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Building Physics

Building physics is about the transport of heat, moisture and air in materials, building components and buildings. Together with the construction industry, we work to understand and manage these processes, especially in roofs and external walls.

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We work in large and small projects within both rehabilitation and new constructions. We develop new building materials, building systems and methods.

We contribute with:

  • research projects in collaboration with the industry
  • research-based consultancy
  • project review by third-party independent assessment of planning and construction
  • damage assessments, especially moisture damage

We carry out a number of calculations and analyses in the laboratory and in the field:

  • 1D and 2D moisture engineering calculations of water vapor and capillary transport in walls, ceilings and floors, including control of condensation and mould growth. SINTEF is a Norwegian partner with the developers of WUFI.
  • measuring moisture and heat transport in external wall systems in a climate simulator
  • measurement of moisture and temperature in the external structures of new and existing buildings
  • measurement of moisture and heat flow properties in materials
  • heat flow calculations to calculate thermal bridges ​​and U-values, as well as controls for internal surface condensation
  • measuring properties of entire building systems, for example air tightness, U-value and driving rain tightness
  • thermal indoor climate, for example related to solar shading and excess temperatures from solar heating
  • daylight calculations
  • airflow in ventilation systems, in buildings, around buildings (building and neighbourhood level), pipes and water-based heating/cooling systems in terms of fluid flow.

Laboratories

News

New guidelines for green roofs

New guidelines for green roofs

More green roofs and facades will help to create more space for natural habitats in our urban environments. A new set of guidelines has been prepared for those of us looking to green our roofs.

Are architectural approaches holding water?

Are architectural approaches holding water?

Students, researchers and the building industry are collaborating to adapt our homes to climate change. And they’re identifying solutions that hadn’t been obvious before.

Projects

HeriTACE

HeriTACE

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A transdisciplinary project addressing the deep energy renovation of heritage buildings.

Ti-ReX

Ti-ReX

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End:

Framework for smart condition reassessment of reclaimed timber to extend the service life of long-lived wood products using non-destructive testing and automated data postprocessing

FRIC

FRIC

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Fires lead to major losses every year, both in terms of fatalities and injured people, and in terms of lost values. In response to this challenge, the Fire Research and Innovation Centre (FRIC) started in 2019.