From aggregate to particleboard: A new multi-scale model approach to thermal conductivity in bio-based materials

Abstract

Bio-based materials have both insulating and eco-friendly properties, so their use is becoming of major interest in the current context of energy and greenhouse gas reduction. This study focuses on the development of 100% bio-based insulating panels. To minimize their environmental impact, particleboards were made from a locally available aggregate and were manufactured with a low energy process, without any binder. The thermal conductivity of the panels was predicted by means of an analytical model developed during the study, which was based only on easily accessible input data. This approach enabled the variability of the resource to be taken into account. This study demonstrates that it is possible to avoid time-consuming characterization steps and to propose a material whose thermal performance can be anticipated, over the entire temperature and relative humidity range of use, even before the manufacturing step and despite the variability of the resource.