The Effect of Nano Insulating Materials on the Thermal Performance of Residential Apartments

Abstract

The environmental sustainability of residential units is related to various design principles, among which nanotechnology has emerged as a significant contributor to enhancing thermal performance. Despite their high initial cost, these materials promise to elevate the quality of residential performance and thermal comfort over time. There were numerous studies that addressed this subject, but the vast majority of them approached research and evaluation with an investigative and analytical mindset. There aren't many studies that look at the precise computer evaluation of the usage of insulating nanotechnologies in architecture, which shows that there is still a research deficit in the field. The objective of the research was to focus on computational capabilities to estimate the percentage of improvement in the thermal performance of a residential apartment in Mosul using local materials as a baseline case and compare it to expanded polystyrene second, followed by Nano insulation materials third and fourth, respectively. The results obtained show that, in each sample in the prior situations, the required thermal load decreased by rates of 45.8%, 22.8%, and 28.9% respectively, when compared to the base case. This demonstrates how crucial the nanomaterial's insulating properties are to raising thermal efficiency. Further, our findings demonstrated that the application of nanotechnology, particularly nano-vacuum insulation panels, can increase the number of days of thermal comfort in a residential apartment while concurrently reducing the peak heating and cooling requirements.