Thermal and moisture adsorption/desorption properties for a selection of vegetal insulation materials

Natural, or ‘green’ insulation materials, have become more popular for the ‘ecologisation’ of construction activities. The ecological aspects for such materials are being widely analysed, but experimental data about their physical properties when installed in building constructions remains lacking. In this study, pressed samples of three locally wild grown agricultural materials – rye, reed, and hemp – are analysed. Thermal conductivity measurements were carried out using the hot plate device. Comparison with widely used mineral insulation materials shows that thermal conductivity for simple pressed materials are roughly three times higher, and are comparable to plywood and cross-laminated …