Evaluation of Experimental Parameters in the Accelerated Aging of Closed-Cell Foam Insulation: Results after Five Years of Full-Thickness Aging PDF

The thermal conductivity of many closed-cell foam insulation products changes over time as production gases diffuse out of the cell matrix and atmospheric gases diffuse into the cells. Thin slicing has been shown to be an effective means of accelerating this process in such a way as to produce meaningful results. Efforts to produce a more prescriptive version of the ASTM C1303 standard test method led to the ruggedness test (a "test the test" process) described here. This test program included the aging of full-size insulation specimens for time periods of five years for direct comparison to the predicted results. Experimental parameters under investigation include: slice thickness, slice origin (at the surface or from the core of the slab), thin slice stack composition, product facings, original product thickness, product density, and product type. This paper provides a detailed evaluation of the impact of the test parameters on the accuracy of the five-year thermal conductivity prediction.

Presented at Thermal Performance of Exterior Envelopes of Whole Buildings XII, December 2013