A team of materials scientists from Empa (Swiss Federal Laboratory for Science and Technology) and the Slovak University of Technology has developed a translucent and thermally insulating building component based on silica aerogel granules — an aerogel glass brick.
Building envelopes of existing buildings represent a great opportunity to improve energy efficiency and thermal comfort of our cities and countryside.
Aside from improvements on building technology, HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) energy demands are typically reduced by increasing the thickness of the insulation layer.
However, this solution does not work for the transparent façade elements, and in fact, thick insulation layers increase shadowing around the windows.
Thus, a new envelope construction system that can reduce lighting and HVAC energy demands simultaneously would be a highly attractive solution.
“Silica aerogels are high-performance thermal insulation materials that are becoming increasingly popular in the construction sector. The most common are opaque insulating mats and plasters,” said Empa researcher Jannis Wernery and his colleagues.
“Back in 2017, we had the idea of integrating the insulating material directly into a building brick and presented a new type of brick filled with aerogel, the so-called aerobrick.”
“Thanks to its excellent thermal insulation, this brick saves heating costs — without the need for an additional insulation layer applied to the masonry.”
“However, aerogel can also be virtually transparent, which makes for a translucent, insulating building system.”
The researchers developed an aerogel glass brick that has a high thermal insulation performance for its limited thickness, and simultaneously increases solar gains, reduces the use of the artificial light, and improves visual comfort.
“We achieved this combination of strength, insulation and light transmission by using offset spacers between the glass panes within the…
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