Session

Civil Engineering, Infrastructure and Environment

Description

This study investigates the thermal behaviour of concrete incorporating alternative aggregates, focused on polymer-coated wood-based particles, impregnated with phase change materials (PCM). Four concrete mixes were evaluated: conventional concrete (reference), concrete with coarse aggregates fully replaced with wood particles coated with carboxylated styrene–butadiene rubber (XSBR), concrete with uncoated wood particles as aggregate replacement, and wood particles saturated with a phase change material and coated with XSBR. 72-mm dia. spherical samples with were subjected to a controlled thermal loading protocol: initial stabilization at ~7 °C, followed by exposure to a convective heating environment (~40 °C). the temperature was monitored at the barycentre of each sphere with type K thermocouples. Results show a significant delay in heat transfer in samples containing PCM, indicating a thermal buffering effect during the phase transition interval. The wood-based aggregates also exhibited a lower thermal conductivity when compared to conventional aggregates, contributing to a slower temperature increase. In addition to this experimental study, a computational thermal model was developed to simulate the heat transfer within the spheres using Finite Element Methods (FEM). The model accurately predicted the behaviour of the reference concrete, confirming the applicability of standard thermal parameters. However, as the material complexity (and hence, heterogeneity) increased, with the introduction of bio-aggregates, polymer layers, and PCMs, deviations between simulations and experiments became more pronounced. The simplified modelling approach failed to fully capture the latent heat dynamics, underscoring the need for more advanced modelling techniques when simulating materials with phase change phenomena and heterogeneous microstructures.

Keywords:

Thermal conductivity, Phase change materials (PCM), Bio-based aggregates, Heat transfer modeling

Proceedings Editor

Edmond Hajrizi

ISBN

978-9951-982-41-2

Location

UBT Kampus, Lipjan

Start Date

25-10-2025 9:00 AM

End Date

26-10-2025 6:00 PM

DOI

10.33107/ubt-ic.2025.51

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Oct 25th, 9:00 AM Oct 26th, 6:00 PM

Thermal Behaviour of Concrete with Bio-Derived and PCM-Modified Aggregates: Insights from Experiments and FEM Simulations

UBT Kampus, Lipjan

This study investigates the thermal behaviour of concrete incorporating alternative aggregates, focused on polymer-coated wood-based particles, impregnated with phase change materials (PCM). Four concrete mixes were evaluated: conventional concrete (reference), concrete with coarse aggregates fully replaced with wood particles coated with carboxylated styrene–butadiene rubber (XSBR), concrete with uncoated wood particles as aggregate replacement, and wood particles saturated with a phase change material and coated with XSBR. 72-mm dia. spherical samples with were subjected to a controlled thermal loading protocol: initial stabilization at ~7 °C, followed by exposure to a convective heating environment (~40 °C). the temperature was monitored at the barycentre of each sphere with type K thermocouples. Results show a significant delay in heat transfer in samples containing PCM, indicating a thermal buffering effect during the phase transition interval. The wood-based aggregates also exhibited a lower thermal conductivity when compared to conventional aggregates, contributing to a slower temperature increase. In addition to this experimental study, a computational thermal model was developed to simulate the heat transfer within the spheres using Finite Element Methods (FEM). The model accurately predicted the behaviour of the reference concrete, confirming the applicability of standard thermal parameters. However, as the material complexity (and hence, heterogeneity) increased, with the introduction of bio-aggregates, polymer layers, and PCMs, deviations between simulations and experiments became more pronounced. The simplified modelling approach failed to fully capture the latent heat dynamics, underscoring the need for more advanced modelling techniques when simulating materials with phase change phenomena and heterogeneous microstructures.