W,whichwithaerogelgranulesisachievedafterinsulatingacavitywall
of 9 cm (see figure 3.3.1). As mentioned above, air cavities larger than 7 cm are unlikely to be
encountered inexistinghouses,which meansthatevenwitha materiallikeaerogel,fillinganexisting
cavity wall provides only a small improvement. According to Rockwool (2010, pp. 2), the thermal
resistanceofacavitywallwithoutanyinsulationis0.35m2K/W(indicatedbythedottedlineinfigure
3.3.1).
Rc valueforinsulationofexistingcavitywallaircavity
4.5
4 EPSpearls
3.5
Rcvalue[m2 K/W]

3 Glasswool
2.5 flocks
2 Rockwool
1.5 flocks
1 Aerogel
0.5 granules
0 Emptycavity
50 60 70 80 90 100 wall(Rc=0.35)
Thicknessaircavity[mm]

figure3.3.1Rcvalueforfilledcavitywalls(Knauf,2011;Isover,2001;Rockwool,2010;Innodmm,2011)

44

3.4 Passivehouserenovation
Ascanbeseenfromfigure3.3.1,simpleinsulationofexistingcavitywallsbyblowinginsulatingmaterial
intotheaircavityisnotreachingthermalresistancevalueshigherthan2.5m2K/Wwithconventional
materials. Therefore a more rigorous way of insulating houses is needed that reduces the energy
requirementforspaceheatingtoalowervalue,suchasrequiredforPassivehouses.Awayofdoingthis
istorenovatehouses.Thecurrentrulestowardsrenovationare,accordingtothe2003buildingdecree,
thatifabuildingisfullyrenewed(renovated)itmustmeettherequirementssetforinsulationfornewly
constructed houses (Bouwbesluit, 2003b). When a building is renovated because of its poor energetic
performance,therearealsootheroptionsthatexceedtherequirements(andthereforealsotheenergy
reduction) of the building decree. A concept that has its own energetic and thermal insulation
requirementsforrenovationisthePassivehouseconcept.

3.4.1 DescriptionofaPassivehouse
ThePassivehouseconcepthasbeendevelopedbyWolfgangFeistandBoAdamson.Intheirownwords,
aPassivehousecanbebestdescribedas:APassivehouseisabuildinginwhichacomfortableinterior
climatecanbemaintainedwithoutactiveheatingandcoolingsystems(PassiveHouseInstitute,2011a).
BeforeahousecanbecalledaPassivehouse,ithastomeetcertaincriteria.Thecriteriaforanewlybuilt
residentialPassivehouseare(PassiveHouseInstitute,2011b):
Specificspaceheating(andcooling)demand(QH): 15kWh/m2a
Orheatingload 10W/m2
Totalspecificprimaryenergydemand(Qp) 120kWh/m2a
(incl.householdelectricity)
Airtightnessn50(pressureresulttest) 0.6/h

Thecriteriaabovearealmostimpossibletoaccomplishwithinexistinghouses.NewPassivehousescan
be dimensioned and designed with the criteria in mind. For existing houses this is not possible.
Therefore, another set of criteria specifically aimed at existing buildings is devised to cope with the
lower degree of design freedom. The criteria for Passive house renovations are as follows (Passive
HouseInstitute,2011c):
Specificspaceheating(andcooling)demand: QH25kWh/m2a
Totalspecificprimaryenergydemand Qp 120 kWh/m2a +
2
((QH15kWh/(m a))*1.2) (incl.householdelectricity)
Airtightness(pressureresulttest) 0.6/hn501.0/h

In order to reach these criteria, Feist and Schnieder (2010, pp.144145) define four components that
formthebasisofaPassivehouse:
1. Excellent thermal insulation, including the avoidance of thermal bridges, and low window
heatlosses
Theexcellentthermalinsulationtranslatesintothevaluelistedintable3.2.Thesevaluesapplytothe
elements of the building envelope. On top of these criteria, criteria are also set for cold bridges: <
0.01 W/mK. Cold bridges exist in areas where the thermal insulation is breached, usually around
window casings and so called building knots, where floor and wall are connected. A method to see
wherecoldbridgesmightoccuristotryanddrawthethermalinsulationlayerofthebuildinginonego.
Everywhere the pen or pencil has to be lifted from the paper because the thermal insulation layer
cannotcontinuethere,canbeseenasacoldbridge.GlazingusedinPassivehousesshouldhavesolar
heatgain coefficients (the amount of sunlight that enters via the glass) >50% (de Boer et al, 2009;
PassiveHouseInstitute,2011).

45

 table3.2levelofinsulationforelementsofthebuildingenvelope(DeBoeretal,2009)

Buildingelement Passivehouselevelofinsulation
Wall,roofandfloor 6.5<Rc<10[m2K/W]
Windowcasings,doors <0.8[W/m2K]
Windowglazing <0.8[W/m2K]

Toreachthevaluesshownintable3.2,athicklayerofinsulatingmaterialisneeded.Forwall,floorand
roof elements this thickness can be as much as 30 cm when conventional insulating materials like
mineralwoolorEPSareused.Withtheuseofinsulatingmaterialswithalowthermalconductivity(e.g.
hardfoampanels)thisthicknesscanbereducedtoapproximately20cm(Passipedia,2011).

The Uvalue for glazing and glass casings are achieved by using
triple glazing in casings suited with a thermal interruption to
preventcoldbridges.Anexampleofsuchawindowcasingfitted
withtripleglazingcanbeseeninfigure3.4.1.Thecasingismade
outofwood,butcanalsobeproducedoutofaluminium,plastic
or a combination of materials. In figure 3.4.1, the thermal
interruptions are indicated with circles. These interruptions are
madeoutofhardfoamsanddiminishtheheatflowthroughthe
casing, giving it a low Uvalue (0.78 W/m2K for the casing of
figure 3.4.1). The triple glazing makes the window relatively
heavy,whichissomethingthathastobetakenintoconsideration
during the design of the building. Wall structures have to be
strongenoughtocarrytoweightofthewindows.

2. Averyairtightbuildingenvelope figure3.4.1PassiveHousewindowand
The second basic component of a Passive house is an airtight casingadjustedafter(Overbeek,2010)
building envelope. An airtight building envelope is obtained by
verydetailedconstructionbywhichairgapsandairleakage
canbeprevented.Alljointsandgapsshouldbecoveredor
filled so that no air can leak out through the buildings
construction. What this means in practice can be seen in
figure 3.4.2, where all the joints between the OSB
(wooden)panelsaresealedwithtape.Behindthepanelsis
insulating material covered with a foil of which the seams
are also taped to prevent air leakage. To test the air
tightnessofaPassivehouse,asocalledblowerdoortestis
performed. For this test the door of the house is replaced
by a door with a large fan, capable of over pressuring the
house.Thebuildingisbroughttoanoverpressureof50Pa.
At that pressure, the house may only leak 60% of its figure3.4.2 sealingjointswithtape(DWA,2009)
volumeperhour.Thisisoftenexpressedasthen50value,
which should be lower than 0.6 (n50 0.6). Todays common practice values for new houses in the
Netherlandsliebetween2.322.63at50Pa(DeBoeretal,2009;Strometal.,2006).

46

 3. Aventilationsystemwithhighlyefficientheatrecovery
Because of the air tightness of a Passive house, ventilation is vital to guarantee a comfortable indoor
climate.However,topreventventilationheatlosses,balancedventilationisused.Balancedventilation
works by blowing fresh air into a room and extract the old air. Fresh air originates from outside the
house and is filtered before it enters the system. The balanced ventilation system is equipped with a
heatrecoverysystem:acounterflowheatexchangerinwhichextractedwarmairfrominsidethehouse
isusedtopreheatthefreshaircomingfromoutside.Thereisnostrictrulefortheefficiencyoftheheat
recovery unit. The Passive House Institute however indicates that the efficiency should be above 80%
(Passive House Institute, 2011a). According to De Boer et al. (2009, pp. 16) systems with higher
efficienciesareavailable(upto95%)andcouldthereforealsobeused.
4. Thepassiveuseofsolarenergy
TheideabehindPassivehousesistoinsulatehousestosuchanextentthatthereisalmostnoneedfor
additionalspaceheating.ByorientatingthebuildingtotheSouth,solarheatisusedoptimally.Because
ofthethickinsulationlayer,theheatfromthesunispreservedwithinthehouse.Duringdayswithlittle
sunshineorverylowtemperatures,itissufficienttoheattheincomingfreshventilationairtokeepthe
buildingatacomfortabletemperature(FeistandSchnieder,2010).

Internalheatgains
Another important factor for Passive houses are the internal heat gains. Electrical appliances such as
televisions, computers, refrigerators and others produce heat. This heat also contributes to the heat
balance of a Passive house. The importance of internal gains can also been in a typical annual energy
balanceofaPassivehouse,presentedbyFeistandSchnieder(2010,pp.146).Infigure3.4.3,thisenergy
balanceisdepicted.

figure3.4.3typicalenergybalanceofaPassivehouse(FeistandSchnieder,2010)

47

Passivehousecertification
IfthePassivehousecriteriaaremet,theyresultinalowenergybuilding.Tobesurethatthisbuilding
canbeconsideredaPassivehouse,thePassivehouseInstitutehandsoutcertificates.Intheheatannual
heat balance of figure 3.4.3, the first of three requirements for the Passive house certificate can be
found: the net annual energy for heating may not exceed 15 kWh/m2a (54 MJ/m2a). Next to this, the
heating load must be lower than 10 W/m2. Another requirement not mentioned earlier is that the
primary energy demand for heat, hot water and household electricity does not exceed 120 kWh/m2a
(432MJ/m2a).Thefinalrequirementisthecriterionforventilation:n50<0.6.

PassivehousePlanningPackage2007(PHPP)
To determine whether a Passive house meets the criteria, a design tool has been developed by the
Passive House Institute. The air tightness is tested with a blower test, of which the results determine
whether the criteria are met or not. For all other factors the PHPP is used. PHPP is a Microsoft Excel
basedcalculationmethodinwhichtheentirePassivehousecanbemodelled.Whenalltheinformation
(Uvalues,surfaces,coldbridgesetc.)isenteredintoPHPP,itshowsifthecriteriaaremet.Infigure3.4.4
thePassivehouseverificationsheetisshown.AlltheinformationandbuildingdetailsenteredintoPHPP
haveaneffectonthispartofthecalculation.Thecolumnontherightshowswhetherthecriteriafora
certificationaremet.Ifallthecellsshowayesthecertificationprocesscanbegin.PHPPisusedasthe
calculationmethodforbothnewPassivehousesandPassivehouserenovations.

figure3.4.4Passivehouseverificationsheet(DeBoeretal.,2009)

48

3.5 Passivehouserenovation
The four components of the Passive house concept mentioned in section 3.4.1 also apply to houses
subjected to renovation. As mentioned in section 3.4, the criteria for new houses are too strict for
existinghouses.InthissectionthemainrequirementsforPassivehouserenovationaredescribed.

Insulation
SincethermalinsulationformsthebasisforPassivehouses,almostnochangesaremadetothecriteria
of table 3.2. Only the Uvalue for windows has changed: Uw,installed 0.85 W/m2K. This is the average
valueofallwindowsinstalledinthehouse,whichmeansthatcertainwindowscanhavehigherUvalues,
aslongastheaveragestaysbelow0.85(PassiveHouseInstitute,2011c).

Airtightnessandventilation
Airtightnessisanothercomponenthardtoachieveinexistingbuildings.Thereforethecriterionforair
leakage of n500.6/h is set as a target value. The limit value is set to n501.0/h. For ventilation, a
balancedsystemwithheatrecoveryisagainneeded.Theefficiencyoftheheatrecoveryunithastobe
higher than 80% (HR,eff 80 %). An additional demand is that electrical efficiency of the ventilation
systemislessorequalto0.45Wh/m3(PassiveHouseInstitute,2011c).

Ascanbeseeninthecriterialistinsection3.4,theheatingloadcriterionhasbeentakenofthelistfor
Passivehouserenovations.Thisisduetothefactthattherenovatedhousealreadyhasaheatingsystem
inplacethatdoesnotuseairasfluid.Theheatingloadof10W/m2isaresultoftheventilationflowrate
(1m3/hperm2)anditsmaximuminlettemperatureof55C(FeistandSchnieders,2009).Iftheexisting
radiatorsinahouseareused,themaximumheatingloaddoesthereforenotapply.Thespecificspace
heating demand has been raised to 25 kWh/m2a (90 MJ/m2a). This is due to the orientation of the
existingbuildingandthelowerairtightness.Asacomparison,theenergyneededforspaceheatingfora
125m2terracedhouseisgiveninfigure3.5.1.Thefirstbarrepresentstheaverageenergyneededfor
spaceheatinginhousesintheNetherlands.Thesecondbarindicatestheenergyuseforspaceheatingof
a terraced house with an EPC equal to 0.8. The third and fourth bar represent the energy needed for
spaceheatingforahousethathasbeenrenovatedtothePassivehouselevelandanewlyconstructed
Passivehouserespectively.
Annualenergyuseforspaceheatingof125m2 terracedhouse
[GJ/a]
40
35
30
25
39.4
GJ/a

20
15
10 20.3
11.3
5 6.8
0
AverageNL EPC0.8 Passiverenovation NewPassive
2

figure3.5.1annualenergyuseforspaceheating,125m terracedhouse(AgentschapNL,2012;Boonstra,2006)

49

3.6 MethodsofinsulatingexistinghousestothePassivehouselevel
Inthissection,methodsofinsulatingexistinghousestothePassivehouselevelwillbediscussedbased
upontwoprojectsthatserveasanexample.Thefocuswilllieuponthepracticaluseoftheinsulating
materialstoreachthePassivehouselevel.Therenovatedhousesbothstemfromadifferenttimeperiod
andthusdifferentbuildingmethodswereapplied.Nexttothat,thehousesbelongtodifferentsectors
(privateownershipandrentedhouses).Thedifferencesbetweentheprojectresultindiversesolutions
forthePassivehouserenovation.

Thefirstprojectistherenovationof246terracedhousesintheDutchcityofRoosendaal.IndistrictDe
Kroeven social housing corporation Aramis (part of AlleeWonen) decided to renovate part of their
houses to the Passive house level. A special aspect of this renovation was the fact that the residents
were able to stay within their homes during the renovation. The houses themselves were built in the
latefiftiesearlysixtiesandwereconstructedwithcavitywallsandpurlinroofs12.Fortherenovation,
the houses in the district were split into two different projects: 505 (134 houses) and 506 (112
houses) both with different solutions for insulating the existing cavity walls. The ground floor of the
housesismadeoutofconcretewithacrawlspaceunderneath.

ThesecondprojectisaPassivehouserenovationattheSleephellinginRotterdam,where14privately
ownedapartmentswerecreatedinsideexistingbuildings.Inthecornerbuilding,16rentedapartments
werecreatedforsocialcare.Althoughthenumberofapartmentsrenovatedisrelativelylow,theproject
itselfisveryinteresting,becausetheapartmentsaresituatedinside9buildings(builtin1903),ofwhich
the front facade is protected cityscape, which means that the look of the facade has to remain intact
andmaynotbealtered.Therearfacadewasnotaprotectedcityscape,whichmeansthatalterationsto
thisfacadewerepossible.Bothfacadesareconstructedoutofsolidbrickwork.Theroofsofthebuildings
consistedofpartialflatandpartialrafterroofconstructions.Alsointhisproject,thegroundfloorwas
madeoutofconcrete.Aftertherenovation,theapartmentsweresoldtoprivateowners.

3.6.1 Roofinsulation
Toreachtheneededthermalresistancevaluefortheroofs
in the De Kroeven, Aramis has used the almost the same
principle for all the 246 houses. A new roof was
prefabricatedtoreplacetheoldroof.Tosupporttheweight
of the new roof, a new support beam was needed. The
largerweightoftheroofisaresultofthethicknessofthe
insulatingmaterial:40cmofblownincelluloseflocks.Asa
finishlayer,eitherPVC(505)orrooftiling(506)isused.To
lower the energy demand and to enlarge the use of solar
energy,theroofswerefittedwithsolarwaterheaters.After
removing the old roof and installing a new support beam,
thenewprefabricatedroofwasliftedintoplacebyacrane
(Van Rede, 2011). The process of replacing the roofs was
done per house, as can be seen in figure 3.6.1, where the
newroofsarealreadyfittedtothehousesontheright,but figure3.6.1 roofplacementonaterracedhouse in
notyettothehousesontheleft. districtDeKroeveninRoosendaal(BrinkClimate
Systems,2011)

12
seeappendixAforadescriptionifcommonconstructionmethodsintheNetherlands

50

FortherenovationofroofsattheSleephelling,differentroofsshapeshadtobeinsulated.Tokeepthe
originalpitchedrafterconstructionvisible(anaestheticdemand),mineralwoolwasusedonboththein
and outside of the roofs, resulting in a RC of 5.3 m2K/W. The flat roof elements were insulated with
mineral wool on the in and outside as well, resulting in a RC of 8.8 m2K/W. The roof terraces were
insulatedfromtheinsidetoaRCof7.4m2K/W.Insulatingontheinsidewaspossiblebecauseofthehigh
ceilingsintheoldbuildings(Vellekoop,2011;StichingPassiefHuisHolland,2011).Allinsulatingmaterials
were fitted on site; almost no prefabricated elements were used. In figure 3.6.2, a sketch of how the
roofoftheSleephellinglooks,isdepicted.

figure3.6.2sketchoftheSleephellingroof(AdjustedafterStichtingPassiefHuisHolland,2011)

3.6.2 Facadeinsulation
The houses in both projects in De Kroeven were constructed with cavity walls. The method of
renovationusedforproject505washoweverdifferentfromproject506.Forproject505theouterwall
of the cavity wall construction was removed. A trench was dug around the houses, to widen the
foundationofthehouses.Onthiswidenedfoundation,aprefabricatedtimberframeconstructionwas
placed, which was mounted against the remaining wall. Like the roofs, the timber frame facade
elements were also insulated with cellulose flocks,resulting in walls with an Rc of 9 m2K/W. In figure
3.6.3andfigure3.6.4theremovaloftheouterwallandtheplacementofthenewfacadeelementcan
beseen.Thenewfacadeelementwasfinishedwithdrycladdingsystemwithalayerofslates,toprovide
amodernlook(VanRede,2011).

figure3.6.3removingtheouterwall(Stichting
figure3.6.4 fixingthewoodtimber
PassiefHuisHolland,2011) frameelements(VDM,2011)

51

ThehousesinDeKroevenhadalreadybeenretrofittedwithinsulatingmaterialascanbeseeninfigure
3.6.3,wherealayerofrockwoolflocksisclearlyvisiblebetweentheinnerandouterwallandbetween
thebricksontheground.Fromfigure3.3.1itisclearthatthermalresistancevaluesobtainedfromfilling
upacavitywalldonotcomeclosetothePassivehouseinsulationvalues.However,suchafillingdoes
contributeiftheinsulatingmethodofproject506isused.

Forthemethodofproject506,thecavitywalliskeptintact.ToinsulatethewallstothePassivehouse
level, a wet render system13 is used. Polystyrene blocks are adhered to the existing outer wall of the
cavity wall. The blocks are finished with a render which could be painted later on. By combining the
existingcavitywallwithalayerofpolystyreneofapproximately27cmthick,anRcvalueof8.5m2K/Wis
achieved.Thefinishedsituationforbothprojectscanbeseeninthefiguresbelow(VanRede,2011).

figure3.6.5beforeandafterrenovationDeKroeven(VanderWerf,2011;VDM,2011)

FacadeinsulationattheSleephelling
At the De Kroeven district there were no strict restrictions on the appearance of the facade. In
Rotterdamhowever,theappearanceofthefrontfacadeandallitsdetailshadtobekeptatalltimes.
This meant that the front facade could only be insulated on the inside by placing an insulated wall
behind the facade, with a lossof living space as a consequence. This wall was insulated with a 30 cm
thicklayerofrockwool,whichwascoveredwithfoilinordertoachievetheairtightness.Theachieved
thermalresistanceofthefacadeis7.5m2K/W.Howthislooksinpractice,canbeseenfromfigure3.6.6
inwhichthetapeusedtocovertheseamsforairtightness
can be seen. For this project, the so called box in box
method was used. This method considers the existing
building to be a box, in which by means of insulation,
another airtight and thermal resistant box is created. The
windows of the front facade for example could not be
changedbecauseoftheirprotectedstate.Consequently,the
existing windows and casing could not be changed or
moved. To insulate the windows, new double glazed
windows were placed in the newly built insulated wall
behindtheexistingfacade.Thiswayaformoftripleglazing
isachievedwithoutaffectingtheappearanceoftheoriginal
facade(Vellekoop,2011;VILLANOVA,2009). figure3.6.6 insideinsulationwithtapedup
seams(WoonstadRotterdam,2011)

13
seeappendixAforafulldescriptionifawetrendersystem

52

Therearfacadeofthebuildingswasnotaprotectedcityscape,whichmadeinsulatingthisfacadeeasier;
insulatingontheinsideofthebuildingswasnotnecessary.Thewallsofthebuildingsaremadeoutof
solidbrickwork,whichmakesthemsuitableforinsulationontheoutsideofthefacade.Similartoproject
506 in Roosendaal, polystyrene blocks were adhered to the facade. The blocks are 35cm thick, which
togetherwiththebrickwallandrenderfinishresultedinathermalresistanceof10m2K/W.Togetan
impressionofthesize/thicknessoftheEPSblocks,apictureoftheadheredblockstotheexistingwall
canbeseeninfigure3.6.7.

figure3.6.7mountingofEPSblocktoexistingwall(WoonstadRotterdam,2011)

Thefinalresultoftherenovationofboththefrontandrearfacadecanbeseeninfigure3.6.8andfigure
3.6.9respectively.The whiterearfacadeused tobeinthesamestyleasthefrontfacade,aredbrick
appearance.Aftertherenovationandtheinsulationofthefacade,therenderfinishprovidesasmooth
whitesurface,equaltothefacadeofproject506indistrictDeKroeven(seefigure3.6.5).Besidesthe
smoothfinishlayer,otheroptionsarealsoavailablethatprovideoptionstomimictheoriginalfacade.
Withtheuseofsocalledstonestripsanddecorativeelements,theoriginalfacadecanbemimickedon
top of the adhered insulation (Sto, 2011). In figure 3.6.9 another important design feature of the
buildingscanbeseen:thesolarwaterheatersontheroofsofthebuildings.Intheoriginalsituation,the
flat roofs in between the triangular rooftops was not present. This meant that placing solar water
heaters on the roof would prove to be hard, because of the shadow casted by the adjacent roofs. To
solvethisproblem,theflatroofswereconstructedinbetweenthepitchedroofs,creatingmorespace
inside (see also figure 3.6.2) and eliminating the placement problem for the solar water heaters
(Vellekoop,2011;VILLANOVA,2009).

figure3.6.8frontfacadeafterrenovation(VILLANOVA, figure3.6.9 rearfacadeafterrenovation
2009) (VILLANOVA,2009)

53

3.6.3 Floorinsulation
Both the buildings in Roosendaal and Rotterdam have a concrete ground floor. To insulate the floors,
twodifferentmethodsareused.Inbothproject505and506inRoosendaal,thecrawlspaceunderneath
theconcretefloorwas40cmhigh.Atfirsttheplanwastocoverthebottomoftheconcretefloorwith
sprayonpolyurethane(PUR)foam.However,theheightofthecrawlspacewastoolowtoforaperson
toactuallygointothecrawlspaceandapplythefoam.Asaresult,thecrawlspaceiscompletelyfilledby
blowinginEPSpearls.This40cmofEPSpearlsalonealreadyhasathermalresistanceofapproximately
8.5 m2K/W. An additional advantage of EPS pearls over PUR foam is that all the sewage and water
pipingrunthroughthecrawlspace.Ifaproblemwouldoccurwithoneifthepipes,theEPSpearlscan
easily be extracted from the crawl space to solve the problem. When PUR foam is sprayed onto the
bottom of the floor, all pipes will also be covered in solid foam which is hard to remove (Van Rede,
2011).

IntheSleephellingrenovation,theexistingconcretegroundfloorisinsulatedbycoveringthetopsideof
thefloorwithpolyisocyanurate(PIR)panels.OverthePIRpanels,acoveringfloorwaspoured,resulting
inathermalresistanceof5.3m2K/Wforthefloor.

From the sample projects above it can be concluded that there are many options of renovation an
existing building to the Passive house level. Even in difficult situation like the Sleephelling where the
front facade had to remain intact, Passive house levels of insulation were achieved. Both project
received the Passive house renovation certificate, indicating that not only the insulation, but all other
criteria were met as well. In both projects balanced ventilation was applied to the buildings. The
channelsfortheventilationintheSleephellingwereconcealedintheceilings.Inthehousesindistrict
DeKroeventhechannelswereconcealedincasings.Thereisasufficientamountofpracticalsolutionsto
renovateexistingbuildingtoaPassivehouselevel.

3.6.4 EstimationofinsulatingmaterialneedforPassivehouserenovation
WhatcanbeconcludedfromtheprevioussectionfurthermoreisthatrenovationaccordingtoaPassive
house level leads to thick insulation layers. In the projects mentioned above, layers of insulating
material range from 27 to as much as 40 cm of insulation. An estimation of the insulation materials
neededtorenovateallnotinsulatedwallsurfacetothePassivehouselevelcanbemade,accordingto
themethodofsection3.3.Insteadofcalculatingwiththethicknessoftheaircavityincavitywalls,the
thicknessof27cmneededfortherenovationofproject506inDeKroevenisused.Forthisestimation,
thesolidbrickwallsarealsotakenintoaccount,becausethesewallscanalsobeinsulatedbyadhering
insulating materials to the outside of the walls. Solid brick walls represent approximately 68.8 million
m2.AccordingtoVROM(2009,pp.34),70%ofthissurfacewasnotinsulatedin2006.Thisresultsina
notinsulatedsolidbrickwallsurfaceofjustover48millionm2.Iftheassumptionismadethatboththe
cavitywallandbrickwallsurfacesareinsulatedwitha27cmthicklayerofinsulation,thetotalvolume
of insulation material needed to renovate the mentioned wall surfaces to the Passive house level is
approximately 67.3 million m3. This is equal to 275% of the German insulation production in 2005
(WECOBIS,2011).Ifonly thecavitywallsurfacewouldbeinsulatedtoPassivehouseinsulationlevels,
this would require approximately 54 million m3 of insulating material. In figure 3.6.10, these amounts
aredepictedgraphically.

54

 Insulatingmaterialrequirement
[millionm3]
70
60
50

millionm3
40
30 67
54
20
10 10
0
Emptycavitywalls PassiveHouse PassiveHouse
Renovationof Renovationof
cavitywalls cavityandsolid
brickwalls

figure3.6.10InsulatingmaterialrequirementforthefillingofemptycavitywallsandthePassivehouse
renovationofcavityandsolidbrickwalls

A comment that should be made here is that the estimation is done based upon the degree of
insulation. Almost all buildings in the Netherlands do not meet the Passive house criteria. If all these
buildings would be renovated to Passive house levels over time, the demand for insulating materials
wouldbeevenlarger.

55

3.7 Discussion
Regulation
Considering the low energy efficiency for space heating in the existing housing stock and increase in
energyperformanceregulation,Passivehouserenovationprovidesavaluablesolutionthathasproven
itself in practice. For newly constructed houses, the EPCvalues will decrease over time. Lower EPC
valuesresultinthickerthermalinsulation,asisshownintable3.1.In2015,theEPCfornewbuildings
willbeloweredtoavalueof0.4,whichcanonlybereachedwithRcvaluesequaltothePassivehouse
values(seetable3.2).Apartfrominsulation,technicalinstallationssuchasboilersandventilationunits
also need to be very energy efficient (Vreeman and ten Bolscher, 2009). With the Passive house
concept,asolutionisprovidedinwhichbothconstructionandinstallationaspectsareintegrated.Ina
studydoneforAgentschapNL,Nieman(2011,pp.1236)providesacompletelistwithconstructionalas
wellasinstallationrelatedrenovationsolutions.Inthisstudy,Nieman(2011,pp.9)mentionsthePassive
houseconceptasanintegralconcept,inwhichalltheelementsforlowenergyrenovationarepresent.
Asmentionedin3.1,theEPCnormandcalculationwillberenewedin2012.ForPassivehousesthisis
goodnews,becausethecurrentcalculationprogramisnotableofcopingwiththehighPassivehouse
criteria. The input for air tightness for example is limited in the program, which means that the
calculationismadewithanincorrectvaluefortheairtightness.IfanEPCcalculationisdoneforPassive
houses with the current methods, this will result in an EPC between 0.3 and 0.5 (Boonstra, 2006; de
Boeretal,2009).

Ageofdataset
Fortheestimationoftherenovationpotential,datafrom2006isused.Intheyearsafter2006,houses
were also fitted with insulation, which causes the estimation from section 3.6.4 to be too high.
AccordingtoGerdes(2010,pp.26),thenumberofexistinghouseswhichwereinsulatedintheperiod
20062009isinlinewiththetrendfrom20012006(depictedinfigure3.2.3).Ifthistrendisextrapolated
to2011,thiswouldresultin59.4%ofthewallsurfaceintheexistinghousingstocktobeinsulated.In
theperiod20062010approximately240thousandnewhouseshavebeenconstructed.Becauseofthe
energy performance norm and the requirements of the building decree it can be assumed that all of
these houses are insulated. This extra insulated building stock also causes an increasing amount of
insulated houses. Nonetheless, the number of uninsulated houses and thus the renovation potential
remainshigh.

Differenceindegreeofinsulationforwall,floor,roofandglazinginsulation
In figure 3.2.3 a large difference is found between the degree of insulation of different building
elements.Roofinsulationanddoubleglazinghavethelargestshare.Forglazing,thishastodowiththe
subsidiesondoubleglazingwhichhavebeeninplaceforseveralyearsandthefactthatitcanbedone
relatively easy. For roof insulation, this is also the case. 78% of the houses in the Netherlands has a
pitchedroof,which caneasilybefittedwithinsulatedbytheresidentsthemselves(VROM,2009).For
wall and floor insulation subsidies can also be obtained, but here the practical limitations for the
inhabitantsarelarger.Insulatinganexistingcavitywallbyinjectionofflocksorfoamcanonlybedone
by third parties, because it requires special machinery. For floor insulation, inhabitants need to have
enough height in the crawl space. If the crawl space is not high enough or often flooded by ground
water,insulatingthegroundfloorisdifficult.

56

Financialaspects
AgentschapNLhaspublishedafactsheetwithsuccessfactorsforenergyefficientconstructionofnew
houses and renovations. On this factsheet, six important tracks are distinguished of which the first is
Technology. As mentioned in section 3.6, there is a variety of practical solutions for renovating to a
Passivehouselevel.ThisindicatesthatforPassivehouserenovation,thefirsttrackiscovered.Another
track mentioned on the factsheet is financing and costs (Agentschap NL, 2011a). The costs for
renovatingtothePassivehouselevelarehardtoestimate.Torenovatearowhousesimilartotheones
inDeKroevenalongthestandardsofthebuildingdecree,AgentschapNL(2011b,pp.41) givesacost
estimate of 8,980. This cost estimate assumes that the installations are already up to date and that
onlythebuildingenvelopeneedsinsulation.AccordingtovanRede(2011)thePassivehouserenovation
of houses in De Kroeven was around 20% higher than the costs for normal renovation. This small
increasewasbecauseofsubsidiesgrantedtotheprojectandthesizeoftheproject.Thecostsforthe
renovationoftheSleephellinginRotterdamweremuchhigherduetoitssmallscaleandtheprotected
cityscapestatusofthefrontfacade.Perapartment,theinvolvedpartieslostaround100k(Vellekoop,
2011). Due to the fact that the rent for the inhabitants in Roosendaal was only raised by 65 (the
estimated energy savings), the project in Roosendaal is also losing money (van Rede, 2011). Both
VellekoopandvanRedehoweverdonotconsidertheprojectsasfailed.Onthecontrary,theprojects
weredoneaspilotprojectsfromwhichalotofknowledgeonPassivehouserenovationwasobtained.

57

58

4 Savingpotentialofcavitywallinsulation
Toseehowmuchenergycouldbesavedbyinsulation,anestimationismadebylookingatthesavings
potentialofuninsulatedcavitywalls.Sincecavitywallsrepresentaround78%ofthewallsurfaceinthe
Netherlands(VROM,2009),itisinterestingtoestimatethepossibleenergysavingsofinsulatingtheun
insulatedcavitywallsurface.

4.1 Energysavings
Fortheestimationoftheenergysavingpotentialofinsulatingexistingwalls,theresultsofsection2.6
and section 3.2 are combined. As mentioned in section 3.2, 40% of the cavity wall surface in the
Netherlands is not insulated. For this estimation, complete filling of the empty cavities is assumed.
AccordingtoBlok(2009,pp.115)theannualheatlossthroughawallcanbecalculatedwiththeuseof
degreedays,asisshowninequation4.1.
Qa k A D (24 3600s/day)
equation4.1annualheatlossthroughawall

Inwhich:
Qa=annualheatlossthroughwall[J]
A=surfaceareaofthewall[m2]
K=averageheattransferscoefficientofthewall[W/m2K]
D=thenumberofdegreedays[Cdays]
IntheNetherlands,thenumberofdegreedaysisapproximately3000(SenterNovem,2007b).Infigure
3.3.1,theachievableRcvaluesoffillingexistingcavitywallsareshown,togetherwiththeRcvalueofan
empty cavity wall. The Kvalue in equation 4.1 is the inverse of the Rcvalue. By using 1 m2 in the
calculation,theannualenergylossperm2isobtained.Asabasicassumptionforthecalculation,acavity
wallwithanaircavitythicknessof5cmisused,equaltothemethodofsection3.2.Fromthematerial
selectionofsection2.2,itisclearthataerogelistooexpensivetobeafeasibleoptionforthefillingof
cavity walls. Mineral wool flocks and EPS pearls on the other hand are affordable materials with a
reasonablethermalconductivity.Besidesthis,bothEPSandmineralcanberecycledattheendoftheir
usefullifetime.Oncemore,EPSissplitinwhiteandgrayEPS.Infigure4.1.1,theeffectofinsulatingan
existingcavitywallontheannualenergylossthroughthewallisshowngraphically.Itcanbeseenthat
althoughfillingacavitywalldoesnotleadtohighRcvalues(seefigure3.3.1),itdoeshavealargeeffect
ontheannualenergyheatflowthroughthewall.
Annualprimaryenerylossbyheatflowthroughcavitywall
[MJ/m2/a]
600
500
400
300
516
200
100 190 170 161 157
0
Emptycavitywall Rockwoolfilling WhiteEPSfilling Glasswoolfilling GrayEPSfilling

figure4.1.1annualenergylossofcavitywallwith5cmaircavityemptyandfilled[MJ/m2]

59

Withtheannualsavingsknownperm2ofinsulatedcavitywall,itisinterestingtoseewhetherornotthe
reductioninenergylosscompensatesfortheenergyneededfortheproductionofthematerials.Todo
so, the results of the cradletograve LCA assessment of section 2.6 are used. The results of table 4.1
showthattheannualenergysavingduetoinsulationofthecavitywallismuchgreaterthantheenergy
neededfortheproductionofthematerials.Forthecalculations,itisassumedthatallthehouseholds
haveacentralheatingsystemwithanindividualboilerwhichhasanefficiencyof97%(Blok,2009).In
reality,only87%oftheDutchhouseholdshaveanindividualboiler,ofwhich84%isasocalledHRBoiler
(high efficiency boiler) (Agentschap NL, 2012). Because of these assumptions, the estimation is
conservativeandtheenergysavinginpracticecouldbeevenhigher.Inthetable,thevaluesforPassive
house renovation of the cavity wall are also presented for the minimum (Rc = 6.5 m2K/W) and
maximum(Rc=10m2K/W)insulationcriteria.Theresultsfromtable4.1showthattheenergyneeded
for the production of the materials is subordinate to the energy saved by the reduction in heat loss
throughthewall.Onlyforrockwooltheenergeticpaybacktimeishigherthan1year,butthisisforan
Rcof10m2K/W.Thehighervaluesforrockwoolareexplainedbythefactthatrockwoolflockshavea
highdensity(75kg/m3)whenblowninthecavitywallcombinedwithalowthermalconductivity(0.044
W/mK)(Rockwool,2012).Asacomparison:glasswoolhasablownindensityof30kg/m3andathermal
conductivityof0.034W/mK(Knauf,2008).Thereasonforthisisthatglasswoolismoreresilientagainst
deformation,whichkeepsthefibrestructureintact(vanRooy,2011).Forthefillingofcavitywalls,flocks
areassumedformineralwoolandloosepearlsforEPS.InthecaseofPassivehouserenovation,cavity
productsmadeoutofthematerialsareassumed(similartosection2.3).

table4.1energeticpaybacktimeofinsulationbyfilingtheexistingaircavityandPassivehouserenovation

Material Massofmaterial CEDofthe Primaryenergy Energeticpayback

needed insulatingmaterial savedperyear time
[kg/m2] [MJ] [MJ/m2] [Year]
Fillingoftheexistingaircavity(5cm)
Rockwool(Rc=1.24) 3.8 66.6 326 0.20
WhiteEPS(Rc=1.41) 0.9 47.6 346 0.14
Glasswool(Rc=1.50) 1.5 51.0 355 0.14
GrayEPS(Rc=1.53) 1.0 52.5 358 0.15
Passivehouserenovation,Rc=6.5m2K/W
Rockwool 18.2 324 476 0.68
WhiteEPS 4.4 231 476 0.49
Glasswool 6.8 230 476 0.48
GrayEPS 4.2 220 476 0.46
2
Passivehouserenovation,Rc=10m K/W
Rockwool 28.6 508 489 1.04
WhiteEPS 6.9 367 489 0.74
Glasswool 10.6 361 489 0.74
GrayEPS 6.6 346 489 0.71

If the cavity walls are renovated to the minimum Passive house insulation level of Rc = 6.5 m2K/W
insteadoffilled,anevenlargeramountofenergycanbesavedperm2ofwallsurface.Thisisshownin
figure4.1.2,inwhichalsothemaximumPassivehouseinsulationlevelisdepicted.Inthebardiagram,
the energy savings for the insulation standards of the current building degree (2003) and the future
buildingdecree(2012)arealsoshown.

60

 Annualheatlossthroughcavitywallforrenovationoptions
[MJ/m2/a]
550
500
450
400
350
300
250 516
200
150
100 163
50 100 40 26
73
0
Emptycavity Filling5cm 2003Building 2012Building Passive, Passive,
wall cavitywall decree decree Rc=6.5 Rc=10
(Rc=2.5) (Rc=3.5)

figure4.1.2annualenergylossforcommonpracticeandPassivehouserenovationoptionsofanemptycavity
wall

AlthoughthereisnosuchthingasamaximumRcvalue,itisnotveryusefultostriveforhighervalues,
since the heat loss will only decrease minimally, whereas the thickness of the insulation becomes
impractical. This is because of the Kvalue from equation 4.1, which is 1/Rc. The calculation of the K
valuecanbeseenasalimitthatapproacheszero,butwillneverbecomezero.So,Rcvalueshigherthan
10 m2K/W will only have a minor effect, as is shown in figure 4.1.3. The shape of the graph in figure
4.1.3showsaresemblancewiththebardiagramfromfigure4.1.2.Fromthegraphitcanbeconcluded
thatfillingthecurrentemptycavitywallswillalreadyresultinalargeenergy savings,becausethe Rc
valuewillincreasefrom0.35m2K/Wtoabout1.3m2K/W.

InfluenceofRc valueonheattransmissionofacavitywall
600
500
[MJ/m2/year]

400
300
200
100
0
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
Rcvalue[m2K/W]

figure4.1.3influenceofRcvalueonheattransmissionthroughacavitywall

61

AnnualenergysavingsfortheNetherlands
At the end of section 3.2 the uninsulated cavity wall surface in the Netherlands was estimated to be
approximately200millionm2.Withthisestimationandtheresultsfromtable4.1,anestimationofthe
energy saving of filling this 200 million m2 surface with insulating material can be made. For this
estimation,itisassumedthateverymaterialintable4.1hasanequalmarketshare,soeachmaterialis
assumedtoinsulate25%ofthecavitywallsurface.Nexttothat,itisassumedthatalltheemptycavity
wallshaveanaircavityof5cmandthatthecavitywallsarestructurallysolidenoughtobefilled.The
lifetimeofthefilledcavitywallisassumedtobe50years,whichmeansthattheCEDforthematerialsis
discountedover50years.

AsimilarestimationisalsodoneforrenovationofcavitywallstotheminimumPassivehouseinsulation
levelofRc =6.5m2K/W.Inpractice,thisvaluecanonlybereachedbyadheringinsulatingmaterialsto
theoutercavitywallorbyremovingtheouterwall,fillingtheaircavityandreplacingtheouterwall.For
thisestimation,thelattersolutionisused.However,onlytheCEDofthematerialsistakenintoaccount,
becausenodatawasavailableontheCEDoftheconstructionprocessofcavitywallrenovation.Infigure
4.1.4,theestimatedenergysavingpotentialisdepicted.Forjustthefillingoftheexistingcavitywalls,an
annual energy saving of 69.4 PJ can be achieved. This is equal to 11% of the current energy used for
space heating. A renovation to Passive house levels will achieve an even higher saving of almost 95
PJ/year. Over the lifetime of 50 years, renovation to the Passive house level will save almost 1260 PJ
morethanjustfillingthecavitywalls.
Annualdomesticenergysavingof
insulatingcavitywalls
[PJ]
100

80

60
94.6
40
69.4
20

0
Fillingcavitywalls Passivecavitywall
renovation(Rc=6.5)

figure4.1.4annualenergysavingofinsulatingcavitywallsintheNetherlands

62

4.2 GHGemissionssavingpotential
In section 2.6 the GHGemissions of the insulating materials are presented. With these emissions and
the saved primary energy per m2 cavity wall of table 4.1, the avoidance of GHGemissions can be
calculated. For the calculations, the emission factor for Dutch natural gas is used: 56.6 kgCO2/GJ
(Zijlema,2010).Theresultsofcombiningtheresultsfromsection2.6andtable4.1aregivenintable4.2.
FromthetableitisclearthatinsulatingcavitywallswillresultsinalargeavoidanceofGHGemission.
OnlyforrockwoolandwhiteEPSinaRc=10m2K/Wcavitywallitwilltakelongerthanoneyearbefore
theemissionsfromtheproductionofthematerialsarecompensated.Equaltotable4.1,thematerials
are taken into account, not the process of insulating itself, which for Passive house renovation could
haveasignificantcontribution.

table4.2GHGemissionsfrommaterialsandavoidedbyreductioninheatloss

Material Massofmaterial GHGemissionsofthe AvoidedGHG

needed neededmaterial emissions
2
[kg/m ] [kgCO2eq] [kgCO2eq/m2/a]
Fillingoftheexistingaircavity(5cm)
Rockwool(Rc=1.24) 3.8 5.6 18.3
WhiteEPS(Rc=1.41) 0.9 4.1 19.5
Glasswool(Rc=1.50) 1.5 3.0 20.0
GrayEPS(Rc=1.53) 1.0 4.2 20.2
Passivehouserenovation,Rc=6.5m2K/W
Rockwool 18.2 27.1 26.4
WhiteEPS 4.4 19.7 26.5
Glasswool 6.8 13.6 26.6
GrayEPS 4.2 17.7 26.6
Passivehouserenovation,Rc=10m2K/W
Rockwool 28.6 42.5 26.8
WhiteEPS 6.9 30.9 27.1
Glasswool 10.6 21.4 27.3
GrayEPS 6.6 27.7 27.1

In figure 4.2.1 the GHGemissions of several insulating options for a square meter of cavity wall are
depictedgraphically.Again,agreatimprovementisfoundforonlyasmallamountofinsulation.Justthe
filling of an empty cavity wall can provide an emission reduction of 20 kgCO2 eq/m2 cavity wall.
According to Milieucentraal (2012), the price of insulating an existing cavity wall by filling it with
insulatingmaterialisaround16.50perm2.Thismeansthatforanexistingcavitywall,theavoidance
costsrangefrom0.82to0.9/kgCO2(or820900/tCO2).ForrenovatingtothePassivehouselevelno
costswerefound.ThisisbecausethePassivehouserenovationhasnotbeenappliedonalargescale,
butalsobecauseeveryPassivehouserenovationistailoredtothespecificcase.

63

 AnnualGHGemissionsfromheatlossthroughcavitywall
[kgCO2eq/m2/a]
30
25
20
15 29.2
10
4.1 2.3 1.5
5 9.2 5.7
0
Emptycavity Filling5cm 2003Building 2012Building Passive, Passive,Rc=10
wall cavitywall decree decree Rc=6.5
(Rc=2.5) (Rc=3.5)

figure4.2.1annualGHGemissionsfordifferentinsulatingoptionsandlevelsofinsulation

AnnualGHGemissionreductionfortheNetherlands
With the avoided GHGemission per m2 cavity wall from table 4.2 and the uninsulated cavity wall
surface in the Netherlands, an estimation can be made of the total GHGemissions reduction in the
Netherlands.Likefortheenergysavingpotential,itisassumedthatalltheemptycavitywallshavenan
air cavity of 5 cm and are structurally solid to be filled with insulating material. Also, a lifetime of 50
yearsisassumedforthematerials,whichisalsotheperiodoverwhichtheemissionsfromthematerial
productionarediscounted.Infigure4.2.2theGHGemissionreductionoffillinganemptycavitywalland
Passivehouserenovationofthecavitywallareshown.

AnnualdomesticGHGemissionavoidanceas
aresultofinsulatingcavitywalls
[GtCO2eq]
6
5
4
3
5.3
2 3.9
1
0
Fillingcavitywalls Passivecavitywallrenovation
(Rc=6.5)

figure4.2.2annualGHGemissionavoidanceasaresultofcavitywallinsulation

Fromthissectionaswellastheprevioussectionitcanbeconcludedthattherenovationofcavitywalls
in the Netherlands can lead to a significant emission and energy reduction. Just the filling of empty
cavitywallswithinsulatingmaterialswillresultinlargesavings.However,renovationofcavitywallstoa
higherRcvalue(2012buildingdecreeorPassivehouselevel)ispreferable.Thisisbecauseofthelifetime
of(over)50years,inwhichalargeextrasavingcanbeachieved.Besidesthecavitywalls,alsotheother
elementsofabuildingsenvelopeshouldbeinsulated,whichwillresultinevenhigherenergyandGHG
emissionsavings.

64

4.3 Discussion
EPSandmineralwoolCED
ForthefillingofthecavitywallswithEPSpearlsandmineralwoolflockstheCEDdataofsection2.6is
used.TheCEDspresentedthereforEPSincludethermoformingtheloosepearlsintoapanel.Mineral
woolflocksontheotherhandareproducedbyshreddingnewlyproducedglassandrockwoolinto
flocks,whichisanextraproductionstep.ThismeansthatforEPStheCEDcontainsanextraprocess,
whereasforrockandglasswoolapartoftheproductionprocessismissing.Also,theprocessof
blowinginthepearlsorflocksintothecavitywallisnottakenintoaccount.UsingtheCEDfromsection
2.6isneverthelessappropriate.ForEPS,thethermoformingofthepearlsintoblocksisonlyafractionof
theCED.AccordingtoEUMEPS(2011,pp.7)85%oftheCEDofEPScanbeallocatedtotherawmaterial
production.Theremaining15%isallocatedtotheexpandingthegranuleswithsteam,indicatingthat
thermoformingtheexpandedpearlsintoblocksorpanelsisnotamajorcontributortotheCED.

Asforrockandglasswool,themeltingofdiabase/basaltorcullet,thespinningoffibresandthe
productionofthebinderarethemaincontributortotheCED(Kellenbergeretal,2007;IBU,2011a).
Shreddingthewoolblanketshasnoeffectontheseprocessesanditisunlikelythatshreddingthewool
willhaveasignificantenergyconsumptioncomparedtothoseprocesses.Blowingtheflocksandpearls
intothecavitywallwillalsoconsumeenergy.Unfortunately,nodataisavailableontheenergy
consumptionofthisprocedure.Itisassumedthattheprocessofblowingintheflocksandpearlsdoes
nothaveasignificantenergyconsumptionandthushasnosignificanteffectontheCEDofthematerials.
ThesamereasoningcanbefollowedfortheGHGemissionsofthematerialswhicharecloselyrelatedto
theCED.

Passivehouserenovationenergy
PassivehouserenovationontheotherhandmighthavealargeeffectonthematerialCED.Especially
whentheouterwallofanexistingcavitywallstructureisremovedandreplacedbynewmasonry.The
foundvaluesforPassiverenovationcouldthereforebetoopositive.However,theamountofenergy
thatissavedduringthelifetimeofthebuildingislarge.Thismeansthattheenergythatissavedby
Passivehouserenovationoverthelifetimeofthebuildingwillcertainlycompensatefortheenergyof
theproductionandtheplacementoftheinsulatingmaterials.Furthermore,intheestimationabove,
onlytheheatlossthroughwallsistakenintoaccount.ForPassivehouserenovationshowever,the
energysavinginpracticeisevenhigherbecauseoftheadvancedventilationsystem,thebuildingsair
tightnessandthehighlevelofinsulationoftheotherelementsofthebuildingenvelope.Thesefactors
arenottakenintoaccountintheestimationabove,butwilldefinitelyincreasetheenergyandemission
savings.

Boilerefficiency
Theassumedboilerefficiencyof97%isrelativelyhigh.Thishighefficiencytogetherwiththeassumption
thatallhouseholdshaveanHRBoilerensuresaconservativeestimation.Inreality,efficiencieswillbe
lower.Also,theefficiencyoftheheatdistributionandheatemissionarenottakenintoaccount,which
couldalsolowertheoverallefficiencyofthecentralheatingsysteminahouse.The97%efficiencyisalso
assumedforPassivehouserenovation.Thiscanbedone,becausemostofrenovatedhousesmaintain
theirgasconnection.Specialsystemsareusedinsuchrenovationsthatcombinethedomestichotwater
supply,theheatingoftheincomingventilationairorheatingviatheexistingradiators.InDeKroeven
suchasystemwasused.Theefficiencyofthesystemusedisapproximately97%.(Brinkclimatesystems,
2011).

65

66

5 Conclusion
ApplicationofthePassivehouseconcept
Aswasshowninsection3.1,theenergyefficiencyrequirementsforbothnewandexistingbuildingswill
continuetorise.In2020allnewlybuilthousesshouldbenearzeroenergybuildings.ThePassivehouse
conceptisamajorleapinthedirectionofnearlyenergyzerobuildings.Byalsorenovatingtheexisting
buildingstocktoaPassivehouselevel,asignificantamountofenergycanbesavedwithalargeGHG
emissionreductionasaresult.Passivehouserenovationhasproventoworkinpracticeaswasshownin
section3.6.Chapter3and4showthattherearenotechnical,environmentalorhealthreasonstonot
applythePassivehouseconcept.However,theeconomicaspectsspeakagainstitsapplication,ascanbe
concludedfromboththediscussedsampleprojectsinRoosendaalandRotterdam.

Bestmaterials
From the LCA assessment of chapter 2 it can be concluded that there is no such thing as the best
insulatingmaterial.Thismeansthatthereisnounivocalanswertothemainresearchquestionposedin
section1.1.Thereasonforthisisthefactthattheuseofinsulatingmaterialsisapplicationspecific,as
canbeseenintable2.2.Nonetheless,whenreasoningfromanenvironmentalorhealthpointofviewit
can be concluded that certain materials do perform better than others. The overall environmental
impacts for PUR/PIR products are much higher than the overall impacts of PFfoam. However, the
environmentalimpactsandCEDduringproductionaremorethanmadeupforbythesavingspotential
providedbytheinsulatingmaterialsduringa50yearlifetime.Therefore,itisimportanttofocusonthe
endoflifeoptionsforthematerials.EspeciallywhenPassivehouserenovationwillbeappliedonalarge
scale in the near future, the use of materials with endoflife options such as recycling or reuse is
preferable. For both PUR/PIR products and PFfoam this is not the case. Both materials are hard to
recycleatthismoment,duetolackingmeans.Atpresent,hempandflaxwoolarealsohardtorecycle
becauseoftheirsupportfibres.ThiscombinedwiththeirrelativelyhighenvironmentalimpactsandCED,
makesthesematerialsunattractiveforlargescaleuse.Hempandflaxwoolarehoweversubjectedto
improvement,whichisillustratedbythedevelopmentofacornstarchbasedPLAsupportfibreinstead
ofpolyester.

This leaves three materials: EPS, glass wool and rock wool. Apart from GHGemissions, EPS performs
betterfromanenvironmentalpointofviewthanthemineralwools.AsfortheCED,therequiredenergy
forEPSishigherfortheproductionphase,butalmostequaltothemineralwoolsinacradletograve
analysis.BothEPSandmineralwoolhavealargeapplicationrange,asisshownintable2.2.Thislarge
application range combined with the low price of the materials has resulted in a large market share.
Both EPS and mineral wool have multiple endoflife options, which is crucial for materials used on a
largescale.Ontopofthat,therecyclingoftheseproductsisalreadycommonpracticeancanbedone
onalargescale.ThedownsideofEPSandmineralwoolarethehealthaspects.ThefireretardantHBCD
used in EPS only represent 1% of the material. However, considering the large future demand as
estimatedinsection3.6.4,this1%couldturnouttobeahugequantity.Nexttothis,therecyclingofEPS
containingHBCDinthefutureissubjectedtodiscussionandthusinsecure.AreplacementforHBCDis
needed.

Forglassandrockwoolsuchareplacementhasalreadybeenfoundintheformofabiobasedbinder.
Theuseofthebiobasedbinderhaseliminatedtheformaldehydeemissionfromthematerial,without
affectingtherecyclabilityofthewools.Untilnow,Knaufistheonlyproducerusingthisbinder,butother
producers are likely to follow. Health aspects that will remain regardless of the used binder are the
irritatingeffectsofthefibres.Theseeffectsmainlyoccurduringtheplacingoftheinsulatingmaterials

67

andcanbepreventedbyimplementingsafetymeasuresandapplyinganairtightbuildingenvelopethat
preventsfibresfromenteringthebuilding.

ConsideringthefactthatmineralwoolandEPS:areusedalreadyonalargescale,havenoexceptional
high CED or environmental impacts, have multiple endoflife options, have health aspects for which
solutions already exist or are likely to be found in the near future, it can be concluded that EPS and
mineral wool are the best materials for application in Passive house renovation. Besides this, both
mineralwoolandEPScanalsobeusedincommoninsulationofexistingstructures,suchascavitywalls.
The high savings potential combined with the increasing standards set by regulation (e.g. building
decree and EPC), calls for materials with straightforward application, low environmental impacts, low
costsandproperendoflifesolutions.Therefore,EPS,glasswoolandrockwoolcanbeconsideredthe
bestmaterialsavailabletodayforbothPassivehouseandcommonrenovation.

Recommendationsforfurtherresearch
TheapplicationofthePassivehouseconcepthasproventobecostlyforrenovationprojects.Itshould
beinvestigated(anddesigned)howthePassivehouseconceptcanbeappliedinacosteffectiveway.It
couldbethatprefabelementscanprovidesmartstructuralsolutionsagainstafeasibleprice.

For now, EPS and mineral wools are the best choice when considering the endoflife phase of the
materials.However,theinsulationvalueofthesematerialsisnotsohighcomparedtootherinsulating
materials. For materials such as PFfoam and PUR/PIR the recycling options should be widened and
enhanced.Recyclingoftheseproductscouldresultinalowerpriceandlowerenvironmentalimpacts.
Research should be conducted on further development of recycling options of PFfoam and PUR/PIR
insulatingmaterials.

As mentioned above, a replacement needs to be found for HBCD. This flame retardant is bio
accumulativeandformsahealthhazard.ResearchisneededtofindareplacementforHBCDthatdoes
not affect the properties of EPS. The decision on the recycling of EPS containing HBCD in the future
shouldnotbeawaited,butsolutionsmustbefoundinanycase.

Theinnovativematerialsshownintable2.1andappendixBarepromising.Thethermalconductivityof
vacuuminsulationpanelsandaerogelcoulddrasticallyreducethethicknessofwallsthatarecurrently
neededforPassivehouses.Futureresearchshouldfocusonoptimizingtheproductionprocessofthese
materials,sothatthepricesofthesematerialscomedown.

To improve the recycling of insulating materials, take back schemes could form an option. Producers
couldforinstancepayacertainamountofmoneyforinsulatingmaterialthatisreturnedtothemafter
theusefullifeoftheinsulationmaterial.Itshouldbeinvestigatedwhattheeffectofafinancialincentive
is,orwhetheritisbettertochooseforadifferenttypeofreturnpolicy.

68

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StichtingPassiefHuisHolland,2011.SleephellingteRotterdam.[online]Availableat:
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74

7 Appendices

75

76

 A. CommonbuildingmethodsintheNetherlands

77

78

Wallconstructions
Solidbrickworkwalls
Solidbrickworkwallsaretheoldesttypeofwall.Asolidwallisnothingmorethanabrickworkwall.In
theNetherlands,thistypeofwallwascommonlyuseduntil1920,afterwhichthenumberofbuildings
withacavitywallstartedtobecomedominant(JeeningaandVolkers,2003).

Cavitywall
Thecavitywallconsistsoutoffourlayers:theinnerwall(orinnerleaf),alayerofinsulatingmaterial(if
buildafter1975),anairlayerfollowedbytheouterwall(orouterleaf).Theinnerwallisusually
constructedoutofsandlimebricksorconcrete.Fortheouterwall,bricksareused.Thethicknessofthe
aircavityrangesfrom06cm(Kooren,200X).Whenthereisnoaircavity,theinsulatingmaterialsshould
becoveredwithafoil,toprotectitagainstmoisture.Commoninsulationmaterialsincavitywallsare
panelsmadeofmineralorglasswoolandhardfoams.Thebasicstructureofthecavitywallisdepicted
infigure1.

Figure1,cavitywall(Adjustedfrom:Isover,2008)

Byconnectingtheinnerandouterwall,thecavitywallbecomessolid.Thisconnectionismadeby
(stainless)steelwalltiesthatalsoholdtheinsulatingmaterialintoplace.Thecavitywallconceptisused
topreventrainwaterfromseepingthroughthewall,whichwouldotherwisecreatemoistproblems.
Whenwaterhitstheouterwall,thewatercanseepthroughthewalluntilitisstoppedbytheaircavity.
Atthebottomofthewall,someoftheverticaljointsbetweenthebrickworkareleftopen.These
openingsenablethewatertoleavethecavitywallandallowforventilation.Thiscausestheinnerwall
andinsulatingmaterialtoremaindry.In1920,theuseofacavitywallwasrecordedintoamodel
buildingcodeformunicipalities.Intheperiod19951999over95%ofthenewlybuildhouseswere
equippedwithacavitywall(JeeningaandVolkers,2003).Thismakesthecavitywallthemostcommon
buildingenvelopeintheNetherlands.Acavitywalliseasytorecognizebyitsbrickpatternandopen
verticaljointsatthebottom,topandnearwindowframes.

79


Drycladdingsystems
Thesesystemsconsistofasolidinteriorwallconstructedoutofconcrete,sandlimebricksorother
solidsmaterialssuitableformasonry.Theinteriorwallcanalsobeconstructedoutof(steel)beams,but
thiswayofconstructingtheinteriorwallisoftenusedforutilitybuildingsandindustrialbuildings
(Isover,2008).Ontheoutsideoftheinteriorwall,fixingrails(madeofeitherwoodormetal)are
mounted,towhichboththeinsulationmaterialsandthecladdingisfixed.Withtheuseofeitherplastic
ormetalanchors,theinsulatingpanelsaremountedfirmlyagainstthewall.Thecladdingprotectsthe
interiorwallandinsulatingmaterialagainstrain(Kingspan,2011a).Multiplematerialscanbeusedas
claddingmaterials.Infigure2theconstructionofadrycladdingsystemisdepicted.

Figure2,exampleofadrycladdingsystem(Adjustedfrom:Kingspan2011a)

Wetrendersystems
Thebasisofwetrendersystemsisaconcrete,brickworkortimberframewall.Insulatingmaterialis
directlyfixeduponthewallwithafixingmortarandmechanicalfixes(anchors).Afterfixingthe
insulatingmaterial,arenderfinishisappliedoveralayerofreinforcingmortarwhichhasbeen
reinforcedwithamesh(Kuindersma,2010).Figure3showsthedifferentlayersoutofwhichthewet
rendersystemconsists.Therenderfinishandreinforcingmortarareallthatseparatetheinsulating
materialfromweatherinfluences.Therenderfinishishoweverwatertightandshelterstheinsulating
materialunderneathfromrainwater.Nexttofinishrenders,otheroptionsarepossibleaswell,which
includeoptionstomimicexistingfacadeswiththeuseofprofilesandbrickstrips(Sto,2011).An
exampleofsuchcanbeseenin

80


Figure3,exampleofawetrendersystem(Adjustedfrom:Kingspan2011b)

Figure4fixingthestonestrips(Habavo,2011)Figure5finishedresultwithstonestrips(Habavo,2011)

81

 Timberframeconstruction
Thetimberframeconstructionuseswoodenbeamsforthesupportstructureofthebuilding.Figure5
showstheconstructionofatimberframeconstruction.Thetimberframeconstructionalsomakesuseof
thecavitywallprinciple.Thisisdonebycreatinganinteriorwalloutofplasterboard(1)whichisfixedto
thewoodensupportbeams(4).Inbetweenthewoodenbeams,insulatingmaterialcanbeplaced(3).
Theexteriorwallinfigure5isconstructedoutofbricks(7),buttheexteriorwallcouldalsobemadeout
ofothermaterials,lookwoodenplating.Theaircavityisindicatedwithnumber6infigure5.Infigure5
thenumbers2and5arespecialfoils.Foilnumber2stopswatervapour,whereasfoilnumber5stops
liquidwater,butnotwatervapour.Thiswaythewoodenconstructionwillnotrot.

Figure5,timberframeconstruction(Isover,2008)

82

Roofconstructions
Flatroof
Flatroofsareconstructedbyplacingalayerofplatingontopofarowofbeamswhicharemountedto
twooppositewalls.Thebeamscanbemadeoutofwood,steelorconcrete.Thesamegoesforthe
plating.Anexceptionisthecaseinwhichthickconcretepanelsarelaidontopofthewalls,tocreatea
flatroofinonego.Tomaketheroofwatertight,bitumenareused.Whentheflatroofisinsulatedthis
canbedoneoneithersideoftheroof:insulatingmaterialscanbeputinbetweenthebeams,or
insulatingmaterialcanbeputupontheroofandcoveredwithbitumen.Figure6and7showanexample
ofboththeinsulatingoptions.

Figure6,insulationbetweenthebeams(Isover,200X)Figure7,insulatedontopoftheroof(Rockwool,2004)

Pitchedroof:purlinroof
Therearetwocommonlyusedtypesofpitchedroofs:thepurlinroofandtherafterroof.Figure8shows
anexampleofapurlinroof.Thelargebeamsperpendicularwiththecullis,arefixedtothebrickwork.
Afterthepurlinsarefixed,woodenplatesaremountedontopofthem.Upontheseplates,tilelathsare
fixedtosupporttherooftiles.Before1975,noinsulatingmaterialisused.Retrofittingapurlinroofwith
insulatingmaterialsisthereforedonebyaddinginsulatingmaterialinsidetheattic.

Figure8,exampleofapurlinroof(AdviesbureauSimons,2009)

83

Whenhousesarebuildwithapurlinroofnowadays,thebasicstructureofthewoodenbeamsisstillthe
same.However,prefabricatedroofpanelsexistthatcontaininsulatingmaterialandtilelaths,sothey
caneasilybemountedontopofthepurlins.Theroofpanelsprovidebothinsulationandabaseto
mounttherooftileson.Figure9showsthemountingofsucharoofpanel.

Figure9,mountingofaninsulatedroofpanelwithtilelaths(NBD,2010)

84

 Pitchedroof:Rafterroof
Therafterroofisconstructedoutofselfsupportingwoodenbeams(rafters).Bycuttingasmallnotch
intotherafters,theyareabletorestontheouterwallsofthebuilding.Figure10showshowtherafters
restontotheouterwalls.Inthefiguretheconstructionoftheridgecanalsobeseen.Byconnectingthe
raftersintheridgeoftheroofbyeitherwoodormetalplates,aselfsupportingstructureemerges.

Figure10,constructionofarafterroof(Bouwinfo,2008a)

Justlikethepurlinroof,thefinishedwoodenstructure(seefigure11)willalsobecoveredinwooden
platesonwhichtilelathsaremounted.Inbuildingsbuildbefore1975thatwerenotsubjectedtoany
regulationconsideringinsulation,theroofsarenotfittedwithinsulatingmaterials.Whenarafterroofis
retrofittedwithinsulatingmaterials,thisisdoneontheinsideoftheroof(intheattic),betweenthe
rafters.

Figure11,exampleofarafterroofconstruction(Bouwinfo,2008b)

Whentherafterroofconstructionisusednowadays,thesametypeofplatesthatareplacedontopof
thepurlinroofcanbeused.Thismeansthattherafterroofcanalsobefinishedwithprefabricatedroof
plateswhicharealreadyfittedwithinsulatingmaterials(seefigure9).
85

Floorconstructions
Woodenfloor(woodenbeamswithwoodenflooring)
Awoodenfloorisacommontypeoffloorinoldhouses.Nowadaysalmostallthenewlybuildhouses
haveconcreteflooring.Thebaseofthewoodenfloorisformedbythickwoodenbeamsthatarefixedin
thesupportingwallonbothsides.Uponthesewoodenbeams,flooringcanbeplaced.Topreventthe
woodenfloorsfromrotting,anemptyspaceiskeptunderneaththefloor.Thisspaceisoftencalledthe
crawlspaceandcontainsplumbingandelectricityconnections.Woodenfloorswereusuallynot
insulatedduringconstruction.Figure12showsaschematicviewofawoodenfloorconstructionwhichis
retrofittedwithinsulatingmaterials.Thesematerialsmustbeabletoallowwatervapourtopass
through,topreventrotting.

Figure12,schematicrepresentationofawoodenfloorconstruction(Isover,2011)

Solidconcretefloors
Anotherwayofconstructingfloorsisbyusingsolidconcretefloors.Thesefloorscanbemadeatthe
constructionsite,butprefabricatedfloorsarealsoavailable.Mostoftheprefabricatedfloorpanelsare
alreadyequippedwithsomekindofinsulatingmaterials.Polystyreneisthemostcommonlyused
materialsforinsulatingconcretefloors,sinceconcretefloorsarenotaffectedbywatervapourormoist.
Manyofthefloorsarehoweverequippedwithacrawlspace.Thisnotspaceisnotneededfroman
insulationpointofview,butitisusedforplumbingandelectricalwiring.Ifthefloorneedstobe
retrofittedwithinsulatingmaterials,thiscaneasilybedonebyfixinginsulatingpanelsunderneaththe
floor,ascanbeseeninfigure13.

Figure13,insulatinganexistingconcretefloor

86

References
AdviesbureauSimons,2009.Purlinroofunderconstruction.[imageonline]Availableat:
<http://www.avbsimons.nl/pic/gordingkap.jpg>[Accessed:14September2011]
Bouwinfo,2008a,Raftersbeingmountedtotheouterwalls.[imageonline]Availableat:
<http://i285.photobucket.com/albums/ll59/bouwforum/Peterfotos180.jpg>[Accessed:14
September2011]
Bouwinfo,2008b.Rafterroofunderconstruction.[imageonline]Availableat:
<http://www.tuningclubzgzm.be/board/uploads/post21214157633.jpg>[Accessed:14
September2011]
Habavo,2011.PictureseriesofrenovationprojectdeKrooninHoogeveen.[online]Available
at:<http://www.habovo.nl/habovo_afbouw/12/referenties/8/de_kroon_hoogeveen.html>
[Accessed:22November2011].
Isover,2008.Vademecumvoorhetisolerenvanspouwmuren,vliesgevelsengevelsluitendeelementen.
[online]Isover,Vianen.Availableat:
<http://www.isover.nl/documentatieservice/themabrochures/vademecum/vademecumvoor
spouwmuurconstructies.pdf>[Accessed:12September2011]
Isover,2011.Insulatinganexistingwoodenfloor.[imageonline]Availableat:
<http://www.kruipruimteisoleren.nl/images/uploads/cms_visual_1598.jpg>[Accessed14
September2011>
Isover,200X.Renovatieennaisolatie.[online]Isover,Vianen.Availableat:
<http://www.isover.nl/documentatieservice/themabrochures/renovatieennaisolatie/brochure
renovatieennaisolatie.pdf>[Accessed:14September2011]
Jeeninga,H.,Volkers,C.H.2003.OntwikkelingvanSAWEC.EenSimulatieenAnalysemodelvoor
verklaringenvoorspellingvanhetWoninggebondenEnergieverbruikenCO2emissie.[Online]ECN,
Petten.Availableat:<http://www.ecn.nl/publicaties/PdfFetch.aspx?nr=ECNC03067>[Accessed
14September2011].
Kingspan,2011a.Insulationforrainscreencladdingsystems.[online]Availableat:
<http://www.kingspaninsulation.co.uk/getattachment/1bf975f83e5b476f9321
3ecf71591931/KoolthermK15RainscreenBoard.aspx?disposition=attachment>[Accessed13
September2011]
Kingspan,2011b.Ultiemrendementisolatieplaatvoorbuitengevelisolatie.[online]Availableat:
<http://www.insulation.kingspan.com/nederland/pdf/k5.pdf>[Accessed13September2011]
Kooren,J.A.,200X.Infoblad0402,Thermischeisolatievanbaksteengevelconstructies.[online]KNB,
Velp.Availableat:
<http://www.betrouwbaarbaksteen.nl/images1/betrouwbaarbaksteen/bestanden/04
02%20Isoleren%20steenconstructies.pdf>[Accessed12September2011]
Kuindersma,P.,2010.Bouwdetailsdeel12:gevelisolatiemetgepleisterdeafwerking,Bouwennu,
[online]Availableat:<http://www.kevindebresser.nl/Publicatie%20Bouwen%20Nu.pdf>
[Accessed14September2011]
NederlandseBouwdocumentatie(NBD),2010.Mountingofprefabricatedroofpanels.[imageonline]
Availableat:<http://static.nbdonline.nl/pictures/3568L035.jpg>[Accessed:14September
2011]
Rockwool,2004.Renovatiebrochure.[online]Rockwool,Roermond.Availableat:
<http://www.rockwool.nl/files/RWBNL/documents/pdf/NL/brochures/Renovatie.pdf>[Accessed
14September2011]
StoIsoned,2011.Brochuresonproductandsystemsforwetrendersystems.[online]Availableat:
<http://www.sto.nl/86448_NLDownloadsBrochures.htm>[Accessed:21November2011].

87

88

 B. Overviewofinsulatingmaterials

89

90

TableofContents
1 Technicalaspectsofinsulatingmaterials......................................................................................92
1.1 Thermalconductivity.............................................................................................................92
1.2 Fireclassification...................................................................................................................93
1.3 Moisture................................................................................................................................94
1.4 Price.......................................................................................................................................95
2 Categoriesofinsulatingmaterials.................................................................................................98
3 Inorganicinsulatingmaterials.......................................................................................................99
3.1 Inorganic:fibrous...................................................................................................................99
3.1.1 Glasswool......................................................................................................................99
3.1.2 Rockwool....................................................................................................................101
3.2 Inorganic:cellular................................................................................................................103
3.2.1 Foamglass(cellularglass)...........................................................................................103
3.2.2 CalciumSilicate............................................................................................................105
3.2.3 Vermiculite&Perlite...................................................................................................106
4 Organicinsulatingmaterials:petrochemical...............................................................................108
4.1 Cellular.................................................................................................................................108
4.1.1 Expandedpolystyrene(EPS)........................................................................................108
4.1.2 Extrudedpolystyrene(XPS).........................................................................................110
4.1.3 Phenolformaldehyde(PF)...........................................................................................112
4.1.4 Polyurethane(PUR).....................................................................................................113
4.1.5 Polyisocyanurate(PIR).................................................................................................114
4.1.6 Ureaformaldehyde(UF)..............................................................................................115
5 Organicinsulatingmaterials:renewable.....................................................................................116
5.1 Fibrous.................................................................................................................................116
5.1.1 Cellulose(paperwool).................................................................................................116
5.1.2 Coconut.......................................................................................................................118
5.1.3 Flax(flaxwool).............................................................................................................119
5.1.4 Hemp(hempwool)......................................................................................................120
5.1.5 Recycledcotton...........................................................................................................122
5.1.6 Sheepwool..................................................................................................................123
5.1.7 Woodwool..................................................................................................................124
5.2 Cellular.................................................................................................................................125
5.2.1 Cork(expanded)..........................................................................................................125
6 Newtechnologymaterials...........................................................................................................127
6.1 Foil.......................................................................................................................................127
6.1.1 Thermosheets..............................................................................................................127
6.2 Cellular.................................................................................................................................129
6.2.1 Expandedpolylacticacid.............................................................................................129
6.2.2 Aerogel........................................................................................................................130
6.2.3 Vacuuminsulationpanels(VIP)...................................................................................131
7 References...................................................................................................................................134

91

1 Technicalaspectsofinsulatingmaterials
Foramaterialtobeconsideredaninsulatingmaterial,itmustholdcertainproperties.Thissectionis
aimedatfindingthetechnicalaspectsthatareimportantforinsulatingmaterials.

1.1 Thermalconductivity
Themainreasonforusinginsulatingmaterialsisthereductionofheatlossesfromtheinsideofa
buildingtotheoutside.Thebarrierthatstandsinbetweentheinsideandoutsideisthesocalled
buildingenvelopeofabuilding.Toaccomplishareductioninheatloss,thethermalresistanceofthe
buildingenvelopemusthigh.Insulatingmaterialsareusedinordertoreachahighthermal
resistance.Howwellaninsulatingmaterialresistsheat,isdeterminedbythematerialsthermal
conductivity()inW/mK.Thermalconductivitycanbeseenasameasureoftheeffectivenessofa
materialinconductingheat.Thethermalconductivityofamaterialisneededinordertocalculate
theheatflowthroughapieceofmaterial,asequation1shows(Blok,2009):
T

equation1.1heatflowthroughamaterial

Inwhich:
Q=heatflow[W]
T=Temperaturedifferenceacrossthematerial[K]
d=Thicknessofthematerial[m]
A=Surfaceofthematerial[m2]
=Thermalconductivityofthematerial[W/mK]
k=Heattransmissioncoefficient(/d)[W/m2K]

Thermalresistance
Fromequation1.1itisclearthatthelowerthethermalconductivityofamaterialis,thelowerthe
heatflowandthereforetheheatlosswillbe.Forinsulatingmaterials,thethermalconductivity
thereforeisanimportantaspect.Inequation1.1,theheattransmissioncoefficientkisused.When
thiskvalueisinverted,thethermalresistanceforaparticularmaterialthicknessisobtained(Blok,
2009).

Thewaythermalinsulatingmaterialsresistheatflowdependsonmicroscopiccellsinwhichairor
othergassesaretrappedandthereforestill.Becausetheairorgaswithinthecellsisstill(prevented
frommoving)convectiveheattransferissuppressed.Theinsulatingmaterialitselfisthereforenot
theproviderofthermalresistance,buttheairorgastrappedinsidethematerial.Thetheoretical
thermalresistancelimitofinsulatingmaterialsissetbythethermalresistanceofthestillairorgas
usedwithinthematerial(AlHomoud,2005).Thetypeofgasusedwithinthematerialisthereforean
importantaspectofthematerial,sinceitinfluencesthethermalconductivityandhencethethermal
resistance.Intable1.1thethermalconductivityofdifferentgasesusedforinsulatingmaterialsis
given.Anotheroptionistonotuseagasatall,buttoworkwith(near)vacuums.

table1.1Thermalconductivityofgasesusedforinsulatingmaterials

Gas [W/mK],T=200K [W/mK],T=300K

Air 0.0184 0.0262
CO2 0.0096 0.0168
Pentane 0.0144

92

Declaredthermalconductivity
Fromtable1.1itisclearthatthethermalconductivityofagaschangeswithitstemperature.The
determinationofamaterialsthermalconductivitymustbedoneuniformly,sothatafaircomparison
betweenthematerialscanbemade.InNEN1068:2001thewayofdeterminingthethermal
conductivityofinsulatingmaterialsisprescribed.

Determiningthedeclaredthermalconductivity(D)startswithaseriesoftestsinwhichthethermal
conductivityofamaterialismeasured.Aminimumoftenmeasurementsisneededwithanaccuracy
of three significant figures at a temperature of 10C. From these measurements, the 90/90 is
calculated. This is the statistically determined value of the thermal conductivity which represents
90%oftheproductionwithareliabilityof90%.Itiscalculatedbyequation1.3

(i mean ) 2
s i 1

90 / 90 average k s n 1
equation1.3calculationof90/90 equation1.2 spreadingofmeasuredvalues

Inwhich:
mean=mathematicalaverageofthemeasuredvalues
k=factordependingonthenumberofvalues(e.g.n=10,k=2.07;n=20,k=1.77)
n=numberofmeasuredvalues
s=standarddeviation,calculatedaccordingtoequation1.2
i=valueofmeasurementi
Fromthecalculated90/90value,theDisobtainedbyroundingthe90/90totheclosest0.001W/mK
(NEN1068,2001)1.Sinceallproducersofinsulatingmaterialsareobligedtousethesenorms,the
thermalconductivitiesaremeasuredandcalculatedinthesamewayandcanthereforebecompared
toeachother.

Density
Anotherfactorthatisofinfluenceonthethermalconductivityofamaterialisthedensityofa
material.Alowerdensitymeansthatthereislessmaterialwhichcanconductheatandthereismore
airorgastoresisttheheat.However,forcertainpurposeslikeflatroofsorcavitywalls,self
supportingmaterialsormaterialswithahighcompressivestrengthareneeded.Thiscanonlybe
achievedbyamoredensestructureofthematerials.Adenserstructureresultsinahigherthermal
conductivity.

1.2 Fireclassification
Thermalinsulatingmaterialsmusthaveafireclassification.Thisclassificationisimportantbecauseit
canbeofinfluenceontheapplicationofinsulatingmaterials.AfireclassificationispartoftheCE
markingthatallconstructionmaterialsareobligedtohave(Bouwbesluit,2003a).Theclassificationis
prescribedintheEuropeannormEN135011.Inthenorm,sevenmainclassesarespecified:A1,A2,
B,C,D,EandF,inwhichA1isnonflammableandEishighlyflammable.Ifaproducthasno
specification,orisextremelyflammable,itwillreceiveclassF.Besidesthemainclasses,thereare
twootherclasses:smokegrowthrate(s1,s2ors3)andflamingdropletsorparticles(d0,d1ord2)
(NEN135011,2009).Duringthisresearch,onlythemainclasseswillbereported(A1,A2,Betc.),
becausethelattertwoclassesaremoreproductspecificthanmaterialspecific.Nexttothat,itisthe

1
Notethatforsomematerials,theagingofthematerials(theleakageofgasfromgascellswithinthematerial)
needstotakenintoaccount.Forthesematerials(e.g.,XPS,PUR,PF)thisprocessisprescribedinNENEN13164
toNENEN13166respectively.
93

entireconstructionthatisassessedforitsfireclass,nottheseparatematerials.Materialswithalow
fireclassofforinstanceEorF,canstillbeusedwithinaconstruction,aslongastherequired
classificationfortheentireconstructionisreached.However,althoughtherequirementsdifferper
constructionandresidentialfunction,thelowestclassificationisD,withsmokeclasss2.Forflaming
droplets,thereisnorequirementintheDutchbuildingdecree(Staatscourant,2005).

1.3 Moisture
Whenthebuildingenvelopeofabuildingisinsulated,attentionmustbepaidtowardstheprevention
ofmoistureproblems.Theseproblemsaretheresultofcondensingwatervapourandcanleadto
structuraldamage(rottingofwood)orwetspotsthatformabreedingplaceformould.Ifwarmair
withahighhumiditydiffusesfromtheinsideofabuildingtothecolderoutside,thewatervapour
couldcondensewithintheinsulatingmaterial.Thisdiffusionofwarmwatervapourtothelesshumid
outsideenvironmentoccursbecauseofadifferenceinvapourpressure.Thevapourpressureinside
thebuildingishigherthanthevapourpressureoutside.Bythediffusionofwatervapourfromthe
hightothelowpressure,thisunbalanceiscancelledout.Thehighhumidityinsidebuildingsisdueto
theusersofthebuilding:cooking,showering,plantsandthewatervapourexhaledbyhumans,
contributetoanincreasinghumidity.(VandenHoutetal,2005).

Watervapourdiffusionresistance
Todeterminethevapourpermeabilityofamaterial,equation1.4isneededtodeterminethewater
vapourresistanceofamaterial.
d
Z
air
equation1.4watervapourdiffusionresistance

Inwhich:
Z=watervapourdiffusionresistance[m/s]
=Watervapourdiffusionresistancefactor[]
d=thicknessofthematerial
air=Watervapourconductioncoefficientofair(0.185109)

Whenthewatervapourdiffusionresistanceofanentireconstruction(e.g.wall,floor,roof)hastobe
determined,theresistancesoftheindividualmaterialscanbeaddedup.Thisleadstotheexpression
asgiveninequation1.5.
Z 5.4 10 d
9

equation1.5summationofresistances

Fromequation1.5itisclearthatifthewatervapourdiffusionresistancefactor()ofamaterialis
known,thetotalwatervapourdiffusionresistance(Z)caneasilybecalculated.ThisZvaluecanbe
usedforthecalculationofthewatervapourpressurechangeovertheentirewall,rooforfloor
construction.Withthischangeinwatervapourpressure,areascanbeidentifiedatwhich
condensationcouldoccurandpreventedifnecessary(VandenHoutetal,2005&Hasselaar,2004).

Watervapourdiffusionresistancefactor()
Thevalueofaninsulatingmaterialgivestherelationbetweenhowmuchwatervapourdiffuses
throughalayerofair,andalayerofmaterialofthesamethickness:
vapour diffusion resistance of a material with thickness d

vapour diffusion resistance of an air layer with thickness d
isthereforeausefulindicatorforinsulatingmaterials,becauseitgivesagoodfirstimpressionofa
materialsvapourdiffusionresistance,whichcanbeofinfluenceonthepracticalapplication.When
buildingavapourclosedconstruction,itisusefultousematerialswithahigh.Thevaluefor
materialsisgreaterthanorequaltoone(Hasselaar,2004).

94

Nexttoinsulatingmaterials,therearealsomaterialsthatareusedbecauseoftheirhighvalue.PE
foilforinstancehasavalueof50,000andisthereforeoftenusedasavapourbarriertoprevent
watervapourfrominsidethehousetoentertheinsulatingmaterial.Thisisusuallydoneduringthe
renovationofpitchedroofswithmineralwools,forthesematerialshavealow(12)(Isover,2008).

1.4 Price
Forthedeterminationoftheprices,thepriceofinsulatingacavitywalltoacertainthermal
resistancewillbedetermined.Thisisdonepermaterial,sothatinsightisprovidedinboththe
practicalapplicationsasthecosts.

Cavitywall
Tocalculatethepriceofthematerials,thethicknessoftheneededmaterialmustbedetermined.
ThiscalculationisdoneaccordingtotheDutchpracticaldirectiveNPR2068:2002.Inthisdirective,
thelegalmethodofcalculationacavitywallsthermalresistance(Rconstruction)isprescribed.This
prescriptionisinaccordancewiththerequirementsofthe2003buildingdecreewhichrequirescavity
wallstohaveaRcofatleast2.5m2K/W(Bouwbesluit,2003b).In2012,anewversionofthebuilding
decreewillcomeintoforce,inwhichthestandardisraisedto3.5m2K/W(ConceptBouwbesluit,
2011).

ThecalculationisbestexplainedbyusingasamplecavitywallfromNPR2068.Acrosssectionofthis
cavitywallisdepictedinfigure1.4.1.Thewallisconstructedoutof100mmofbrickworkonthe
outside(1),a40mmaircavity(2),a100mmthicklayerofinsulatingmaterial(3)anda100mmsand
limebrickinnerwall(4).

figure1.4.1cavitywallfromNPR2068:2002

Withthefourelementsofthecavitywallfromfigure1.4.1,itsRccanbecalculatedwithequation1.6.

Rc
Rm Rsi Rse
( Rsi Rse )
1
equation1.6calculationofRcvalue

Inwhich:
Rc=Thermalresistanceoftheentirecavitywallconstruction[m2K/W]
Rm=Thermalresistanceofthedifferentmaterials[m2K/W]
Rsi=Heattransitionresistanceoftheincomingheatflow[m2K/W]
Rse=Heattransitionresistanceoftheexitingheatflow[m2K/W]
=Correctionfactorfortheexistenceofinternalconvectionandconstructioninfluences[]
Whencavitywallisconstructedonthebuildingsite,thevalueforis0.05.Forprefabricated
elements,becomes0.02.Ifcellularglassisused,becomes0.

95

Thethermalresistanceofthedifferentmaterials(Rm)iscalculatedbydividingthethicknessofthe
materialbyitscalculationthermalconductivity(R).Thiscalculationthermalconductivityisderived
fromthedeclaredthermalconductivity(D)byusingequation1.7.
calculation declared FT Fm FA
equation1.7determinationofc

Inwhich:
Ft=1.0iftheannualtemperatureisbetween5and20C,whichfortheNetherlandsistrue.
Fm=Afactortocorrectfortheinfluenceofmoistureincertainsituations,likeinvertedroofs.For
cavitywallsandpitchedroofs,thisvalueis1.
FA=Acorrectionfactorfortheagingofinsitumaterials,likeblowninfoamsorflocks.ForFactory
madeinsulatingmaterialsthevalue1isused.
Fromthefactorsneededforequation1.7itcanbeconcludedthatinmostcasescalculation=declared.

Forthepricecalculation,theRcthatneedstobereachedis3.5m2K/W.Accordingtothedirective,
theRmfortheinnersandlimebrickwall,aircavityandbrickworkare0.10,0.18and0.10m2K/W
respectively.ThevaluesneededforRsiandRseareprovidedinNEN1068:2001andare0.13and0.04
m2K/Wrespectively.Theonlyunknownvaluenowisthethermalresistanceoftheinsulating
material(RIM).Byrewritingequation1.6,anequationisobtainedfromwhichRIMcanbecalculated:
RIM ( Rcavity wall elements Rsi Rse ) [(1 ) ( Rc Rsi Rse )]

RIM (0.38 0.13 0.04) [1.05 (3.5 0.13 0.04)] 3.3035 [ m 2 K / W ]
equation1.8thermalresistanceofinsulatingmaterialincavitywall

SinceRIMiscalculatedbyRIM=thicknessofinsulatingmaterial/,itsthicknesscanbecalculatedby
fillinginthevaluesofdifferentinsulatingmaterials.Withthisthickness,amatchingproduct
consistingofaspecificmaterialcanbesoughtafter,fromwhichthepricecanbedetermined.
However,theinsulatingmaterialsarefixedbyfastenersthatstickthroughthematerial.These
fastenersinfluencethethermalconductivityofthematerial.Therefore,theinfluenceofthefasteners
istakenintoaccountbycalculatingacomposedthermalconductivityaccordingtoequation1.9.

(calculation AIM fasteners Afasteners )

composed
( AIM Afasteners ) )
equation1.9composedthermalconductivity

Inwhich:
composed=Composedthermalconductivity[W/mK]
fasteners=Thermalconductivityofthefasteners[W/mK]
AIM=Netsurfaceoftheinsulatingmaterial[m2]
Afasteners=Surfaceofusedfasteners[m2]

ForAfastenersandfastenersvaluefromNPR2068:2002areused.Thismeansstainlesssteelfasteners
withadiameterof4mmandathermalconductivityof15W/mK.Thenumberoffastenersperm2
dependsonthewidthofthecavity.Intable1.2thenumberoffastenersperm2accordingtoRentier
etal.(2005)isgiven.Whenthecavitygetswider,thisalsohasaneffectonthethicknessormaterial
oftheinnerwall.Acavitywallwithacavitywiderthan150mmmusthaveaninnerwallmadeof
brickworkover100mmthick,orhastobeconstructedoutofconcrete.Theminimalthicknessfora
concreteinnerwallis150mmaccordingtoSpieringsetal.(2004).Producersofinsulatingmaterials
consider160mmtobeacommonlyusedthickness.160mmisthereforethevalueusedin
calculations,whenthecavityexceeds150mm.Calculationforacavitysmallerthan150mm,a100mm

96

sandlimebrickwallisassumed.Withavalueforconcreteof2W/mKaccordingtoNPR2068:2002,
theRmvalueforaconcreteinnerwallbecomes0.08m2K/W.

table1.2influenceofcavitywidthonfastenersandinnerwallconstruction(Rentieretal,2005)

Cavitywidth Fasteners Diameterfasteners Innerwallconstruction

[mm] [n/m2] [mm]
50150 4 4 Atleast100mmbrickwork
150300 6 4 concreteor>100mmbrickwork
150300 4 5 concreteor>100mmbrickwork

97

2 Categoriesofinsulatingmaterials
Tocomparetheinsulatingmaterials,adivisionismadebysettingupmaterialcategories.According
toPapadopoulus(2005)fourcategoriescanbedefinedthatarebasedonthechemicalcomposition
ofthebasematerialfromwhichtheinsulatingmaterialisproduced.Thesefourmaincategoriesare:
1. Inorganicmaterials
2. Organicmaterials
3. Combinedmaterials
4. Newtechnologymaterials
Forthisresearch,thethirdcategorycombinedmaterialsisnotused,becauseitlistsinsulating
materialsthatconsistoutofmultiplematerials(e.g.foamwithplasterboard).Sincethefocuslieson
commonlyusedandnewinsulatingmaterials,thefourthcategoryisusedtogetherwithcategoryone
andtwofromtheabovelist.Thisallowsbothnew(hightech)andcommonlyusedmaterialstobe
dividedintocategorieseasily.

Thethreecategoriesthatremainarestillverygeneralandshouldbemoredetailed.Todoso,the
organicmaterialsaresplitintotwogroups:materialsmadefromapetrochemicalbase(e.g.polymers
likepolystyrene,polyisocyanurate)andmaterialsmadefromrenewableresources(e.g.sheepswool,
flax).Thisseparationisuseful,becausetherenewablematerialsarenotcommonmaterialsyet,but
mightbecomeso.Theinorganicinsulatingmaterialshaveamineralbasematerial(culletorbasaltfor
example)(VIBE,2007).AnotherdivisionthatcanbemadeaccordingtoPapadopoulusisthestructure
ofthematerials(e.g.foamy,fibrous).Thisdivisiondoesnotcoverallmaterials.CalciumSilicatefor
instance,isamaterialthatisinorganic,notfibrous,butalsonotfoamy.Thereforethecategory
cellularisused(AlHomoud,2005).Sincethestructureofthematerialcouldbeofinfluenceonits
practicalapplication,thisdivisionismadeaswell.Figure1showstheclassificationschemethatis
derivedfrombothPapadopoulosandAlHomoud.Nofibrouspetrochemicalmaterialswere
encounteredduringthesearchformaterials,thereforethecategoryfibrousisleftout.
Insulating
Materials

Inorganic Organic NewTechnology

materials materials materials

Cellular
Fibrous Petrochemical Renewable

Foil
Cellular
Cellular Fibrous

Cellular

figure2.1categorizationofinsulatingmaterials

Categorizingtheinsulatingmaterialsallowsaconvenientlyarrangedoverviewtobecreated.Inthe
followingchapterthedifferentcategorieswillbefilledwithmaterials,startingwiththeinorganic
materialsfromfigure2.1.

98
3 Inorganicinsulatingmaterials
AccordingtoPapadopoulus,AlHomoud,VIBEandJelle(2011)thefollowinginorganicinsulating
materialsareusedforbuildinginsulationandareclassifiedaccordingly:
Fibrous
Glasswool
Rockwool
Cellular
Calciumsilicate
Cellularglass
Perlite&Vermiculite

3.1 Inorganic:fibrous
Glassandrockwoolareproducedfrommineralfibresandarethereforeoftenreferredtoas
mineralwools.Mineralwoolisthereforeagenerictermandnotitselfamaterial.Glassandrock
woolarethemostcommontypeofinsulatingmaterialusedtoday.ThecombinedEuropeanmarket
shareofglassandrockwoolisaround60%(Pappadopoulus,2005).

3.1.1 Glasswool

figure3.1.1glasswoolpanels(Isover,2010)

Production
Fortheproductionofglasswoolborosilicateglass(quartzsand),recycledglass(cullet)andadditives
(fluxingagentslikedolomite)areneeded(Isover,2009,Jelle,2011).Thesebasematerialsaremelted
inafurnaceataround1450C.Fromthemeltedmaterials,fibresarespun.Thisprocessis
comparablewiththespinningofcandyfloss,inwhichsugarismeltedandspunintofibres.Duringthe
spinningoftheglassfibres,abindingagentisinjected.Asabindingagent,phenolformaldehydeurea
resiniscommonlyused(Kowatsch,2010).Aftertheglassfibresarespun,theyareshapedintoform
andsendthroughacuringoven,wheretheaddedbindingagentsgivetheglasswoolitsdistinctive
yellowcolour.

figure3.1.2productionofglasswool(Isover,2009)

99

Afterthecuringoven,theglasswoolbattiscutintoshape.Glasswoolcomesintheshapeofpanels
(figure3.1.1),rollsandflocks.Infigure3.1.2,theproductionprocessofglasswoolisdepicted
schematically.

Thermalconductivityanddensity
Thethermalconductivity(D)ofglasswoolliesbetween0.030and0.040W/mK(Jelle,2011).Two
largeproducersofglasswool,KnaufandIsover,alsopresentDvaluesfortheirproductsthatfall
withinthisrange.Sinceglasswoolconsistslargelyofair,itsdensityisbetween12150kg/m3
(Kowatsch,2010).Thevaryinginthedensitydependsonthepurposeoftheglasswool.When
compressedintopanels,thedensitygoesupinordertoreachahighercompressivestrength,orto
makethepanelsselfsupporting.

Fireclass
Fireclass:A1andthereforenoproductionofsmokeorflamingdroplets.However,glasswool
products(panels,rolls)canbelayeredwithmaterialsforeithercomfort,moistureorextrainsulation
thatcanlowerthefireclass.

Watervapourresistancefactor
1

Practicalapplication
Glasswoolcanbeusedfortheinsulationofbothwalls,floorsandroofs.Itisanallroundmaterial
thatcanbeusedinalmosteverytypeofbuildingenvelopeconstruction.Duetoalterationsofthe
differentproducts,aglasswoolproductisavailableforalmosteverypurpose.Inalloftheseproducts
glasswoolistheworkingmaterial.

Price
Fortheinsulationofthecavityfromsection1.4,manyglasswoolproductsareavailable.Alarge
producerofglasswoolproductsisIsover.OneoftheirproductssuitableforcavitywallsisMupan.
Mupanconsistsofglasswoolpanels,thatcomevariousdesigns.Themostsimpledesignisjustaglass
woolpanelwithaglassfilmonbothsides.ThisproducthasaDof0.035W/mK.
Whenthecalculationaccordingtosection1.4isperformed,theneededthicknessofthematerialis
118mm.Mupanisavailableinpanelsof120mmthick.Thepriceofthesepanelsis9.30/m2.(Isover,
2011).TwootherMupandesignsareavailableaswell:MupanpluswithaDof0.033W/mKand
MupanUltraXS,whichhasareflectivefoilonesideandaDof0.028W/mK.

AnotherproducerofglasswoolproductsisKnauf.Theirproductsarequitesimilartotheproducts
fromIsovermentionedearlier.Tomakeafaircomparison,thesesimilarproductsaretakeninto
accountaswell.InordertoreachRc=3.5m2K/Wthisgivestheoptionsaslistedintable3.1.

table3.1glasswoolproductpricestoreachRc=3.5.AllpricesarewithoutVAT(Knauf,2011&Isover,2011).

Product Producer D Thickness Price

[W/mK] [mm] [/m2]
Mupan Isover 0.035 120 9.30
MupanPlus Isover 0.033 115 11.75
MupanUltraXS Isover 0.028 97 13.30
Cavitec036 Knauf 0.036 125 9.60
Cavitec035 Knauf 0.035 120 11.10
Cavitec032premium Knauf 0.029 100 14.70
Cavitywool(flocks) Isover 0.045 149 15.76

100

3.1.2 Rockwool

figure3.1.3rockwoolpanels(Passiefhuismarkt,2011)

Production
Rockwoolisproducedfromtwominerals:diabase(dolerite)orbasalt.Nexttovirginmaterials,also
recycledrockwoolcanbeaddedtotheprocessaswellasslagresiduesfromthemetalindustry.
Whenonlythisslagformsthebasematerial,theobtainedproductiscalledslagwool.Theproduction
processofrockwoolissimilartotheglasswoolproduction.Thebasemineralsaremeltedinsidea
cupolaovenataround1500C.Cokesareusedasfuelforthecupolaoven(Jelle,2011).Asinthe
productionofglasswool,dolomite(limestone)isaddedasafluxingagent(Kowatsch,2010).From
themoltenmineralsfibresarespun,bypouringthemoltenmaterialontospinningdisksthrough
whichairisblown.Thespunfibresarebondedwithabindingagent,tocreateflocks,panels(figure
3.1.3)orrolls.Forthebindingprocessphenolformaldehydeurearesinsareused(Kowatsch,2010).

Thermalconductivityanddensity
AccordingtoJelle(2011),typicalthermalconductivityvaluesformineralwoolsarebetween0.030
and0.040W/mK.BothRockwoolandKnauf,twolargerockwoolproducers,producetheirrockwool
withathermalconductivityof0.035W/mK,whichisrightinbetweenthe0.030and0.040W/mKThe
densityvaluesofrockwoolarebetween25and200kg/m3(AlHomoud,2005;IBU,2008).Ahigher
densityoccurswhentherockwoolispressedintopanelsthatneedahighercompressivestrength.

Fireclass
Rockwoolhasfireclass:A1(nonflammable)andthereforedoesnotproduceanysmokeorflaming
droplets.Likeglasswool,products(panels,rolls)canbelayeredwithmaterialsforeithercomfort,
moistureorextrainsulationthatcanlowerthefireclass.

Watervapourdiffusionfactor
=1to5.

Practicalapplication
Rockwoolisaversatilematerialthatcanbeusedfortheinsulationofwalls,roofsandfloors.For
virtuallyallthetypesofconstructingabuildingenvelope,arockwoolproductcanbeusedas
insulatingmaterial.Duringtheinstallationoftherockwool,itshouldbekeptdryatalltimes.
Althoughrockwoolistreatedagainstmoisture,thethermalconductivitywillgetsignificantlylower
whenitgetswet.Aincreaseofthemoisturecontentfrom0vol%to10vol%causesathermal
conductivityincreasefrom0.037W/mKto0.055W/mKrespectively(Jelle,2011).Thisalsoappliesto
glasswool.Mineralwoolsshouldthereforebekeptdryatalltimes.

Price
Mineralwoolcanbeappliedincavitywalls.Thereforethecalculationfromsection1.4isusedto
determinepricesforRockwoolproductsinordertoreachanofRc=3.5.Forthedeterminationofthe
prices,thepricecatalogueofRockwool(alargeproducer)isused.Rockwoolprovidesfourproducts
fortheinsulationofcavitywall(allpanels).ThesimplestdesignistheSpouwplaat433Monowitha
Dof0.035W/mK.Themostadvancedproductisapanelthatislinedwithareflectivefoilonone
sidewithaDof0.029W/mK.Withthecalculationmethodofsection1.4andtheRockwoolprice
101

catalogue,pricesforinsulatingtoRc=3.5areobtained.Justlikewithglasswool,anotherproducerof
rockwoolistakenintoaccount.BecauseKnaufalsoproducesRockwool,theirproductpricesareused
aswell.Thetotalresultcanbefoundintable3.2.TheKnaufproductsfromthetablearerockwool
panelswithoutanyreflectivefoil.

table3.2rockwoolproductpricestoreachRc=3.5.AllpriceswithoutVAT(Rockwool,2011&Knauf,2011)

Product Producer D Thickness Price

[W/mK] [mm] [/m2]
SpouwPlaat433Mono Rockwool 0.035 120 12.25
SpouwPlaat433Plus Rockwool 0.033 115 15.80
SpouwPlaat433HP Rockwool 0.029 100 17.95
CavitySlab Knauf 0.035 120 12.30
CavitySlabHD Knauf 0.034 120 20.05

102

3.2 Inorganic:cellular

3.2.1 Foamglass(cellularglass)

figure3.2.1foamglasspanel(Foamglas,2011)

Production
Infigure3.2.2theproductionprocessoffoamglassisdepicted.Toproducefoamglass,amixtureof
recycledglass,feldspar,dolomiteandotheradditivesareusedtocreateglasswiththedesired
propertiesforfoamglassatatemperatureof1250C.Theproducedglassiscooleddownandmilled.
Carbonisaddedduringthemillingoftheglass.Thismixtureofcarbonandmilledglassispouredinto
moulds.Thefilledmouldspassthroughthefoamingfurnace(8infigure3.2.2).Inthefoaming
furnacethetemperatureisaround850C,causingthecarbontooxidise,creatingCO2.TheCO2is
trappedintheglass,creatingacellstructure(hence,cellularglass).Afterexpanding,thefoamglassis
annealedandtakenoutofthemould.Thenewlyproducedfoamglassblocksgettrimmedandcut
intoshape,afterwhichtheyarereadytouse(Foamglas,2011).Atrimmedandcutpanelisshownin
figure3.2.1.

figure3.2.2foamglassproductionprocess(Foamglas,2011)

Thermalconductivityanddensity
Foamglasshasathermalconductivityrangingfrom0.038to0.055W/mK.Thethermalconductivity
dependsofthedensityofthefoamglass,whichrangesfrom100kg/m3to200kg/m3(Foamglas,
2007).

Fireclass
BecausefoamglassisentirelymadeofinorganicmaterialsithasfireclassA1(nonflammable).

103

Watervapourresistancefactor
Thedensecellstructureiscompletemadeoutofglass,givingthematerialaninfinite,nowater
vapourcanpassthroughthematerial.

Practicalapplication
Duetothefactthatfoamglassismadeofexpandedglass,ithasahighcompressivestrength,upto
3N/mm2.Thismakesthematerialverysuitablefortheinsulationofflatroofswhicharecoveredwith
bitumenofotherheavysubstances.Nexttoinsulatingofroofs,foamglasscanalsobeusedforthe
insulationofwallsonboththeinandoutside.Becausefoamglassisavapourbarrier,itisnot
suitablefortheinsulationofpitchedroofsandwoodenflooring,thereforemakingitlesssuitablefor
renovation.

Price
Tocalculatethepricefortheinsulationofacavitywallwithfoamglassaccordingtosection1.4,the
priceisbasedonproductsmadebyFoamglas.Theonlyproductssuitableforcavitywallinsulationis
FoamglasWallBoardT4+(D=0.041W/mK)andFoamglasW+F(D=0.038W/mK).Withthe
thermalconductivityvaluesthethicknessofproductscanbedeterminedtoreachRc=3.5.For
FoamglasWallBoardT4+,thisgives138mmandforFoamglasW+Fthisgives129mm.The
accompanyingproductthicknessandpricesarepresentedintable3.3.

table3.3foamglassproductpricestoreachRc=3.5.Allpricesexl.VAT(Foamglas,2010)

Product Producer D Thickness Price

[W/mK] [mm] [/m2]
WallBoardT4+ Foamglas 0.041 140 62.37
FoamglasW+F Foamglas 0.038 130 46.46

104

3.2.2 CalciumSilicate

figure3.2.3Calciumsilicatepanels(Kuhnen,2011)

Production
Bymixingchalk,puresand,waterandadditivestogetherapredecessorofthedesiredcalciumsilicate
isproduced.Themixtureisshapedintopanels(seefigure3.2.3)thatareplacedinanautoclave(see
figure3.2.4).Duetothehighpressureandsteamintheautoclave,thecalciumsilicatecrystalsforma
porousopenstructurethatgivesthepanelstheirinsulatingproperties.Toprovideextrastrength,
cellulosefibres(upto10%)canbeaddedtothemixturebeforeitenterstheautoclave(Calsitherm,
2010).

figure3.2.4Calciumsilicatepanelautoclave(Calsitherm,2010)

Thermalconductivityanddensity
Thethermalconductivityofcalciumsilicatepanelsisbetween0.059and0.065W/mKwhenthe
panelshaveadensitybetween200to240kg/m3.

Fireclass
CalciumsilicatehasfireclassA1(nonflammable).

Watervapourresistancefactor
=620

Practicalapplication
Calciumsilicatecanonlybeusedfortheinsulatingofthebuildingenvelopefromtheinside.The
panelsneedtobegluedtotheinsideoftheexteriorwall,afterwhichtheycanbefinishedwithfor
instancearender.Becausethecompressivestrengthofcalciumsilicatepanelscanbearound
2.8N/mm2itcanalsobeusedforblockingcoldbridges.However,withanincreaseofthe
compressivestrength,thedensityincreasesaswell.Thisdensityincreasecausesanincreaseinthe
thermalconductivity.Calciumsilicatepanelsareporousandthereforesoft.Thismeansthat
wheneversomethingneedstomountedtothewall(e.g.pictures,sinks,bookshelves),specialplugs
orwallmountsareneeded.

Price
Sincecalciumsilicatecanonlybeusedasaninsulatingmaterialindoors,itcannotbeusedwithina
cavitywall.Besidesthat,therelativelyhighthermalconductivityofcalciumsilicatewouldresultin
verythicklayers(198mmfor=0.059and218mmfor=0.065W/mK).

105
3.2.3 Vermiculite&Perlite
Vermiculiteandperlitearetreatedtogether,becausethematerialsarequitesimilar.Theoreofboth
thematerialsgetscrushedintogranules,afterwhichitisheatedtoexpandthegranules.The
structureofperliteandvermiculitearedifferent,ascanbeseeninfigure3.2.5.Vermiculitehasa
layeredstructure,whereasperlitehasanoncrystallizedstructureofcellsinwhichwaterisbound.

figure3.2.5left:exfoliatedvermiculiteright:expandingperlite(NVM,2004&Reppel,2005)

Production
Vermiculiteisamagnesiumaluminiumsilicatewhichiscapableofexpendingathightemperatures
(900C).Thevermiculiteorehasalayeredstructureinwhichwaterisbound.Whenthevermiculiteis
heated,watervapourissetfreeandexfoliatesthelayeredstructure,leavingaircavitiesinthe
vermiculitestructure(Bouwcenter,2007).

Dependingontherawmaterialproducingarea,perliteconsistfor6580%outofsilicondioxide,26%
waterandotherminerals.(Bouwcenter,2007).Justlikevermiculite,perliteisheatedtoa
temperatureofabout900C.Atthistemperature,thewatervapourexpandstheperlite,leavingair
cavitieswithinthematerial.Theexpandingofperliteisbestcomparedtopoppingpopcorn,onlythen
atmuchhighertemperatures.

Thermalconductivityanddensity
Perlitehasathermalconductivitybetween0.040and0.060W/mKandcanhaveadensityvarying
between32and176kg/m3.Vermiculitehasathermalconductivityrangingfrom0.040to
0.068W/mKandadensitybetween64and130kg/m3(Reppel,2005&AlHomoud,2005).Thelowest
thermalconductivityvalueisforthepurevermiculiteandpureperlite.

Fireclass
BothperliteandvermiculitehavefireclassA1,independentoftheirform(panelsorgranules).

Watervapourresistancefactor
Forbothperliteandvermiculite:=35.

Practicalapplication
Bothperliteandvermiculiteareusedtocreateinsulatingpanels.Tocreatesuchpanels,fibres
(cellulose)andbindingagents(starch)areaddedtothegranulesandpressedintopanels.Panels
havealowerthermalconductivitythantheloosegranules:0.051W/mK.Thesepanelsaremostly
usedfortheinsulationofflatroofswhicharefinishedwithbitumen(VIBE,2007&JohnsManville,
2010).

Nexttopanels,thevermiculiteandperlitegranulescanalsobeaddedtoconcreteandrender
mortars,tocreateinsulatingfloorsandwalls(albeitmoreforacousticpurposes).Whentheperlite
granulesareimpregnatedwithsilicon,theycanalsobeusedwithincavitywallsforbothnewand
renovatedbuildings.Thegranulescanalsobeimpregnatedwithbitumen,tomakethemsuitablefor
levellingfloors.Thethermalconductivityoftheimpregnatedgranulesisaround0.045W/mK

106

(Reppel,2008).Vermiculitegranulescannotbeusedtoinsulatecavitywalls,becausethegranules
takeupmoisture.

Price
Sincebothperliteandvermiculitepanelsarenotusedtoinsulatecavitywalls,calculationalong
section1.4cannotbedone.However,perlitegranulescanbeusedtoinsulatecavitywalls.The
granulesusedincavitywallsmustbetreatedwithsilicon,tomakethemwaterproof.Theproducts
fromKnaufareperlitegranulesimpregnatedwithsilicon,sothattheyarewaterproof.TheHyperlite
granulescanbeusedinnewcavitywalls,whereastheHyperdmmgranulescanbeblowninto
existingcavitywalls.Thepriceofbothproductsisthesame,butduetothelowerofHyperdmm,
thepriceperm2islower.BecausethematerialisplacedinsitutheDhastobemultipliedwith1.2,
accordingtoNEN1068:2001toobtainthecorrectcalculate.Thenumberoffastenersbetweenthe
innerandouterwallchanges.Thisisbecausethewidthofthecavitybecomeslargerthan150mm,so
6fastenersarenowneededwithaconcreteinnerwall.Thisgivesacomposedof0.055W/mKfor
Hyperdmmand0.061W/mKforHyperlite.Withthesevalues,theneededthicknesstheperlite
granulescanbecalculatedaccordingtosection1.4.Theresultsarepresentedintable3.4.

table3.4prices(exlVAT)ofvermiculiteandperlitegranulesbasedonVIBE(2007)andNaturBauHof(2011)to
reachRc=3.5

Product Producer D Thickness Price

[W/mK] [mm] [/m2]
HyperliteKD Knauf 0.050 204 42.41
Hyperdmm Knauf 0.045 184 38.25

107

4 Organicinsulatingmaterials:petrochemical
Theorganicinsulatingmaterialstreatedinthissectionareallderivedfromapetrochemicalfeedstock
andalmostallofthematerialsarethereforepolymers.Forthepetrochemicalmaterialsthe
categorizationisunambiguous:cellular.Amaterialiscellularwhenthestructureofthematerial
consistsofporesorcells.Thisresultsinthefollowinglistofmaterials(VIBE,2007,Bouwcenter,2007,
Papadopoulus,2005,Jelle,2011):
Cellular
Expandedpolystyrene(EPS)
Extrudedpolystyrene(XPS)
Polyurethane(PUR)
Polyisocyanurate(PIR)
Ureaformaldehyde(UF)
Phenolformaldehyde(PF)

4.1 Cellular

4.1.1 Expandedpolystyrene(EPS)

figure4.1.1EPSpanels(Betonson,2011)

Production
EPSisproducedfromthemonomermonostyrene,whichisderivedfrombenzeneandethylene,
bothpetroleumproducts.Bypolymerizingthemonostyrenewithablowingagent(pentane)and
hexabromocyclododecane(HBCD,aflameretardant),polystyrenebeadsareformed.Thesebeadsare
alsoreferredtoaspolystyrenegranulate.Inthenextstepoftheprocess,thebeadsareheatedwith
steam,causingthepentanetoexpandthegranulatewhichissoftenedbytheheatfromthesteam.
Withinthegranulate,acellstructureiscreatedinwhichairhasreplacedpentane.Afterthe
granulatesareexpandedtheyarecalledpearls.Thesepearlsareblownintosilos,wherearecooled
downandstoreduntilfurtherprocess.Toproducepanelsfromtheloosepearls,theyareheated
oncemoreandpressedintopanels.Becauseoftheheatandpressure,thepearlsmelttogetherinto
thedesiredshape.TheusedpentaneintheEPSisreplacedbyair.TheEPSpearlsarethereforeonly
filledwithair.TheflameretardantHBCDcanbechemicallybondedwithinthepolystyreneduringthe
polymerizationprocess,orphysicallybondedduringtheproductionofEPSproducts.(Kemisol,2004
&Stybenex,2007).

Thermalconductivityanddensity
Thedensityofpolystyrenecanvaryfrom10to80kg/m3andthethermalconductivityrangesfrom
0.032to0.045W/mK(Kemisol,2004).

Fireclass
WhenEPSistreatedwithaflameretardantthefireclassbecomesE(untreated:F).WhenEPSisused
inaconstructioninwhichitisshieldedfromdirectfire,thefireclassofthatconstructioncanreach
classB(withadditional:s1d0)(Kemisol,2004).

108

Watervapourresistancefactor
ForEPSthedependsonthedensityoftheproductandthereforerangesfrom=20100.

Practicalapplication
EPSisversatileinitsapplications.Itisusedfortheinsulationof(cavity)walls,roofsandconcrete
floors.EPSisalsousedasacastingmouldforconcretefoundationsofbuildings.Thepanelsarerigid
andthereforecapableofsupportingthemselves.ThecompressivestrengthofEPSincreaseswithits
densityandrangesfromalmostnone(at5kg/m3)to0,6N/mm2at80kg/m3.WhentheEPSpearlsare
notbondedtogethertocreatepanelsorotherforms,theloosepearlscanalsobeusedtofillexisting
cavitywalls.

Price
EPSisproducedbymanycompanies.Thismeansthatapricecomparisoncanbedonebetweenmany
products.ThecompanyIsobouwprovideproductstobeusedincavitywalls:Isofort(D=
0.035W/mK)andPolyfort(D=0.027W/mK).ThelowDofPolyfortisreachedbyareflectivefoilon
sideofthepanels(Isobouw,2011a).AsecondcompanyisKnauf,whichalsoprovidesEPSpanels.
ThesepanelsdonothaveareflectivecoatingandthereforeaDof0.037W/mKand0.038W/mK
(Knauf,2011).Thepricesofthedifferentproductsandtheirthicknessarepresentedintable4.1.

table4.1prices(exl.VAT)andthicknessofEPSproductstoreachRc=3.5(Knauf,2011&Isobouw,2011a)

Product Producer D Productthickness Price Flame

[W/mK] [mm] [/m2] retardant
Isofort Isobouw 0.035 140 8.60 HBCD
Polyfort Isobouw 0.027 93 17.35 HBCD
Therm80 Knauf 0.037 130 9.90 HBCD
Therm60 Knauf 0.038 130 8.90 HBCD

109

4.1.2 Extrudedpolystyrene(XPS)

figure4.1.2XPSpanels(DOW,2009)

Production
XPSisproducedfromthesamebasematerialsasEPSandthereforealsohascrudeoilatitsbasis.The
productionprocessofXPSisonlyslightlydifferentfromEPS.LikeEPS,polystyrenegranulateis
createdwitheitherahydrocarbonorCO2asablowingagent.Insteadofheatingthepolystyrene
granulateswithsteam,theyarefedtoanextruder,inwhichthegranulateisheated.Theextruder
producesacontinuouslengthofpolystyrenethrougharectanglemould,creatingalongrectangle
strip,suitableforcuttingpanels(figure4.1.2).Thispolystyreneexpandsbecauseofthepressure
differencebetweentheextruderanditssurrounding.Byusinganextruder,aclosedcellstructureis
obtained(Jelle,2011).ForXPSthesameflameretardantisusedasforEPS.

Thermalconductivityanddensity
Duetotheclosedcellstructureinwhichtheblowingagentistrapped,asomewhatlowerthermal
conductivityisreached.ForXPS,thethermalconductivityrangesfrom0.025W/mKto0.040W/mK.
ThedensityofXPSrangesfrom15to80kg/m3.Anotheradvantageoftheclosedporestructureisthe
highcompressivestrengthatarelativelylowdensity:0,7N/mm2at45kg/m3(Bouwcenter,2007,
Papadopoulos,2005,DOW,2009).

Fireclass
Thefireclass(whentreatedwithafireretarder)ofXPSisE(Knauf,2008).

Watervapourresistancefactor
BecausethestructureofXPSisdifferentthanthestructureofEPS,thevalueisofthematerialsis
different.ForXPS,the=80300.

Practicalapplication
LikeEPS,XPShasawidevarietyofapplications.Itcanbeusedfortheinsulationofeveryelementof
thebuildingenvelope(Bouwcenter,2007).However,becausethematerialisextruded,no
polystyrenepearlsarecreated.XPScanthereforenotbeusedtoinsulateexistingcavitywallsby
blowingthematerialinsidetheaircavity.

Price
ForXPS,thepriceoftwoproductssuitableforcavitywallinsulationwillbecalculated.Thefirst
productisfromDOW:WallmateCWAwithaDof0.035W/mK.Thisthermalconductivitywillresult
inalayerofatleast119mm.Becausethemaximumthicknessoftheproductis100mm,thismeans
thattwoproducthavetobeputovereachothertoformathickenoughlayer.Thesecondproductis
Styrodur,producedbyBASF.ThisproducthasaDbetween0.031and0.040W/mK,dependingon
theproductthickness(thethinnertheproduct,thelowerthethermalconductivity).Athirdproduct
thatistakenintoaccountisPolyfoamD350TGfromKnauf(D=0.029W/mK).WiththefoundDand
thepricecataloguesofthedifferentproducts,thepriceofreachingRc=3.5canbedetermined.The
resultaregivenintable4.2.

110

table4.2Prices(exlVAT)ofXPSproductstoreachRc=3.5(Knauf,2011&Albintra,2010&Ravago,2011a)

Product Producer D Product Price Gasincells Flame

[W/mK] thickness [/m2] retardant
[mm]
Styrodur3035CS BASF 0.033 2x60 18.72 Air HBCD
Styrodur3035CS BASF 0.038 140 23.10 Air HBCD
WallmateCWA DOW 0.035 2x60 21.24 Isobutane HBCD
PolyfoamD Knauf 0.029 2x50 18.00 1,1 HBCD
350TG Difluoroethane

111

4.1.3 Phenolformaldehyde(PF)

figure4.1.3PFpanel(Kingspan,2011)

Production
Phenolformaldehydeisusedtoproducerigidfoampanels.Theusedbaseproductsarephenolsand
formaldehyde.PhenolformaldehydeisalsocalledResol.PFcanberecognizedbyitsdistinctivered
colour(seefigure4.1.3).Fortheproductionoffoam,thephenolsandformaldehydearemixed
togetherwithablowingagentandcatalysts.Theheatfromthechemicalreactionandtheblowing
agentcreateaveryfineclosedcellstructureinwhichtheblowingagentiscaptured.

Thermalconductivityanddensity
ThecellstructureofPFisfinerthanthestructureofPURandPIR.ThethermalconductivityofPFis
thereforearound0.021W/mKatadensitybetween3540kg/m3(VIBE,2007&Kingspan,2011).The
rangeinvaluesissmall,andtherefore,mostproductsarerigidpanels.

Fireclass
ThePFFoamhasafireclassEorF.Mostproductshoweverhavealayerorliningofadifferent
material,causingthefireclassoftheseproductstobeinbetweenBandD(Kingspan,2009).

Watervapourresistancefactor
Thevalueforthefoamitselfisinbetween3050.However,whenanextralayerofmaterialis
added,(PEoraluminiumfoilforinstance)thevaluechanges.

Practicalapplication
TherigidPFpanelscanbeusedtoinsulatealltheelementsofthebuildingenvelope.

Price
AproductmadeofPFfoamistheKingspanKoolthermK8panel.ItismadeofPFfoamwith
perforatedaluminiumfoilonbothsides.ThisgivesthepanelaDof0.021W/mK.Thislowthermal
conductivityresultsinaneededthicknessofonly72mminordertoreachRc=3.5.Thepriceisgiven
intable4.3.

table4.3PFFoamproductprices(exl.VAT)inRc=3.5cavitywall(Kingspan,2011)

Product Producer D Productthickness Price Blowing

[W/mK] [mm] [/m2] agent
KoolthermK8 Kingspan 0.021 76 23.00 Pentane

112

4.1.4 Polyurethane(PUR)

figure4.1.4RigidPURpanel(Recticel,2011a)

Production
FortheproductionofPUR,twobasicchemicalsareneeded:isocyanateand(polyether)polyol.By
mixingthetwochemicals,anexpansionreactionisstartedinwhichPURisformed.Thisexpansion
reactioniscreatedbyaddingablowingagenttothemixture.Theheatfromthereactionbetween
thepolyolandtheisocyanatevaporisestheblowingagent,creatingafoam.Duringthereaction,the
poresarefilledwithanexpansiongas,suchasCO2orpentane(Proklima,2009).Fromthecreated
product,rigidpanelsarecut(seefigure4.1.4).Nexttopanels,PURisalsoavailableasacaulkingfoam
tocloseopeningsandseamsinbetweeninsulatingmaterialsorotherbuildingmaterials.

Thermalconductivityanddensity
PURcontainsaclosedcellstructureinwhichtheblowingagentissealed.Becauseofthisveryfine
structure,thethermalconductivityofPURisbetween0.022and0.035W/mKandadensityvarying
from30160kg/m2(Jelle,2011,Technisol,2005).Whenthedensityincreases,thethermal
conductivityincreasesaswell.

Fireclass
ThefireclassofPURrangesfromDtoF.Thisdependsonanyextralayersoffireproofmaterialsthat
areaddedtothepanels,likereflectivefoils(Recticel,2011b&Technisol,2005).ThePURfoamitself
hasfireclassF.

Watervapourresistancefactor
Forthefoam,the=50100(Recticel,2011a).

Practicalapplication
InsulatingpanelsmadefromPURcanbeappliedtoallelementsofthebuildingenvelope.Becauseof
thelowthermalconductivity,thematerialisabletoreachhighthermalresistanceswitharelatively
lowmaterialthickness.AnotherimportantaspectisthatPURcanalsobeinjectedintoexistingcavity
walls,byusingtheexistingopeningsandsomeextraholes.Theentireaircavitycanberetrofitted
withPURfoam.

Price
WhenPURisusedincavitywallsintheformofpanels,theDofsuchpanelscanbeaslowas
0.023W/mK.AproductwiththisthermalconductivityisEurowall,producedbyRecticel.Thelow
thermalconductivityispartlyduetothereflectivefoilononesideofthepanel.BecauseofthelowD
thethicknessofthematerialneededtoreachRc=3.5is79mmaccordingtothecalculationmethodof
section1.4.Intable4.4thecalculatedthicknessandpriceofthisproductwhenusedinacavitywall
withRc=3.5aregiven.

table4.4Price(exl.VAT)ofPURpanelswhenusedtoreachRcc=3.5(DeschachtPlastics,2011a).

Product Producer D Product Price Blowing

[W/mK] thickness[mm] [/m2] agent
Eurowall Recticel 0.023 82 24.91 Pentane

113

4.1.5 Polyisocyanurate(PIR)

figure4.1.5PIRpanels(Ballytherm,2007)

Production
TheproductionofPIRisalmostthesameastheproductionofPUR.FortheproductionofPIRa
polyesterpolyolismixedwithanexcessofisocyanate(methylenediphenyldiisocyanate).Thisexcess
ofisocyanatecausestheisocyanatetofirstreactwithitself,creatingringstructuredpolymers.The
ringstructureandleftoverisocyanatethenreactwiththepolyol.Byaddingablowingagent,theend
productPIRisobtained(Bouwcenter,2007).FromthefinishedPIRproduct,panelsarecut.95%of
thePUR/PIRproductioninGermanyisproducedwithpentaneasablowingagent.Asaflame
retardant,Tris(2Chloro1Methylethyl)Phosphate(TCPP,TMCP)orTris(2chloroethyl)phosphate
(TCEP)(Wecobis,2011;Europeanflameretardantsassociation,2006)

Thermalconductivityanddensity
ThestructureofPIRconsistofaclosedcellstructure,similartoPUR.Thethermalconductivitycan
howeverbelowerthanofPUR:0.0200.035W/mK,butthemostcommonvaluesarearound>0.023
W/mK(VIBE,2007).ThedensityofPIRequalsthedensityofPUR.Thedensityforpanelsrangesfrom
2840kg/m3(Unilin,2011&

Fireclass
ThefireclassforPIRisequaltoPUR(classDtoF,dependableoftheusedproduct,butFforthefoam
itself)(Recticel,2011b).

Watervapourresistancefactor
SameasforPUR,=50100.

Practicalapplication
PIRcanbeusedinthesamewayasPURwiththedifferencethatPIRcannotbeusedtoinsulate
existingcavitywalls.ThereisnoPIRfoamthatcanbeinjectedintoexistingcavitywalls,becauseof
thedifferenceintheproductionprocesscomparedtoPUR.

Price
TodeterminethepriceofPIRcavitywallinsulation,fourproductsarelookedinto.Allfourproducts
(panels)havetwothingsincommon:theirD=0.023W/mKandalltheproductshaveatongueand
groovesystems,tomakethepanelsfittightly.ThefourproducersareUnilin,Xtratherm,Kingspan
andIko.Alongwiththecalculationmethodofsection1.4andthepricecatalogues,theproductprice
canbecalculated.Theresultsaredepictedintable4.5.Interestingly,allthepanelshavethesame
productthickness.Itcouldbethatproducerstrytoanticipateonbuildingregulation.

table4.5Price(exl.VAT)ofPIRproductstoreachRc=3.5(Unilin,2011;Ravago,2011b;Kingspan,2011;
DeschatPlastics,2011b)

Product Producer D Productthickness Price Blowing

[W/mK] [mm] [/m2] agent
UthermWallR Unilin 0.023 82 20.51
XtrathermXTCW Xtratherm 0.023 82 21.46
ThermawallTW50 Kingspan 0.023 82 23.50 Pentane
Enertherm Iko 0.023 82 22.45
114

4.1.6 Ureaformaldehyde(UF)

figure4.1.6UFfoaminjectedintocavitywall(Brarchitect,2010)
Production
Ureaformaldehydeismadeonsitebyaddingmixingtheureaformaldehyderesinwithahardener
andablowingagent.Thismixtureresultsinfoam,thatexpandsduetotheblowingagent.Nopanels
orothertypesofinsulatingmaterialsareproducedfromthefoam,sinceitisblowndirectlyinto
emptycavitywalls(seefigure4.1.6)orotherstructuresthatneedtobeinsulated(Bouwcenter,
2007).

Thermalconductivityanddensity
Thedensityofthefoamisaround12kg/m3.ThethermalconductivityofUFfoamisbetween0.036
and0.045W/mK(Thermecon,2007).

Fireclass
UFfoamhasafireclassinbetweenDandE(disolatie,2010).

Watervapourresistancefactor
ForUFfoamthevaluerangesfrom1.5and2.4(Thermecon,2007&disolatie,2010).

Practicalapplication
Asmentionedabove,theUFfoamisusedfortheretrofittingofexistingcavitywalls.However,dueto
thefactthatthefoamshrinksafterbeinginjectedintothecavity,cracksmayappearinthefoam,a
disadvantageofusingUFfoam.

Price
NotusedanymoreintheNetherlands.Thisisbecausethefoamshrinksduringthedryingprocess,
causingrupturesinthefoamandeventuallythefoamgettingloosefromthewalls.Infigure4.1.7the
rupturesintheUFfoamarevisible,aftertheoutwallofthecavitywallisremoved.Nexttothe
rupturingofthefoam,formaldehydecontinuestodiffuseoutofUFfoamduringitslifetime
(Meeusen,2006).

figure4.1.7cracksinUFfoamvisibleaftertheouterwallisremoved(Meeusen,2006).

115

5 Organicinsulatingmaterials:renewable
Theinsulatingmaterialscoveredinthissectionarebaseduponrenewableresources,inotherwords,
themainmaterialisbiobased.Sincemanyplantscontainfibresfortheirstrength,itisnosurprise
thatalmostallthematerialsinthissectionarefibrous.Expandedcorkistheonlyexception,the
materialiscellular.Thefollowingmaterialsaretreatedwithinthissection:

Fibrous
Cellulose(paperwool)
Flax(flaxwool)
Hemp(hempwool)
Recycledcotton
Sheepwool
Woodwool
Coconut
Cellular
Cork

5.1 Fibrous

5.1.1 Cellulose(paperwool)

figure5.1.1cellulosepanel(Homatherm,2011a)

Production
Celluloseinsulatingmaterialisproducedfromrecycledpaperorwoodfibremass.Thiswasteisshred
andunravelled,sothatthecellulosefibresareobtained.Theobtainedcellulosefibreshaveawool
likestructure.Inordertomakethecellulosefibresmoistureandflameretardant,boricacidand
boraxareadded.Togivemorestrengthtothepanels,polyolefinfibresareaddedtothecellulose
fibres.Fromthetreatedfibres,panels,rollsandflocksareproduced(Jelle,2011&Homatherm,
2011).Anexampleofsuchapanelcanbeseeninfigure5.1.1.

Thermalconductivityanddensity
Thethermalconductivityofcelluloseliesbetween0.038and0.040W/mK.Itsdensityrangesfrom
30kg/m3forflocksto70kg/m3forpanels(Isofloc,2011&Homatherm,2011a).

Fireclass
ThefireclassofcellulosepanelsandflocksisE(Isofloc,2011a&Homatherm,2011a).

Watervapourresistancefactor
Forcellulosepanelstheisbetween2and3whereforflocksthisvalueliesbetween1and2,soonly
aminordifference.

116

Practicalapplication
Newlybuildcavitywallscanbefittedwithcellulosepanels(ifprotectedagainstrainwater).Cellulose
cannotbeusedfortheinsulationofflatroofsorfortheinsulatingontheoutsideofthebuilding
envelope(wetrendersystems)(Bouwcenter,2007).Itscompressivestrengthistoolowtosupporta
finishlayer.Drycladdingsystemsalsodonotprovideenoughshelterforthepanelstobeusedin
suchanapplication.

Price
PanelsofcellulosefibresareproducedbyHomatherm.ThepanelshaveaDof0.039.Althoughthe
panelscanbeusedwithincavitywalls,theproducerdiscouragesthis(Vijfwinkel,2011).Thisis
becausethematerialisnotwaterresistant.Whenthecellulosepanelsareusedwithinacavitywall,
theyshouldbecoveredwithaplastic(PE)foiltoprotectthemfromrainwater.Thethermal
conductivityofthepanelsis0.039W/mK.Accordingtothecalculationinsection1.4thisgivesa
productthicknessof140mm.Thepriceofthematerialperm2cannowbecalculated.Theresulting
valueisgivenintable5.1.
table5.1CavitywallinsulationtoRc=3.5withcelluloseproducts(Homatherm,2011b)

Product Producer D Productthickness Price Flame

[W/mK] [mm] [/m2] retardant
FlexCL Homatherm 0.039 140 24.60 Boricacid

117

5.1.2 Coconut

figure5.1.2coconutpanels(VanAvermaet,2011a)

Production
Coconutinsulatingmaterialsareproducedfromfibresobtainedfromthecoconuthusks.Thefibres
areobtainedbysoakingthehusksinwaterandlettingeverythingbutthefibresrotaway(the
coconutfibresdonotrot).Thisprocessisdonepriortoshippingthefibrestotheprocessplants.In
theprocessplantsthefibresarefulledtoproducepanelsandrolls(Hasselaar,2004).

Thermalconductivityanddensity
Thethermalconductivityofcoconutbasedmaterialsrangesfrom0.040to0.045W/mKatadensity
around140kg/m3(Bouwcenter,2007&Hasselaar,2004).

Fireclass
CoconuthasafireclassE(VanAvermaet,20011b)

Watervapourresistancefactor
Coconutpanelshaveavalueinbetween1and10.

Practicalapplication
AccordingtotheBouwcentercoconutpanelshasaverylimitedareaofuse.Itcanonlybeusedfor
cavitywallinsulationfortheinsulationoffloors(bothwoodandconcrete).Also,therearejustafew
suppliersofthematerial.

Price
Coconutpanelsareonlyavailableinthinpanels.ThemaximumthicknessthatVanAvermaet(a
producerofcoconutpanels)producesis25mm.Sincethismaterialhasaof0.045,7layersof
coconutareneededtoreachRc=3.5.Thisresultsinthepricegivenintable5.2.

table5.2coconutproductprice(exl.VAT)whenusedincavitywallwithRc=3.5(BioHome,2011)

Product Producer D Productthickness Price

[W/mK] [mm] [/m2]
Kokosplaat VanAvermaet 0.045 7x25 84.35

118

5.1.3 Flax(flaxwool)

figure5.1.3Flaxwoolpanel(Ecobouwen,2011)

Production
Flaxpanelsandrollsareproducedfromthelongfibresobtainedfromflaxplants.Boththeplantand
itsrootsareusedfortheproductionofflax.Aftertheharvest,theplantsaredriedandthestalksare
separatedfromtheseeds.Thefibresfromthestalksareimpregnatedwithammoniumphosphateor
boraxtomakethemfireresistantandresistantagainstorganisms.Theimpregnatedfibresaretorn
aparttocreateawoollikestructure.Withtheuseofabindingagent(polyestersupportfibresor
corn/potatostarch)rollsandpanelsareproduced(Hasselaar,2004)

Thermalconductivityanddensity
Flaxwoolhasadensityof28kg/m3.Itsthermalconductivityrangesfrom0.035to0.040W/mK
(Hasselaar,2004&Isovlas,2010).

Fireclass
ThefireclassofflaxisC(Isovlas,2010)

Watervapourresistancefactor
Forflax,thewatervapourresistancefactor=12(Hasselaar,2004).

Practicalapplication
Apartfromflatroofinsulation,flaxwoolproductscanbeusedfortheinsulationofeveryelementof
abuildingsbuildingenvelope.However,sinceflaxwoolisproducedinrollsandpanels,itisnot
possibletousedataretrofittingmaterialforcavitywalls(itcannotbeblownintothecavity).

Price
AproducerofflaxwoolisIsovlas.Isovlasisnotasstrongasglassorrockwool,whichmeansithasto
besupportedby8fasteners/m2.TheDoftheflaxwoolproducedbyIsovlasis0.035W/mK.The
neededthicknesswithinacavitywallofRc=3.5accordingtothecalculationofsection1.4is
120.1mm.AIsovlaspanelwithathicknessof120mmwouldisthereforenotsufficient.Thenext
productthicknessis130mm,ofwhichthepriceperm2canbefoundintable5.3.

table5.3Price(exl.VAT)offlaxwhenusedtoreachRc=3.5inacavitywall(Isovlas,2011).

Product Producer D Productthickness Price Flameretardant

[W/mK] [mm] [/m2]
IsovlasPN Isovlas 0.035 130 15.18 Ammoniumphosphate

119

5.1.4 Hemp(hempwool)

figure5.1.4hempinsulationproducts(Hock,2009)

Production
Theproductionofhempwoolissimilartotheproductionofflaxwool.Afterthehempisharvested,it
isdried.Thedriedhempplantisseparatedintowood,fibres,leafs,seedsandleftoverdust.Forthe
productionofinsulatingmaterials,thefibresareofimportance.Thefibresareusedtocreateawool.
Toholdthewooltogether,strengtheningpolyesterfibresor(corn/potato)starchfibresareused.The
hempwoolwithpolyesterfibrescannotbecompostedandshouldbetreatedashouseholdwaste.
(Holzhey,2011).Bytheadditionofammoniumphosphateorboraxthewoolisimpregnatedto
improvethefireresistanceandtheresistanceagainstorganisms(Hasselaar,2004).Fromthewool,
flocks,rollsandpanelsaremade(seefigure5.1.4).

Thermalconductivityanddensity
Hemphasathermalconductivitybetween0.038and0.040W/mK.Itsdensityrangesfrom30to
42kg/m3(Hock,2009).

Fireclass
HempwoolhasafireclassE.(Hock,2009)

Watervapourresistancefactor
Theforhempwoolisbetween1and2(Hasselaar2004&Hock,2009).

Practicalapplication
Thepracticalapplicationsforhemparethesameasforflax.Thismeansthatapartfrominsulatingon
theoutsideofthebuilding,allelementsofthebuildingenvelopecanbeinsulatedusinghemp.An
advantageofhempoverflaxisthatitisalsoproducedinflocks.

Price
Forhempwool,twoproducersaretakenintoaccount:HockandSteico.ThehempwoolfromHock
hasaDof0.040W/mK.Hockproducestwotypesofhempwool:onewithpolyesterfibres(Thermo
HanfPremium)andonewithcornstarchfibres(ThermoHanfPlus).ThisDresultsinaminimum
thicknessof135mmaccordingtothecalculationmethodofsection1.4.Thesameisdoneforthe
productSteicoflexfromSteico,whichhasaDof0.038W/mK.Theaccompanyingproductthickness
andpricecanbefoundintable5.4.

120

table5.4Hempwoolproductprices(exl.VAT)incavitywallwithRc=3.5(Hock,2011&Steico,2011)

Product Producer D Product Price Support Flame

[W/mK] thickness[mm] [/m2] fibres retardant
ThermoHanf Hock 0.040 140 15.13 Polyester Soda
Premium
ThermoHanfPlus Hock 0.040 140 19.45 Corn Soda
starch
Steicoflex Steico 0.038 140 18.40 polyolefin Ammonium
phosphate

121

5.1.5 Recycledcotton

figure5.1.5Recycledcottonpanel(VRKisolatie,2011)

Production
Recycledcottonisproducedfromclothingthatisdisposedofbyconsumers.Thisclothingiscollected,
afterwhichtheharditems(e.g.buttons,zippers)areremoved.Theclothingisthanshreddedinto
fibres.Byaddingpolyesterbindingfibres,panelsandrollsandflockscanbeproduced.Theratio
clothing/bindingfibresis85/15(inwhichthe85%is70%cottonand15%wool/acrylic).Nexttothat,
ZinkPyrithioneisadded(<1%)againstorganisms.TheusedflameretardantinMetisseinsulationisa
naturalsalt.Theinsulationpanelsgothroughabathinwhichthesaltisdissolved.Afterdrying,the
saltstickstothefibersmakingthemflameretardant.Whichsaltisusedexactlyisconfidential
information(VRKisolatie,2011).

Thermalconductivityanddensity
Thethermalconductivityofthematerialis0.038W/mKatadensityofaround18kg/m3(VRKisolatie,
2011).

Fireclass
Duetoimpregnationofthematerial,itsfireclassisE(VRKisolatie,2011).

Watervapourresistancefactor
Recycledcottonisavapouropenmaterial,whichmeansithasawatervapourresistancefactor
between1and5.

Practicalapplication
Therecycledcottonflockscanonlybeusedinhorizontalapplication,makingthemnotsuitablefor
cavitywallorpitchedroofafterinsulation.Therollsandpanelscanbeusedfortheinsulationofthe
entirebuildingenvelopewiththeexceptionofflatroofs.However,whenthematerialisusedin
cavitywallsorinroofs,itshouldbecoveredawaterprooffoil,sothematerialwillnotgetwet.

Price
AproductmadeofrecycledcottonisMetisse.Metisseisavailableinrolls,panelsandflocks.Its
thermalconductivityis0.038,whichaccordingtosection1.4,givesitaneededthicknessof130mm.
Boththerollsandpanelsareavailableinthatthickness,whichresultsinthepricegivenintable5.5.
Thepriceforpanelorrollisthesameper/m2.

table5.5price(exVAT)ofrecycledcottoninsulatingmaterialincavitywallwithRc=3.5(Ecologisch,2011)

Product Producer D Product Price Support Flame

[W/mK] thickness[mm] [/m2] fibres retardant
MetisseMT+panel LeRelais 0.038 140 19.32 Polyester
MetisseMT+roll LeRelais 0.038 140 19.32 Polyester

122

5.1.6 Sheepwool

figure5.1.6Sheep'swool(Doscha,2011)

Production
Afterthewoolisshornfromthesheep(1sheepproduces2.54kgofwool/year),itsneedstobe
cleanedtowashawaydirtandtodegreasethewool.Toalignthefibresintothesamedirection,the
wooliscarded.Sheepdonothavelayersofwoolasthickas10cmonthem,whichmeansthatin
ordertoreachthefinalproductthickness,multiplelayersofwoolarefulled2tofixthelayers.To
produceasturdyproduct,thefirstlayerofwoolisdenselyfelted.Thisisdonewithadarkwool,so
thatthislayeriseasytorecognize(seefigure5.1.6).Sheepwoolisavailableinrolls.Themain
materialinsheepwooliskeratin.Becausekeratinisaprotein,sheepwoolmustbetreatedtoprotect
itagainstmotsandinsects.ThisisdonebyaddingeitherMystoxMPorMitinFF.Anotherwayof
producingthesheepwoolistoaddmeltingfibrestothewool,havethesefibresmeltaroundthe
sheepwool.(Doscha,2011&SheepWoolInsulation,2011).

Thermalconductivityanddensity
Sheepwoolhasathermalconductivityof0.035to0.040W/mKandadensityrangingfrom25to
60kg/m3.(Doscha,2011&VIBE,2007).

Fireclass
ThefireclassofsheepswoolisE(Doscha,2011).

Watervapourresistancefactor
Forsheepwoolthewatervapourresistancefactoris1,4accordingtoDoscha(2011)andbetween1
and2accordingtoHasselaar(2004).

Practicalapplication
Sheepwoolcanbeusedfortheinsulationofpitchedroofs,newlybuiltcavitywalls,woodenfloors
andfortheinsulationoftimberframeconstructions.Thematerialisnotverysturdy,whichmeans
thatitneedstobemountedinawaythatthereisenoughsupportfortherolls.

Price
AproducerofsheepwoolrollsthatcanbeusedwithinacavitywallisDoscha.Theirproducts,Doscha
DBhasaDof0.035W/mK.Thisresultsinanecessarythicknessof119mm.Theneededproductand
pricecanbefoundintable5.6.

table5.6Sheepwoolinsulationproductprice(exl.VAT)(Groenebouwmaterialen,2011)

Product Producer D Productthickness Price

[W/mK] [mm] [/m2]
DoschaDB Doscha 0.035 120 24.00

2
Fullingisatechniquewithwhichthewooliscleansedandcondensed,togiveitahigherdensityandwater
resistance.
123

5.1.7 Woodwool

figure5.1.7Woodwool(Homatherm,2010)

Production
Fortheproductionofwoodwool,wastewoodfromthepinewoodindustry(bark,sapwood,saw
residues)andforestryareused.Thewastewoodischippedintosmallpieces.Consequentlythechips
aresoakedwithsteamatapressureof38bar.Thesoakedchipsaregrindedtoproducefibres.From
thesefibres,panelsareproduced.Toproducethepanels,thefibresarebondedwiththeirownlignin,
bypressingthemtogetheranddryingtheminadrier.Thepanelscanalsobeproducedinadry
process,inwhichabindingresin(PMDI)isused.Theproducedpanelshaveathicknessbetween8
30mm.Fortheinsulationofbuildingsthickerpanelsareneeded.Thesethickerpanelsaremadeby
gluingmultiplethinpanelsontopofeachother(VIBE,2007,Pavatex,2011a).

Thermalconductivityanddensity
Woodwoolsthermalconductivityrangesfrom0.038to0.058W/mK.Thethermalconductivity
dependsonthepurposeofthematerial.Thethickinsulatingpanelsforroofs,wallsandfloors(like
thepanelinfigure5.1.7)havethelowestthermalconductivityatadensityof55to140kg/m3(for
comparison,particleboardhasadensityaround660kg/m3withathermalconductivityaround
0.17W/mK).Panelswithahigherdensityareusedtopreventcoldbridges.Duetothehigherdensity,
thethermalconductivityalsoincreases.(Pavatex,2011b).

Fireclass
WoodwoolpanelshaveafireclassE(Pavatex,2011b).

Watervapourresistancefactor
AccordingtoPavatex,theirwoodwoolhasavalueof5(Pavatex,2011b).

Practicalapplication
Asmentionedabove,woodwoolcanbeusedtoinsulatealltheelementsofthebuildingenvelope,
includingcoldbridgesandwetrendersystems(Pavatex,2011b).

Price
AwoodwoolproductthatcanbeappliedincavitywallsisPavathermplus+,becausethisproducthas
awaterprooflayerononeside.TheDoftheproductis0.045W/mK.Thismeansaminimalmaterial
thicknessof152mmisneededtoreachRc=3.5.WhenPavathermisused,thismeansthatadouble
layerisneededof2x80mm,sincethemaximumproductthicknessis120mm.Homathermalso
producespanelsthatcanbeusedwithincavitywalls:theHDPQ11standardwithD=0.038W/mK.In
table5.7,thepriceperm2ofthedifferentpanelscanbefound.

table5.7Price(exlVAT)ofwoodwoolproductsinRc=3.5cavitywall(Pavatex,2011c&Homatherm,2011b)

Product Producer D Product Price Flameretardant

[W/mK] thickness [/m2]
[mm]
Pavathermplus+ Pavatex 0.045 2x80 37.83 Ammoniumpolyphosphate
HDPQ11standard Homatherm 0.038 140 26.60 Ammoniumpolyphosphate

124

5.2 Cellular

5.2.1 Cork(expanded)

figure5.2.1corkpanel(VanAvermaet,2011c)

Production
Corkisproducedfromthecorkoak.Everynineyears,thebarkisremovedfromthetree(seefigure
5.2.2).Thisdoesnotharmthetreebecausethebarkrenewsitself.Theharvestedbarkisplacedinto
anautoclave(likeisdonewithcalciumsilicate).Insidetheautoclave,thecorkcellsexpandduetothe
additionofsteamandthehightemperatureandpressureinsidetheautoclave.Thecorkisbonded
intoblocksbyitsownresins(suberin).Fromtheblocks,flakesandpanelscanbeproduced.During
theautoclaveprocess,corkobtainsadarkcolour(VanAvermaet,2011c).Afinishedcorkpanelcanbe
seeninfigure5.2.1.

figure5.2.2removingthebarkfromthecorkoak(Natureofthegame,2011)

Thermalconductivityanddensity
Thethermalconductivityofcorkliesbetween0.037and0.043W/mK(VIBE,2007,Bouwcenter,
2007).Itsdensityisaround100kg/m3forgranulesand120kg/m3forpanels.(VanAvermaet,2011c).

Fireclass
ThefireclassofcorkisE(vanAvermaet,2011c)

Watervapourresistancefactor
Becausecorkisacellularmaterial,thewatervapourresistancefactorofthematerialishigherthan
thatoftheotherrenewablematerials:=between5and30(VanAvermaet,2011c).

Practicalapplication
Corkinsulationcanbeappliedincavitywalls,roofsandunderfloors.Itcanalsobeusedtoinsulate
wallsfromtheinside.

Price

125

Expandedcorkpanelsareavailableintwotypes:onewithandonewithouttongueandgroove.Both
panelshaveathermalconductivityof0.040W/mK.Thisresultsinaminimummaterialthicknessof
135mm.Sincethisthicknessisnotavailable,twolayersofcorkareneededof60and80mmthick.In
caseofcorkgranuless,thefactorforinsituplacementhastobeused.Thisresultsinalayer
thicknessofTheresultingpriceisgivenintable5.8.

table5.8Price(exl.VAT)ofcorkpanelsincavitywallofRc=3.5.(BioHome,2011)

Product Producer D Productthickness Price

[W/mK] [mm] [/m2]
CorkwithoutT&G VanAvermaet 0.040 60+80 40.79
CorkwithT&G VanAvermaet 0.040 60+80 44.68
Corkgranules VanAvermaet 0.040 164 25.58

126

6 Newtechnologymaterials
Newtechnologymaterialsareinsulatingmaterialsarenotusedatalargescaleyet,becausethe
materialsaretoonewortooexpensive.Thematerials/technologiescoveredinthissectionare:
Thermosheets/thermoscushions
ExpanededPolylacticacid
Aerogel
Vacuumpanels

6.1 Foil

6.1.1 Thermosheets

figure6.1.1thermosheetsunderneathaconcretefloor(Tonzon,2011a)

Production
Thermosheetsaresheetsmadeofathin(1219m)polyesterfoil,coveredwithareflective
aluminiumsurface.

Properties
Theprinciplebehindthermosheetsistrappingairinbetweenfoils,creatingpillows.Thisresultsina
thermalconductivitythatrangesbetween0.0290.045W/mK.Becausefoilsareused,thedensityat
whichthisthermalconductivityisreached,islow:between33,5kg/m3(Bouwcenter,2007&
Tonzon,2008).

Practicalapplication
Thermosheetscanbeusedtoinsulatewallsandroofsfromtheinside.Thiscanbedoneduring
construction,orduringrenovation.Floorscanalsobeinsulatedwiththermosheets,butthisrequires
thesheetstobemountedunderneaththefloor,inthecrawlspace.Thethermosheetmustnotbe
punctured.Themorelayers(andthereforespaces)used,thebetterthetotalthermalresistance.In
figure6.1.1thesheetsareusedtocreateaircushionsunderneathaconcretefloor.Alsohere,the
numberofcushionsdeterminestheoverallthermalresistance.Forawoodenfloor,thefoiland
cushionsarefixedbystaplingthefoilorcushionstothewoodenbeamsandceilingtheendand
edgeswithtape.Thesameprocesscanbeusedforroofs.Underneathconcretefloorsthemounting
canbedonebygluinganadhesivestriptotheconcretetowhichthesheetsorcushionsareadhered.
Anotheroptionistouseplasticplugswhicharedrilledintotheconcrete.Fortheinsulationofwalls,
thesheetsaremounteduponbattensofaroundtwocentimetresthick.Becreatingmultiplelayers
withbattensandsheets,ahigherthermalresistanceisobtained(Tonzon,2011b).

Fireclass
Theusedfoilsdonnothavefireclassification.Thisisbecauseofthethicknessofthefoils.Thefoils
aresothin,thattheyarenotcapabletosetfiretowoodorothermaterials(Willemsen,2011).The
foilisthereforeflammable,whichwouldputitintoclassF.

Watervapourresistancefactor

127

Thevalueofthefoilsishigh.AccordingtoTonzon,thedoftheirfoilsis130m,atathicknessof
19106m.Thisgivesavalueof6.8106,whichcanbeconsideredasvapourtight,almostnowater
vapourcanpassthroughthefoils.

Price
Thethermosheetsandcushionscannotbeusedfortheinsulationofcavitywalls.

128

6.2 Cellular

6.2.1 Expandedpolylacticacid

figure6.2.1Biofoamusedforcavitywallinsulation(Isobouw,2011b).

Production
Theproductionofexpandedpolylacticacid(EPA)iscomparabletotheproductionofexpanded
polystyrene.Insteadofstyrene,lacticacidisused.Thislacticacidisobtainedfromrenewablesources
likesugarcaneorcassava(Cobouw,2011).Thesugarcaneisrefinedintosugar,whichisfermented
intolacticacid.Fromthelacticacid,lactideisproduced.Thislactideispolymerisedintopolylactic
acidbeadsthesizeofsugargranules(Synbra,2011a).Thesebeadsareexpandedwithtemperature
andadditionofCO2,formingpearls(likeintheproductionofEPS,onlywithouttheuseofpentane).
Theexpandedpolylacticacidbeadscanbebondedintopanels,whichcanbeusedforinsulation
(Cobouw,2011).

Properties
EPAhasathermalconductivityofaround0.034W/mKatadensityof35kg/m3(Synbra,2011b).EPA
isabiodegradablematerial,whichmeansthatitcanbecomposted.However,thiscompostinghasto
bedoneunderindustrialconditions(hightemperature,enoughwaterandbacteria)before
compostingwilltakeplace.Thismeansthatthematerialshouldbecollectedintheendoflifeor
wastephase,soitcanbecompostedunderthecorrectconditions.

Practicalapplication
ThelooseEPApearlscanbeblownintoexistingcavitywallsorotherexistingcavities.Nexttothat,
EPApanelsaregoingtobeproducedthatcanbeusedfortheinsulationofroofs,walls(cavityand
wetrendersystems)andmaybeevenfloors.

Fireclass
ThefireclassofEPAisB,butthisiswhentheproductisusedwithinapplication.Thismeansthatthe
realfireclassofthematerialislower,aroundEorF(sameasforEPS).

Watervapourresistancefactor
SameasEPS,=20100.

Price
Theinsulatingpanelsarenotyetonthemarket.

129

6.2.2 Aerogel

figure6.2.2Aerogelimpregnatedtextile(AspenAerogels,2010)

Production
Thebasematerialforaerogelissilicon.Toproduceaerogel,twostepscanbedefined:makingthegel,
anddryingthegel.Thefirststepistomakethegel.Thisdonebyaddingwatertosiliconalkoxide
precursorswithinanethanolsolution.Thegeliscreatedbythereactionofwaterwithalkoxide,
formingSiO2.Inasupercriticaldryingprocess,thefluidsareremoved,keepingtheSiO2structure
intact.Thestructureisfilledwithgas(air)Tomakeaerogelsuitableforinsulating,atextilemadeof
glassandpolyesterfibrescanbeimpregnatedwiththegelbeforedrying.Afterthesupercritical
drying,theaerogeltextilecanbeusedforinsulatingpurposes.Theaerogeltextileisavailableinrolls
(Sattler,2006&AspenAerogels,2011).Anotheroptionisaerogelgranulesthatcanbeusedforthe
afterinsulationofforinstancecavitywalls.

Properties
Theaerogeltextilehasathermalconductivityof0.013W/mK.Itsdensityis150kg/m3(Aspen
Aerogels,2010).Thegranuleshavethermalconductivityof0.021W/mKatadensityof100kg/m3
(Innodmm,2011)

Practicalapplication
Whentheaerogelisusedtoimpregnatetextileitcanbeusedfortheinsulationofroofs,floorand
walls,bothexteriorandinterior.Theaerogeltextilesaregluedtothesurfacethatneedstobe
insulated.aerogelgranulesareblownintothecavitythatneedstobeinsulated.

Watervapourresistancefactor
Aerogelisavapouropenmaterial.Itswatervapourresistancefactorisaroundbetween2and3for
granulesand5.5forthetextile.(Innodmm,2010&Innodmm,2011).

Fireclass
ThefireclassoftheaerogelimpregnatedtextileisC.ThefireclassofaerogelitselfisA1(Innodmm,
2010&LouRuis,2010).

Price
Becauseofthelowvalueoftheimpregnatedtextile,athinlayerofmaterialisneededwithina
cavitywall:46mmaccordingtothecalculationofsection1.4.Anaerogeltextileavailableonthe
marketisSpaceloft,producedbyAspenAerogels.Spaceloftcomesinrollsof5or10mmthick.This
meansthat5layersofSpaceloftareneededtoreachRc=3.5.Whengranulesareused,alayerof
86mmisneeded.Thedensityofthislayeris95kg/m3,becauseofthemethodwithwhichthe
materialsareblownin.Thisresultsinthepricegivenintable6.1.

table6.1price(exlVAT)ofAerogeltextileandgranuleswithinaRc=3.5cavitywall(TSchopp,2010&Unser
Bausatzhaus,2009)

Product Producer D Productthickness Price

[W/mK] [mm] [/m2]
Spaceloft AspenAerogels 0.013 5x10 61.50
Aerogelgranules Innodmm 0.021 86 111.12
130

6.2.3 Vacuuminsulationpanels(VIP)

figure6.2.3structureofaVIP(Adjustedafter:ECBCSAnnex39,2010)

Production
TheproductionofVIPsstartswithcreatingapaneloutofanopenporousstructureoffumedsilica,
whichisabyproductofhighpuritysiliconproductionfortheelectrotechnicalindustry.Thefumed
silicaiscompressedtoadensityof200kg/m3.Thiscompressioncreatesaporesizethatiswellbelow
themeanfreepathofatmosphericgasmoleculesatinternalpressuresbelow1bar(Simmlerand
Brunner,2005).

Thecreatedpaneliswrappedinmetalizedpolymerlaminatelayers.Sincethecorestructureis
porous,avacuumcanbeappliedtoit.Afterthisisdone,theedgesofthepolymerlayersareheat
sealedtomaintainthevacuum.ThestructureofaVIPcanbeseeninfigure6.2.3.Fortheporouscore
structureothermaterialscanbeusedaswell.However,forbuildinginsulationfumedsilicais
commonlyused(ECBCSAnnex39,2010&Jelle,2011).

Properties
ThethermalconductivityofaVIPjustafterproductionisverylow:around0.004W/mK.However,
aginghasanegativeeffectonthepanels.Thisisbecausetheenvelopeofthepanelsisnotfully
airtight.Theincreaseinthermalconductivityoverthelifetimeofthepanelthereforedependsonthe
typeofenvelopeused.Infigure6.2.4theeffectofdifferentenvelopesisplottedasafunctionof
thermalconductivityandlifetime.Threedifferentenvelopesweretested,namelyAF,MF1andMF2.
Intotalsixpanelsweretested:threepanelsof50x50x1cm(AF50,MF150andMF250)andthree
panelsof100x100x2(AF100,MF1100andMF2100).Thestructureofthedifferentenvelopesis
describedinfigure6.2.5.Fromthegraphitisclearthatthethermalconductivityincreasesstronglyin
thefirstyears,afterwhichformostVIPaslowincreaseisseen.AccordingtoSimmleranBrunner
(2005),themostimportantmechanismofagingisgaspermeationthroughthepanelsenvelope.

AccordingtotheECBCSAnnex39project,athermalconductivityof0.008W/mKshouldbeused
whendimensioningVIPforbuildinginsulation.Ifthepanelsgetaerated(punctured)thethermal
conductivityrisesto0.020W/mKaccordingtoVaQtec,aproducerofVIPs.VaQtecgivesaservice
lifeof60yearsfortheirpanels(VaQtec,2011).

131


figure6.2.4increaseofthermalconductivityoverlifetimeofVIPperenvelope(Jelle,2011)

figure6.2.5structureoftheVIPenvelope(Jelle,2011)

Thedensityofthepanelsisbetween180and210kg/m3(VaQtec,2011).

Practicalapplication
Thepanelscanbeusedfortheinsulationofalmosteveryelementofthebuildingenvelope.Only
existingcavitywallscannotbeinsulatedwithVIPs.AnotherimportantaspectofVIPsisthatthey
cannotbecutintoshapeattheconstructionsiteandareveryvulnerabletopuncture.Ifapanelis
punctured,airseepsinanddestroysthevacuum,causingthethermalconductivitytoincrease.

Watervapourresistancefactor
Thewatervapourresistancefactorofthepanelsisalmostinfinite,sincethepanelsarecreatedtobe
sealedfromtheirenvironment.

Fireclass
ThefireclassofthecorematerialisA2(ECBCSAnnex39,2010).Acompletepaneliscoveredin
flammablepolymerfoils,givingitafireclassD.

132

Price
Ifthecalculationmethodfromsection1.4isusedwithathermalconductivityof0.008W/mK,a
30mmthickVIPisneededtoreachRc=3.5.AccordingtoJelle(2011),thepriceofa6cmthickVIPis
around200/m2.ThiswouldmeanthataVIPpanelofhalfthethicknesswouldcost100/m2.The
costsforVIPswithaof0.008W/mKpresentedintheforaECBCSAnnex39studyare34.32/m2per
m2K/W.Inotherwords,thepriceofaVIPwithaof0.008W/mKtoreachaRvalueof1is
34.32/m2.Inequation1.6ofsection1.4itiscalculatedthattheinsulatingmaterialmustprovidea
thermalresistance(Rm)of3.305m2K/WinordertoreachtheRc=3.5value.WiththeRmofequation
1.6,thepriceoftheVIPcanbecalculatedbymultiplyingthevaluefromtheECBCSAnnex39study
with3.305.Thisresultsinapriceof113.4/m2whichisinagreementwiththepricepresentedby
Jelle(2011).TheGermanInstitutWohnenundUmwelt(IWU)ofDarmstadtestimatesthecostsfor
VIPstobebetween90to172.5/m2.AccordingtoIWUthepricedependsonthetypeofVIP,a
normalVIPwithoutanyextraprotectionwouldcosts90/m2,whereasaVIPpackedinEPSwould
cost120to172.5/m2(IWU,2009).AnexampleofVIPpackedinEPScanbeseeninfigure6.2.6.Its
applicationcanbeseeninfigure6.2.7.Thepanelscanbefinishedwitharender,makingthemvery
suitableforrenovation.

figure6.2.6VIPwithpackedinEPS(IWU,2009)

figure6.2.7applicationofVIPonadwelling(IWU,2009)

133

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