Proposing new materials and systems to improve the performance and energy efficiency of buildings is often followed by performance evaluation to monitor how they perform and contribute. Experimental performance characterization of new and existing building materials and systems is crucial to understanding their behaviour in relation to indoor environmental and conditional changes, in addition to outdoor environmental changes. Full-scale experimental test cell facilities have been at the forefront of experimental performance evaluation in building-related research, as they can provide a realistic representation of buildings, which includes environmental conditions, building structure, and operational characteristics. In this paper, the new test cell facility of BeTOP, located in the city of Toronto, Ontario, is introduced as a full-scale experimental facility with the capability of multiple practical tests simultaneously. This paper describes the characteristics of this test cell, including structure details, testing capabilities, system details, previous testing campaigns, and future testing potential. The design of such a full-scale testing facility is shown to be crucial in a continental climate, such as Toronto, to observe the long-term performance of new systems under variable boundary conditions with cold winters and hot and humid summer seasons.

Outdoor test facilities for the experimental performance evaluation of construction materials and systems: The BeTOP case / Berardi, U.; Soudian, S.. - In: CASE STUDIES IN CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS. - ISSN 2214-5095. - 18:(2023). [10.1016/j.cscm.2023.e01920]

Outdoor test facilities for the experimental performance evaluation of construction materials and systems: The BeTOP case

Berardi U.;
2023-01-01

Abstract

Proposing new materials and systems to improve the performance and energy efficiency of buildings is often followed by performance evaluation to monitor how they perform and contribute. Experimental performance characterization of new and existing building materials and systems is crucial to understanding their behaviour in relation to indoor environmental and conditional changes, in addition to outdoor environmental changes. Full-scale experimental test cell facilities have been at the forefront of experimental performance evaluation in building-related research, as they can provide a realistic representation of buildings, which includes environmental conditions, building structure, and operational characteristics. In this paper, the new test cell facility of BeTOP, located in the city of Toronto, Ontario, is introduced as a full-scale experimental facility with the capability of multiple practical tests simultaneously. This paper describes the characteristics of this test cell, including structure details, testing capabilities, system details, previous testing campaigns, and future testing potential. The design of such a full-scale testing facility is shown to be crucial in a continental climate, such as Toronto, to observe the long-term performance of new systems under variable boundary conditions with cold winters and hot and humid summer seasons.
2023
Outdoor test facilities for the experimental performance evaluation of construction materials and systems: The BeTOP case / Berardi, U.; Soudian, S.. - In: CASE STUDIES IN CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS. - ISSN 2214-5095. - 18:(2023). [10.1016/j.cscm.2023.e01920]
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11589/258103
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