THERMOBREAK ™

Ther mal I nsulat ion

Technical Information Bulletin

Density and insulation capacity of closed cell materials

Insulation materials come in a variety of forms and densities. These densities are often
determined by process capability as well as cost-performance ratio.

The insulation performance of any material varies with density. It is important to realise that
this relationship varies with the type of materials used. For fibrous materials, such as fibreglass,
increasing the density of the material increases the insulation performance. For closed cell
materials, the opposite is true. A lower density closed cell material has a better thermal
conductivity (k) value that a higher density material.

Thermobreak has a density of 25 Kg/m3. This is the lowest density of any closed cell material
available on the market today. It is achieved through a special 3-stage patented
manufacturing process. Although it is possible to easily produce Thermobreak with a higher
density (such as 60-90 Kg/m3), its insulation performance will deteriorate by a factor of
approximately 25%.

Other materials, such as elastomeric materials, do have a process limitation and cannot
produce foam of such low density as this will lead to weak cell structures and the material will
physically collapse.

The insulation capacity of a material should not be judged by its density, but its Thermal
Conductivity (k) value.

A S E K I S U I C O M P A N Y

1- 5 PARRAWEENA RD, TAREN POINT, NSW, 2229, AUSTRALIA

TELEPHONE (INTL) : 61-2-9525 9880 FACSIMILE ( INTL) : 61-2- 9525 8004
A.C.N. 000 439 092
 THERMOBREAK ™
Ther mal I nsulat ion

DENSITY VS INSULATION PROPERTIES IN CLOSED CELL MATERIALS

Unlike open cell, fibrous materials (such as fibreglass), the thermal properties of closed cell
materials improve with lower densities due to the trapped air in the cells. The lower the
density of a material, the more air is trapped in the cells leading to better insulation
properties. (see ASHRAE Fundamentals 2001, 23.4 Fig 1).

In cellular materials , the factors that influence thermal performance and strength properties are: size
and shape of the cells, thickness of the cell walls , gas contained in the cells, orientation of the cells ,
and radiation characteristics of the cell surfaces (ASHRAE Fundamentals 2001, 23.5)

Not all materials can be manufactured at the lowest possible density in order to improve
insulation performance. There are also process limitations due to the primary ingredients of
closed cell insulation, as well as process limitations, and physical characteristics of the
finished product.

A S E K I S U I C O M P A N Y

1- 5 PARRAWEENA RD, TAREN POINT, NSW, 2229, AUSTRALIA

TELEPHONE (INTL) : 61-2-9525 9880 FACSIMILE ( INTL) : 61-2- 9525 8004
A.C.N. 000 439 092
 THERMOBREAK ™
Ther mal I nsulat ion

Elastomeric insulations cannot be made lower than the 65Kg/m3 density levels as the cell
walls will collapse due to the relatively soft compound of the PVC- Nitrile rubber composite.
In addition “lowering the density( in elastomeric insulation) is a desired property but it would make
cutting the product difficult” (Armacell Bulleting #032, April 2004)

As such elastomeric foams are usually made at 65 Kg/m3. Lowering the density any further
will result in a product that it is not feasible for further fabrication.

Polyolefins do not suffer from this problem, as they exhibit relatively high compressive
strengths at the lower densities. The thermal Conductivity of crosslinked polyolefin foam
(Softlon) is shown below. It can be seen that optimum density for the best insulation
performance is 25Kg/m3.

Thermal Conductivity of Polyolefin foam

0.06
Thermal Conductivity

0.05
0.04
( W/mK)

0.03
0.02
0.01
0
25-33 33-40 40-67 67-100
Density ( Kg/m3)
(Source :
Softlon Thermal Conductivity , Sekisui Chemical , from Klempner& Frisch , Polymeric Foams , 1991

THERMOBREAK insulation is made using 25Kg/m3 foam as this gives the best insulation
performance.

Although density does affect the thermal conductivity of a material, it is the thermal conductivity
value of a material that gives information about its thermal properties.

A S E K I S U I C O M P A N Y

1- 5 PARRAWEENA RD, TAREN POINT, NSW, 2229, AUSTRALIA

TELEPHONE (INTL) : 61-2-9525 9880 FACSIMILE ( INTL) : 61-2- 9525 8004
A.C.N. 000 439 092