In this paper the full house hygrothermal performance of an aerated concrete wall system is examined for the hot and humid climate of Miami. The results clearly demonstrated the limited drying potential for the wall system in that climate. The selected exterior thermal insulation strategies and interior vapor control strategies in this study show the critical behavior of the full house with respect to drying initial construction moisture. Moisture related problems such as mold growth are simulated and discussed. From these results moisture control strategies are identified for the whole house hygrothermal performance.

Article Outline

1. Introduction

2. Objectives of present study

3. Vapor control theory

4. Material-property determination

4.1. Water vapor permeance and liquid diffusivity

5. Description of the model

6. Problem description

7. Boundary conditions

8. Simulation results

9. Vapor control and fungal contamination in building envelope

9.1. Estimation and description of mold growth analysis

9.2. Mold growth results

10. Conclusions

• envelope materials : conreate, stucco
• HAM: theory and modelling : Hygrothermal system-performance of a whole building
• moisture control, moisture management
• moisture engineering
• Whole building HAM: models
• Whole building HAM: theory and modeling

1. A North American research approach to moisture design by modeling
2. Advanced hygrothermal modeling of building materials using MOISTURE-EXPERT 1.0
3. Advanced hygrothermal models and design models
4. An educational hygrothermal model: WUFI-ORNL/IBP
5. Applied moisture engineering
6. Barrier EIFS clad walls: Results from a moisture engineering study
7. Boundary element analysis of uncoupled quasi-static hygrothermoelasticity for two-dimensional composite walls
8. Building enclosure hygrothermal performance study phase I
9. Drying capabilities of wood frame walls with wood siding
10. EIFS hygrothermal performance due to initial construction moisture as a function of air leakage, interior cavity insulation, and climate conditions
11. Importance of moisture control in building performance
12. Influence of material properties on the hygrothermal performance of a high-rise residential wall
13. Integrated approaches for moisture analysis
14. Integrated hygrothermal performance of building envelopes and systems
15. Measurements and two-dimensional computer simulations of the hygrothermal performance of a wood frame wall
16. Moisture transport in building envelopes using an approximate factorization solution method
17. Position paper on material characterization and HAM model benchmarking
18. Simulation of indoor temperature and humidity conditions including hygrothermal interactions with the building envelope
19. Wind-driven rain distributions on two buildings
20. WUFI-ORNL/IBP - A North American Hygrothermal Mode  

1. Drying capabilities of wood frame walls with wood siding
2. EIFS hygrothermal performance due to initial construction moisture as a function of air leakage, interior cavity insulation, and climate conditions
3. Heat and mass transfer between indoor air and a permeable and hygroscopic building envelope: part I -- field measurements
4. Heat and mass transfer between indoor air and a permeable and hygroscopic building envelope: part II --verification and numerical studies
5. Hygrothermal performance of a new light gauge steel-framed envelope system
6. Improving indoor climate and comfort with wooden structures
7. Influence of material properties on the hygrothermal performance of a high-rise residential wall
8. Integrated hygrothermal performance of building envelopes and systems
9. Integration of simplified drying tests and numerical simulation in moisture performance analysis of the building envelope
10. Measurements and two-dimensional computer simulations of the hygrothermal performance of a wood frame wall
11. Measuring and modeling vapor boundary layer growth during transient diffusion heat and moisture transfer in cellulose insulation
12. Moisture transport in building envelopes using an approximate factorization solution method
13. Numerical simulation of mould growth in timber frame walls
14. Prediction of hygrothermal performance of building envelope parts coupled with indoor climate
15. Stochastic building envelope modeling -- the influence of material properties