Experimental and theoretical study on thermal and moisture characteristics of new-type bamboo structure wall

Abstract

Thermal and moisture characteristics of the bamboo structure wall were tested in natural climate and three representative variation processes of heat and moisture: heating from solar radiation in summer at normal temperature and humidity, heating from solar radiation in summer at normal temperature and high humidity after rain, humidifying from brash in summer at high temperature and normal humidity. The results show that, in summer, the largest temperature difference between external and internal surface of the 28 mm-thick bamboo plywood wall is 11.73 °C (at 15:40) and the largest strain difference is 136 μm/m (at 18:50), both in ambient and indoor conditioned environment. In heating process, lengthways of the wall surface are in contracting strain while transverse ways are in expanding strain at initial stage and in contracting strain during later period. When the high temperature wall is humidified by rain, the surface temperature drops, moisture content increases and the expanding strain is presented on the surface during the whole process. Temperature and moisture content are two important factors which affect thermal and moisture stress (TMS) of the bamboo structure wall. The TMS is not only related to temperature and moisture content, but also greatly affected by temperature gradient, moisture content gradient and rates of changing.