Thermal bridges occurrence analysis in timber construction walls filled with hemp fibers

Timber frame construction walls usually require additional filling that improves their thermal insulation. As a filler may be used insulating material in a loose state, such as mineral wool, cellulose, flax or hemp fibers. The temperature distribution in a wall is influenced by heterogeneity of the partition that comprises the elements characterized by higher thermal conductivity, i.e. timber frame. Thermal bridges (i.e. thermally weaker areas) in walls are conducive to the mould growth as well as condensation; thus, it is important to take these phenomena into account during wall design. The work describes a 2D heat-transfer analysis carried out with finite-element method by means of THERM software. The analysis involved a few different variants of external walls filled with hemp fibers. The thermal parameters related to the investigated hemp fibers were taken from the authors’ own research.