Buildings as a Global Carbon Sink? The Design of Mass Timber Panels as Heat-exchangers (Dynamic Insulation)
Abstract
Mass timber products, together with careful forestry management, could help decarbonize the construction industry. These products must be long-lasting, to safely store atmospheric carbon for decades or centuries, and multi-functional, to displace materials and equipment that are emissions-intensive. This paper shows how to optimize mass timber panels as heat-exchangers, suggesting how to eliminate insulation while simplifying HVAC systems. Test panels measured the heat-exchange in steady and transient conditions, when the ventilation was driven by a fan or by thermal buoyancy. The total heatexchange was predicted accurately by theory in all cases. Further investigation is needed to understand the possible heat-recovery effects at the exterior surface.
Reference
Salmaan Craig; Anna Halepaska; Jacob Elbrecht; Katherine Ferguson; Preston Rains; Andrew Freear; David Kennedy; Kiel Moe. (2020). Buildings as a Global Carbon Sink? The Design of Mass Timber Panels as Heat-exchangers (Dynamic Insulation). MDPI AG. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202008.0278.v1
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