The impact of vacuum degree and barrier envelope on thermal property and service life of vacuum insulation panels

Abstract

Vacuum insulation panels (VIPs) are regarded as one of the most upcoming high performance thermal insulated material presently, which facilitates it possible to obtain slim and high-performance insulation. Among various insulation materials, VIPs is the most common type for buildings applications with the advantage of reduced required thickness. However, the long-term thermal performance, that is, service life, is one of key properties of VIPs, as well as an interesting attention for researchers, manufacturers and users. Up to now, the service life is not sufficiently clarified in terms of influence of vacuum degree and barrier envelope. In this paper, a theoretical model was established and experimentally validated to effectively predict the conductivity of VIPs. A self-designed device was applied to measure the vacuum degree and three typical barrier envelopes were introduced and the properties parameters were measured to study the effect of durability. The results indicated that the VIPs with the AF-barrier envelope can maintain the effective insulated property for a long time in theoretical prediction model. Also, some optimization methods to improve VIPs life were also proposed. Finally, the results are significant to predict the service life of VIPs and practical application for buildings.