Phase change materials for improving the building thermal inertia

A solution based on the incorporation of a phase change material with ventilation tubes is proposed. This coupling is tested on a building material concrete block to increase the thermal inertia of the building walls. In the first part of the study, an experimental device is designed to compare the thermal response of different configurations depending on the condition of the tubes (open, closed, ventilated). The second part concerns a 3D numerical simulation. The results show potential solutions to ensure a large thermal inertia of a building. (C) 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.