Long-term performance of vacuum insulations panels in buildings and building systems

Other conference contribution, 2015

The extremely low thermal conductivity of vacuum insulation panels (VIP) leads to less required insulation thickness in different applications. This paper aims to present our research findings related to the long-term performance of VIPs based on measurements during the last five years. The measurements were performed both in laboratory and in field where the real condition are present. The performance of an exterior wall retrofitted with VIPs and a hybrid insulated district heating pipe were observed. The expected service life of both application are more than 50 years. Thus, the long-term performance of the VIPs is of interest. The results of the evaluation indicate that there is no considerable performance degradation after five years in the wall application and after three years in the hybrid insulated pipes. The results are promising. However, it is still too soon to make final conclusions of the entire service life performance of the applications.