Numerical simulation of the finished masonry performance with concrete blocks

Abstract

Environmental sustainability in civil construction requires energy efficiency and the preservation of natural resources. The thermal performance of buildings is essential to meet these requirements, and the new revision of the NBR 15575 standard establishes criteria for its evaluation. The exploratory research evaluated the development and thermal performance of Block DT 39 by calculating the thermal transmittance and the thermal capacity of the building envelope and the unit's compression tests. The EnergyPlus program was used to simulate the thermal behavior with the insertion of the new block in different configurations. The results showed that the modification in the geometry of the block improved the thermal performance, and the insertion of the block in one or all the walls of the building increased the comfort and reduced the thermal load. In summary, the development of new building materials is one of the necessary strategies to achieve environmental sustainability in civil construction.