Heat Transmission in Building Structures

Chapter 5

Basic Heat Transfer Modes

• Heat is transferred in buildings in the three known ways, which are
• conduction,
• Convection
• radiation
Flat wall case
•

In terms of thermal resistance……

Analogy to electrical system….

Same techniques can be applied to analyze wall or slab made up of two or more
layers of dissimilar material.
Combine Thermal Resistance
Parallel thermal resistance
Radiation
R, air space =f(orientation, heat flow, air temperature, effective emittance)
Thermal bridge
• A large variation in the thermal resistance of parallel conduction
paths is called a thermal bridge
• A thermal bridge as in ASHREA is an envelope area with significantly
higher rate of heat transfer than the contiguous enclosure.
• Cause condensation inside air space
• To overcome the effect of thermal bridging the
following is suggested:
• a) use of lower-thermal-conductivity bridging
material,
• b) changing the geometry or construction system,
• c) putting an insulating sheath around the bridge
Over all heat transfer coefficients
• Walls and roofs
• Ceiling spaces should be vented to remove potentially damaging
moisture
• Only moderate ventilation rates
• Use of reflective surfaces is therefore much more useful in reduc-ing
heat transfer
Floor Slabs at Grade Level
Buried Pipes
Moisture transmission
• mold formation
• reduces the thermal resistance of the insulation