Building Intelligence

DOW Chemical Company Uses SMT Sensors and Analysis Software in Continuous Insulation Study

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, buildings account for 50% of energy consumption and green house gas emissions. To combat these startling figures ASHRAE 90.1-2007 and IECC standards mandate that continuous insulation be required in climate zones two through eight on steel-stud construction. The DOW Chemical Company recently used SMT hardware and software to test this effectiveness of this stipulation.

The published study examined the results of a rehabilitation project on a seven story structure in Vancouver. The continuous foam insulation was attached with screw-fasteners to the exterior every three inches to minimize insulation penetrations. According to DOW, SMT’s “detailed monitoring equipment was installed throughout the building to record dimensional and hygrothermal information for the continuously insulated wall assembly and its components.” These sensors were installed on the second, fourth, and sixth floors, on the North and South faces of the building.

The sensors were inserted into the middle of the foam, making certain the exterior cladding remained uninfluenced. An epoxy was applied to the sensors within the foam to create a contact between the sensors and the bracket. Using SMT’s analytic software to decipher the data, DOW concluded that a “continuously insulated rain screen wall system constructed from three inches of extruded polystyrene insulation [...] provides a structurally robust wall that complies with the prescriptive requirements of ASHRAE 90.1 and is dimensionally stable.”

Complete data analysis can be viewed in detail within the report with the assistance of graphs provided by SMT’s analytic software and SMT sensors.

SMT Sensor Location on XPS Board