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ThermalinsulationWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

Thermalinsulation
FromWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

Thermalinsulationisthereductionofheattransfer(thetransferof
thermalenergybetweenobjectsofdifferingtemperature)between
objectsinthermalcontactorinrangeofradiativeinfluence.
Thermalinsulationcanbeachievedwithspeciallyengineered
methodsorprocesses,aswellaswithsuitableobjectshapesand
materials.
Heatflowisaninevitableconsequenceofcontactbetweenobjects
ofdifferingtemperature.Thermalinsulationprovidesaregionof
insulationinwhichthermalconductionisreducedorthermal
radiationisreflectedratherthanabsorbedbythelowertemperature
body.

MineralwoolInsulation,1600dpi
scan

Theinsulatingcapabilityofamaterialismeasuredwiththermalconductivity(k).Lowthermalconductivity
isequivalenttohighinsulatingcapability(Rvalue).Inthermalengineering,otherimportantpropertiesof
insulatingmaterialsareproductdensity()andspecificheatcapacity(c).

Contents
1 Definition
1.1 Insulation
2 Applications
2.1 Clothingandnaturalanimalinsulationinbirdsandmammals
2.2 Buildings
2.3 Mechanicalsystems
2.4 Spacecraft
2.5 Automotive
3 Factorsinfluencingperformance
4 Calculatingrequirements
5 Seealso
6 References
7 Externallinks

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7 Externallinks

Definition
Insulation
Lowthermalconductivity(k)materialsreduceheatfluxes.The
smallerthekvalue,thelargerthecorrespondingthermalresistance
(R)value.Thermalconductivityismeasuredinwattspermeterper
kelvin(Wm1K1),representedask.Asthethicknessofinsulating
materialincreases,thethermalresistanceorRvaluealso
increases.
Foracylinder,theconvectivethermalresistanceisinversely
proportionaltothesurfaceareaandthereforetheradiusofthe
Carexhaustsusuallyrequiresome
cylinder,whilethethermalresistanceofacylindricalshell(the
formofheatbarrier,especiallyhigh
insulationlayer)dependsontheratiobetweenoutsideandinside
performanceexhaustswherea
radius,notontheradiusitself.Supposeforexamplethatwedouble
ceramiccoatingisoftenapplied
theoutsideradiusofacylinderbyapplyinginsulation.Wehave
addedafixedamountofconductiveresistance(equalto
ln(2)/(2kL))butatthesametimewehavehalvedthevalueoftheconvectiveresistance.Because
convectiveresistancetendstoinfinitywhentheradiusapproacheszero,atsmallenoughradiusesthe
decreaseinconvectiveresistancewillbelargerthantheaddedconductiveresistance,resultinginlower
totalresistance.
Thisimpliesthataddinginsulationactuallyincreasestheheattransfer,untilacriticalradiusisreached,at
whichpointtheheattransferisatmaximum.Abovethiscriticalradius,addedinsulationdecreasestheheat
transfer.Forinsulatedcylinders,thecriticalradiusisgivenbytheequation[1]

Thisequationshowsthatthecriticalradiusdependsonlyontheheattransfercoefficientandthethermal
conductivityoftheinsulation.Iftheradiusoftheuninsulatedcylinderislargerthanthecriticalradiusfor
insulation,theadditionofanyamountofinsulationwilldecreasetheheattransfer.

Applications
Clothingandnaturalanimalinsulationinbirdsandmammals
Gasespossesspoorthermalconductionpropertiescomparedtoliquidsandsolids,andthusmakesagood
insulationmaterialiftheycanbetrapped.Inordertofurtheraugmenttheeffectivenessofagas(suchasair)
itmaybedisruptedintosmallcellswhichcannoteffectivelytransferheatbynaturalconvection.
Convectioninvolvesalargerbulkflowofgasdrivenbybuoyancyandtemperaturedifferences,anditdoes
notworkwellinsmallcellswherethereislittledensitydifferencetodriveit.

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Inordertoaccomplishgascellformationinmanmadethermalinsulation,glassandpolymermaterials
canbeusedtotrapairinafoamlikestructure.Thisprincipleisusedindustriallyinbuildingandpiping
insulationsuchas(glasswool),cellulose,rockwool,polystyrenefoam(styrofoam),urethanefoam,
vermiculite,perlite,andcork.Trappingairisalsotheprincipleinallhighlyinsulatingclothingmaterials
suchaswool,downfeathersandfleece.
Theairtrappingpropertyisalsotheinsulationprincipleemployedbyhomeothermicanimalstostaywarm,
forexampledownfeathers,andinsulatinghairsuchasnaturalsheep'swool.Inbothcasestheprimary
insulatingmaterialisair,andthepolymerusedfortrappingtheairisnaturalkeratinprotein.

Buildings
Maintainingacceptabletemperaturesinbuildings(byheatingand
cooling)usesalargeproportionofglobalenergyconsumption.
Buildinginsulationsalsocommonlyusetheprincipleofsmall
trappedaircellsasexplainedabove,e.g.fiberglass(specifically
glasswool),cellulose,rockwool,polystyrenefoam,urethanefoam,
vermiculite,perlite,cork,etc.
Whenwellinsulated,abuilding:
isenergyefficient,thussavingtheownermoney.
Commoninsulationapplicationsin
providesmoreuniformtemperaturesthroughoutthespace.
apartmentbuildinginOntario,
Thereislesstemperaturegradientbothvertically(between
Canada.
ankleheightandheadheight)andhorizontallyfromexterior
walls,ceilingsandwindowstotheinteriorwalls,thus
producingamorecomfortableoccupantenvironmentwhenoutsidetemperaturesareextremelycold
orhot.
hasminimalrecurringexpense.Unlikeheatingandcoolingequipment,insulationispermanentand
doesnotrequiremaintenance,upkeep,oradjustment.
lowersthecarbonfootprintofabuilding.
Manyformsofthermalinsulationalsoreducenoiseandvibration,bothcomingfromtheoutsideandfrom
otherroomsinsideabuilding,thusproducingamorecomfortableenvironment.
Windowinsulationfilmcanbeappliedinweatherizationapplicationstoreduceincomingthermalradiation
insummerandlossinwinter.
Inindustry,energyhastobeexpendedtoraise,lower,ormaintainthetemperatureofobjectsorprocess
fluids.Ifthesearenotinsulated,thisincreasestheenergyrequirementsofaprocess,andthereforethecost
andenvironmentalimpact.

Mechanicalsystems
Spaceheatingandcoolingsystemsdistributeheatthroughoutbuildingsbymeansofpipeorductwork.
Insulatingthesepipesusingpipeinsulationreducesenergyintounoccupiedroomsandprevents
condensationfromoccurringoncoldandchilledpipework.

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Pipeinsulationisalsousedonwatersupplypipeworktohelpdelay
pipefreezingforanacceptablelengthoftime.[2]

Spacecraft
Launchandreentryplaceseveremechanicalstressesonspacecraft,
sothestrengthofaninsulatoriscriticallyimportant(asseenbythe
failureofinsulatingfoamontheSpaceShuttleColumbia).Reentry
throughtheatmospheregeneratesveryhightemperaturesdueto
compressionoftheairathighspeeds.Insulatorsmustmeet
demandingphysicalpropertiesbeyondtheirthermaltransfer
retardantproperties.E.g.reinforcedcarboncarboncompositenose
coneandsilicafibertilesoftheSpaceShuttle.SeealsoInsulative
paint.

Thermalinsulationappliedtoexhaust
componentbymeansofplasma
spraying

Automotive
Internalcombustionenginesproducealotofheatduringtheir
combustioncycle.Thiscanhaveanegativeeffectwhenitreaches
variousheatsensitivecomponentssuchassensors,batteriesand
startermotors.Asaresult,thermalinsulationisnecessarytoprevent
theheatfromtheexhaustreachingthesecomponents.

ThermalinsulationontheHuygens
probe

Highperformancecarsoftenusethermalinsulationasameansto
increaseengineperformance.

Factorsinfluencingperformance
Insulationperformanceisinfluencedbymanyfactorsthemost
prominentofwhichinclude:
Thermalconductivity("k"or""value)
Surfaceemissivity(""value)
Insulationthickness
Density
Specificheatcapacity
Thermalbridging

CabininsulationofaBoeing7478
airliner

Itisimportanttonotethatthefactorsinfluencingperformancemayvaryovertimeasmaterialagesor
environmentalconditionschange.

Calculatingrequirements
Industrystandardsareoftenrulesofthumb,developedovermanyyears,thatoffsetmanyconflictinggoals:
whatpeoplewillpayfor,manufacturingcost,localclimate,traditionalbuildingpractices,andvarying
standardsofcomfort.Bothheattransferandlayeranalysismaybeperformedinlargeindustrial
applications,butinhouseholdsituations(appliancesandbuildinginsulation),airtightnessisthekeyin
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reducingheattransferduetoairleakage(forcedornaturalconvection).Onceairtightnessisachieved,it
hasoftenbeensufficienttochoosethethicknessoftheinsulatinglayerbasedonrulesofthumb.
Diminishingreturnsareachievedwitheachsuccessivedoublingoftheinsulatinglayer.Itcanbeshownthat
forsomesystems,thereisaminimuminsulationthicknessrequiredforanimprovementtoberealized.[3]

Seealso
Thermalmass
Listofthermalconductivities
Insulativepaint

References
1. Bergman,Lavine,IncroperaandDeWitt,IntroductiontoHeatTransfer(sixthedition),Wiley,2011.
2. http://www.firoflex.co.uk/KnowHow/FAQPipeFreezing.html
3. FrankP.IncroperaDavidP.DeWitt(1990).FundamentalsofHeatandMassTransfer(3rded.).JohnWiley&
Sons.pp.100103.ISBN0471517291.
U.S.EnvironmentalProtectionAgencyandtheU.S.DepartmentofEnergy'sOfficeofBuildingTechnologies.
LooseFillInsulations,DOE/GO10095060,FS140,EnergyEfficiencyandRenewableEnergyClearinghouse
(EREC),May1995.
InsulationFactSheet,U.S.DepartmentofEnergy,updatetobepublished1996.AlsoavailablefromEREC.
Lowe,Allen."InsulationUpdate,"TheSouthfaceJournal,1995,No.3.SouthfaceEnergyInstitute,Atlanta,GA.
ICAADirectoryofProfessionalInsulationContractors,1996,andAPlantoStopFluffingandCheatingof
LooseFillInsulationinAttics,InsulationContractorsAssociationofAmerica,1321DukeSt.,#303,Alexandria,
VA22314,(703)7390356.
USDOEConsumerEnergyInformation.
InsulationInformationforNebraskaHomeowners,NF9140.
ArticleinDailyFreeman,Thursday,8September2005,Kingston,NY.
TM58526AFR8819,Volume6(ArmyCorpofEngineerspublication).
CenterPointEnergyCustomerRelations.
USDOEpublication,ResidentialInsulation
(http://www.energycodes.gov/implement/pdfs/lib_ks_residential_insulation.pdf)
USDOEpublication,EnergyEfficientWindows(http://www.energycodes.gov/implement/pdfs/lib_ks_energy
efficient_windows.pdf)
USEPApublicationonhomesealing
(http://www.energystar.gov/ia/home_improvement/home_sealing/DIY_COLOR_100_dpi.pdf)
DOE/CE2002(http://www.ornl.gov/sci/roofs+walls/insulation/ins_02.html)
AlaskaScienceForum,May7,1981,RigidInsulation,Article#484,byT.NeilDavis,providedasapublic
servicebytheGeophysicalInstitute,UniversityofAlaskaFairbanks,incooperationwiththeUAFresearch
community.
Guideraisonndelaconstructioncologique(Guidetoproducts/fabricantsofgreenbuildingmaterialsmainlyin
Francebutalsosurroundingcountries),BatirSain(http://www.batirsain.org)20089

Externallinks
ThermalPerformance:Understandinghowreflective
insulationworks(http://www.insul.net/howto.php)

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