Arranging insulation for better thermal resistance in concrete and maonry wall systems

This paper investigates how the spatial arrangement of thermal insulation influences the overall thermal resistance of concrete and masonry wall systems. Multi-dimensional finite difference modeling was used for this purpose. Concrete masonry units (CMUs) are commercially produced in various geometries and with different weight concretes. Although insulation inserts can increase a CMUs thermal performance, thermal bridging through the solid webbing of the CMUs can greatly reduce the effectiveness of the integrated insulation. Different commercially available CMU geometries and concrete weights were investigated using finite difference modeling to show the impact on overall CMU R-value and to determine the thermal efficiency of the insulation inserts.