Experimental investigation of the dynamic hygrothermal performance of biobased wall assemblies under extremely cold conditions

Chen, Yuchen, Blanchet, Pierre, Gosselin, Louis, Felippe Silva, João Vítor et Wang, Xiaodong (Alice) ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6093-1937 (2026). Experimental investigation of the dynamic hygrothermal performance of biobased wall assemblies under extremely cold conditions. Journal of Building Engineering, 121 (115687).

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Résumé

Biobased materials play a crucial role in improving the hygrothermal performance and sustainability of building envelopes. While these materials offer significant benefits in thermal insulation and moisture regulation, comprehensive studies of their dynamic hygrothermal performance in extremely cold climates are limited. This study employed a climate chamber to reproduce severe cold conditions down to −30 °C and large diurnal temperature amplitudes to evaluate the hygrothermal performance of biobased wall assemblies under extreme winter climates. Full-scale split insulation assemblies with wood fiberboard and cork board as exterior insulation and hemp batt as interior insulation were tested under step change and sinusoidal temperature profiles. Long term mold growth risk was also examined through numerical simulations. The results demonstrate that the hygrothermal response of wall highlights a strong coupling between the temperature and the RH. Sinusoidal temperature variations provided a more realistic representation of the wall's thermal inertia compared with step change boundary conditions. Assemblies insulated with wood fiberboard and hemp batt exhibited superior moisture buffering capacity. In addition, five-year mold growth simulations indicated no mold risk for either biobased wall assembly under the selected climatic conditions.

Type de document :	Article
Validation par les pairs :	Oui
Mots-clés :	Chambre climatique ; Assemblages muraux à ossature bois ; Matériaux d'origine biologique ; Performances hygrothermiques dynamiques ; Simulation de la prolifération des moisissures / Climate chamber ; Wood frame wall assemblies ; Biobased materials ; Dynamic hygrothermal performance ; Mold growth simulation .
Départements et unités départementales :	Département de mathématiques, informatique et génie
Date de dépôt :	28 oct. 2026 19:49
Dernière modification :	28 oct. 2026 19:49
URI :	https://semaphore.uqar.ca/id/eprint/3703