Natural and ecological insulation
Keywords: insulation, sustainable, organic, comparative, properties, cork, wool, hemp, wood wool…
There are many “natural” insulators that are as efficient, or even better, than chemical insulating materials (rock wool, glass wool, polystyrenes, polyurethane, etc.), here is a small comparative summary of the different products on the insulation market. Here is the list of insulators mentioned in this "file on natural insulators"
Our "Reference" (hum hum ...): glass wool
It was invented (industrially) in 1938 by Russell Games Slayter of Owens-Corning as a material that could be used in insulation.
The first commercial production of fiberglass dates back to 1936. In 1938, the Owens-Illinois Glass Company and the Corning Glass Works joined together to create the Owens-Corning Fiberglas Corporation. Until that time, all glass fibers had been used in the manufacture of staples. When the two companies came together to produce and promote fiberglass, they introduced continuous fiberglass filament.
Owens-Corning is still the leading manufacturer of fiberglass today.
Thermal properties of glass wool
Thermal resistance for a layer of 10 cm: 0,1 / 0,04 = 2,5 m². ° C / W. In other words, one m2 of rock wool of 10cm will let through 0,4W (1 / 2,5) per degree of temperature difference between the interior and the exterior of the house (or rather the layer of wool Rock).
practical example
Based only on conduction and in steady state (constant indoor and outdoor temperatures). This example is easily transposable to the other materials mentioned below, it will therefore be explained only once.
A height of 120m2 with rockwool 20cm and a temperature difference of 15 ° C will present thermal losses:
Losses = flow area = * (temperature difference) / R * area = 15 / 5 120 * = 360W be 3W per m².
The different ecological alternatives to glass wool: