A field study in İstanbul on constructional performance and efficiency of thermal insulation applications in building envelope

The concept of energy efficiency as in all fields is decisive in designing and constructing process of buildings. Less energy-consuming buildings suggest more permanent solutions for a sustainable environment. This approach made it necessary to cover all processes like material production, transportation, design, application, maintenance during the service period and recycling with holistic perspective. If energy consumption areas studied, about one-third of total energy consumption takes place in buildings. Thermal insulation systems are being prepared according to the regulations in the new building. In addition to that thermal insulation systems which applied in existing buildings are the most common method of achieving energy savings. Therefore, the application of thermal insulation in existing building or new projects and designed to meet all the performance requirements during the application is important. As stated in the first chapter, the aim of the thesis is to evaluate building elements situated in the building envelope in the new and existing buildings in terms of thermal performance. Thus, the aim is to pay attention to the performance requirements of the thermal insulation in the design and application phase in new and existing buildings and it was aimed at helping practitioners to develop proposals for more accurate identification of critical issues and solutions. This thesis consists of three main studies. First a literature search was conducted. Then an investigation and evaluation form of the thermal insulation was prepared. Lastly a field study and evaluation was performed. In the first part of the literature research, including properties of thermal insulation materials studied such as density, thermal conductivity, thermal resistance, thermal transmittance, specific heat, temperature resistance, dimensional stability, water vapor diffusion resistance, water absorption ratio, pressure resistance and fire resistance. Then thermal insulation materials are classified. This classification is made according to the organic or inorganic raw materials. In our country, most frequently used thermal insulation materials are EPS, XPS, glasswool, rockwool. In the study the most common four insulation materials were examined. Thermal insulation materials analyzed in terms of raw materials, production stages, physical and chemical characteristics, production sizes, application areas, issues to be considered in the application and hygiene. Materials were also examined for recycling. As the second part of the literature research; laws, regulations and standards both in Turkey and abroad about thermal insulations were conducted. Main regulations are Energy Efficiency Law, TS 825 Building Insulation Rules, Regulation of Buildings Energy Performance, European Technical Approval Guidelines, Construction Products Directive, Construction Products Regulation, Regulations on the Protection of Buildings from Fire. Related to the main part of the study, the expected performance requirements of thermal insulation systems were investigated. The Performance of the insulation system is related to the physical properties of the heat insulation material, thickness and other building elements which applied together. Environmental and climatic factors also affect the performance of the building elements. The main expected performance requirements of thermal insulation systems are thermal performance, moisture performance, physical resistance against temperature change, air and water tightness, fire resistance and sound insulation. After the basic information about thermal insulation materials and applications, the investigation list has been formed for field study. The first part of the form consists building's location, climate zone, the average temperature throughout the year of the region, the earthquake zone, wind direction, ownership, function, building size, structure system, floor number, average floor height and roof type. In the second part the location of thermal insulation in the building investigated. When a building envelope considered as a whole, thermal insulation application are in the building elements or joints of components. As a result the combination of two components for example: roof-wall, wall-window, wall-floor and basement / foundation should also be considered. Thermal insulation performance problems can be caused by layering problems of building elements, connection or junction problem of building elements or lack of appropriate combinations of different building elements. Thermal insulation performance problems may arise in the project or application phases. After the determination of the location of performance problems, in part 3 the problem is identified. Finally, in part four, layering is shown schematically in section details. Photo and description of the problem is also located here. A field study was conducted in 19 buildings which 8 of them public buildings, 9 of them private buildings, 2 of them public-private partnership. A list has been formed before field study in the selection of the buildings. This list contains project sites which are easier to reach and the possibility of obtaining other data. A total of 33 construction sites was investigated. Investigation sites have common features in terms of climate zone and structure systems. Buildings represent different applications in terms of typology. The number of buildings included in this study is 19. Number of evaluation points, detail or problem is 54. At the designated of points, thermal insulation performance evaluation was performed. According to this purpose encountered performance problems were recorded making visual analysis. After field study completed, a general evaluation has performed. As a result of field study, it was determined that the most common thermal insulation problems occur during the application stage in 51 evaluations. Environmental factors are the second most common cause of all thermal insulation problems which are related to the application phase. Tho most common thermal insulation location in building envelope is combination of different building elements which is 52% of all problems. In the field study total of 104 thermal insulation problems identified. The most common five insulation problems are thermal bridges, applicaitons without thermal insulation, connection and junction problems, deformation of materials and poor workmanship. These five problems are 75% of all problems identified. The chapter about evaluation of field study contains more detailed information and graphs. Finally, an atlas has been formed containing the results of the field study performance problems. Environmental problems with the increase of energy consumption has become more important today. Analysis of energy losses in buildings with the help of field studies, lab researches and computer simulation programs, performance problems occurs in the building envelope should be continued in the doctoral studies.