Within the framework of Working Group 2 of the Eguralt project, and especially Activity 2.3, three full-scale walls were designed and assembled. This experience is Pilot 2 which aims to characterise the behaviour of different walls equipped with Raw Earth Bricks -REB- (Fig. 1) and bio-sourced Phase Change Material -PCM- in a passive (Fig. 2) and active configuration use.
Figure 1: Composition and instrumentation of studied timber wall: Raw Earth Bricks -REB- integration
Figure 2: Composition and instrumentation of studied timber wall: Phase Change Material -PCM- integration
These different walls were integrated into the west façade of a low-energy timber dwelling to assess the ability of these REB and PCM to reduce summer discomfort in timber buildings.
2 cm of PCM or 7 cm of REB were embedded in the timber frame, just behind a naturally ventilated cladding (and a rain barrier). This study mainly pointed out that both PCM and REB can mitigate the heat wave through:
- The cladding and the air gap allowed a temperature drop of 5°C during the summer period.
- PCM can influence:
- The heat wave is shifted by 5 hours.
- Passive use: The temperature drops through the PCM by about 14°C compared to the ambient air temperature (passive use). Temperature maintenance is about 21°C (21°C is the melting temperature of the PCM).
- Active use: In addition to the (insulation) substitution effect of the PCM.
- REB can also influence:
- The heat wave is shifted by 6 hours.
- The temperature drops through the REB by about 12°C compared to the outside ambient air temperature.
Figure 3: Integration of the experimental setup (timber wall integrating or PCM or REB) in place of the door of a timber low-consumption dwelling.
