NY-14-C026 -- Performance Evaluation of External Insulation and Finish Systems using Vacuum Insulation Panels for Low-Energy Apartment Buildings

In recent years, the diminishing availability of fossil fuels and rapidly increasing energy costs have led to growing concerns worldwide. Under social and political pressure to minimize unnecessary energy consumption, the Korean government has set a goal of "Green Development" as a path to national growth. To meet the target for "Passive House" construction by 2017, the government has announced that insulation regulations will become stricter. It has been suggested that high-performance insulation panels, such as vacuum insulation panels (VIPs), be used to decrease the thickness of outer walls. Otherwise, enhanced insulation regulations would require dramatically thicker walls, which would result in a reduced effective floor area. The energy performance of a base model with a conventional internal insulation system and four alternatives consisting of mechanically fixed external insulation systems with VIPs were analyzed through a three-dimensional steady-state heat transfer simulation. The construction costs and convenience of each system were compared. The simulation results demonstrated the superiority of effective external insulation systems with VIPs, based on a weighted combination of three factors: energy performance, construction costs and construction convenience.