Experimental data-informed modelling of the thermal characteristics of a point connection with and without structural thermal breaks

Narei, Hamid; Fitton, Richard; Swan, William; Lister, Chris

Abstract

This study aimed to develop a reliable in-situ evaluation method to capture parameters needed for thermal modelling of the point thermal transmittance and use them to calibrate the finite element thermal simulation. Farrat's structural thermal breaks were used to thermally break the heat transfer from the point thermal bridge connection created at the Energy House (EH) at the University of Salford. The numerical modelling was conducted in ABAQUS and calibrated using the experimental data. The findings revealed that using STBs reduced the χ-value of the bare wall by 6.73% and that of the externally insulated wall by 15.43%. These results highlight two key points: firstly, the significance of employing STBs to mitigate heat transfer through point TBs, achieving at least a 6.73% reduction; and secondly, the more pronounced impact of STBs in well-insulated structures. Furthermore, this research established a dependable in-situ method to gather the necessary parameters for evaluating thermal bridges.

• Presentation Conference Type: Presentation / Talk
• Conference Name: 6th International Conference on Building Energy and Environment (COBEE 2025)
• Start Date: Jul 6, 2025
• End Date: Jul 10, 2025
• Acceptance Date: Apr 30, 2025
• Deposit Date: Jul 28, 2025
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Keywords: Thermal Bridging; Experimental measurement; Calibrated numerical modelling