Accurate measurement of thermal transmittance (U-value) is crucial for evaluating the energy performance of windows, particularly in the context of energy retrofitting and the conservation of historic buildings. However, on-site measurements face significant challenges due to a lack of comprehen-sive testing methods for windows, insufficient information about window characteristics required for calculations, and uncertainties associated with the wall-to-window connection. To address these issues, this study introduces an innovative and portable prototype, the "Window U-Value Measuring Box” (WUM-box) based on the "guarded hot box" principle (EN ISO 8990) de-signed for on-site application. A first prototype was developed and opti-mized through thermal simulations in dynamic conditions. The performance of the measuring box was assessed through laboratory tests conducted in a controlled environment on an EPS-glass-EPS specimen with known material properties. These tests allowed for direct comparisons with results obtained using also a calculation based on the EN 6946 standard. While the results re-vealed measurable uncertainties associated with this type of measurement, they also offered valuable insights into their source, highlighting critical as-pects to be addressed in both the physical setup and the data analysis.

Currently, the WUM-box is to be considered a research tool; nevertheless, it represents a significant advancement in non-destructive thermal measure-ment. The tests carried out exploiting the developed prototype lays the groundwork for the development of a more advanced version that will aim to overcome the identified existing limitations. This development takes place within the framework of the CALECHE project (HORIZON).

Moisture transport and storage in porous materials plays an important role in many fields of science and engineering such as concrete technology, soil science and building physics. The availability of experimental techniques for the reliable assessment of the moisture distribution in porous materials is crucial in all these disciplines. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) has been shown to be a powerful technique for non-invasive moisture content measurements. It can be applied in understanding cement hydration, fluid transport in rocks and soil, geological prospecting and characterization of building materials.

While conventional non-movable NMR devices are limited to laboratory applications, single-sided NMR devices based on open magnets are portable sensors suitable for in situ measurements. This application is particularly promising in building physics, e.g., for the assessment of driving rain absorption or rising damp by a building façade, two typical real-life phenomena which have a relevant impact on constructions’ durability as well as indoor comfort and hygiene. Single-sided NMR represents moreover a valuable technique for lab applications and material properties characterization, e.g., for determination of the capillary absorption coefficient and liquid water diffusivity function. To bring this promising technique to its full potential however, further testing on building materials and validation against alternative methods is required.

In this paper single-sided nuclear magnetic resonance is applied to characterize the liquid water diffusivity of typical building materials subject to spontaneous imbibition. Three exemplary materials are investigated: ceramic brick, calcium silicate and aerated concrete. As industrial products, they present a high homogeneity over different samples and their pore structures represent a broad range of building materials. Moreover, these materials have been widely studied in previous research papers. Therefore, the experimental outcomes of this study can be compared with the results by alternative experimental methods available in the literature. Single sided NMR is engaged to determine the time development of moisture content at a given positions in samples subject to water uptake. Via mathematical procedure the raw data are translated into the liquid water diffusivity function. This function is then used as input of a numerical solver to simulate the absorption process. The results are finally compared with water uptake curves determined gravimetrically and with data from the literature, proving that the applied method is reliable.

With an increased focus on developing wall systems to retrofit our existing building stock, and increasing demand for thermal performance and air tightness, the hygrothermal performance of these novel wall assemblies are of critical importance. Hygrothermal models are being developed of these new, complex systems, to understand how moisture moves through the assembly, and ensure that dangerous conditions are not present through the wall. Once these models are developed, it is challenging and time consuming to get high quality data sets to calibrate and/or validate against. This is because traditionally, this is done by instrumenting and monitoring a mock-up exposed to weather or a full-scale pilot project for an extended period of time, usually a minimum of 1 year to get both heating and cooling conditions in norther climates. As a result, the success of the monitoring is dependent on the weather conditions in a given year, including the severity of the weather experienced and whether long enough periods of consistent weather are present to get accurate response to created events.

To overcome the challenges poised by long-term in-situ monitoring when determining the hygrothermal performance of a proposed building envelope, a method for determining the performance under controlled, repeatable laboratory conditions was developed. This testing methodology has been developed using a large scale, 2-storey guarded hot box (GHB), which was designed to not only control temperatures on both sides of a sample, as seen in a typical GHB, but to also control and introduce a gradient in terms of relative humidity (and consequently vapour pressure) and air pressure across the sample. When coupled with a pressurized spray rack (PSR), which can be used to create controlled precipitation events, a full range of hygrothermal conditions can be tested, recreating weather conditions of interest.

This paper presents this newly developed testing methodology, through three different case studies of recently completed projects utilizing the GHB and PSR to undertake a repeatable testing sequence, including for a retrofit panel system, a mass masonry wall retrofit, and a new construction assembly. This allowed for an accurate data sets to be developed, which have now been used to validate and calibrate models within both WUFI and DELPHIN. The conditions and testing sequences being used, and the measured response within the wall assemblies will be presented. Overall, this new test methodology allows for detailed hygrothermal testing to be reduced from 1+ years to 6-12 weeks.

The significance of sound insulation and noise protection is contingent on the utilization of thermal insulation and the implementation of lightweight con-struction methodologies. In both scenarios, sound transmission is predominant-ly characterized by a deficiency in mass. The materials employed for thermal insulation are often inadequate for sound insulation and noise protection pur-poses. Moreover, the presence of leaks in the building envelope, including connections such as windows and doors, serves to facilitate sound transmission within the building, thereby compromising the effectiveness of the building envelope's sound insulation. This study undertakes a comprehensive analysis of noise protection in lightweight construction, employing a case study ap-proach. The subject of the study is two neighbouring detached houses, con-structed on two storeys and insulated with a external thermal insulation compo-site system. The sound transmission through the staircase in one of the houses results in a discernible background noise in the neighbouring house. Innovative methods are employed to analyse the causes of the sound transmission caused by the staircase in the transmitter house in the receiver house. The conventional measurement method has been proven to be inadequate in this context, as it does not allow for differentiation between the various potential causes. For in-stance, it is not possible to determine whether the sound is transmitted through windows or connections. Consequently, the investigation is continued with an acoustic camera, which allows for the visualisation and localisation of the sound waves and sources.

The Nanjing City Wall, a remarkable cultural heritage structure with over 600 years of history, faces challenges from environmental and climatic factors that contribute to its deterioration. A significant characteristic of the Nanjing City Wall is the abundant vegetation growing around the structure. While the aes-thetic and ecological value of this vegetation is recognized, its role in the deg-radation or protection of the wall’s bricks remains poorly understood, creating a pressing need for scientific investigation. This study aims to address this knowledge gap by analyzing the impact of vegetation on the microclimate sur-rounding the wall and its effects on brick material deterioration. Using a com-bination of meteorological parameter monitoring and periodic weighing of de-tached material from the wall surface, we quantitatively compared the deteriora-tion of wall bricks under two conditions: with and without vegetation shading. The results revealed the following: 1) Vegetation shading significantly stabiliz-es both heritage structure and its surrounding microclimate, effectively reduc-ing wall surface temperature, fluctuations in thermal and humidity parameters, solar radiation, and precipitation. 2) The presence of vegetation does not con-sistently mitigate surface degradation, as deterioration rates varied between shaded and bare walls across different hygrothermal conditions. 3) Precipita-tion, humidity, and temperature emerged as key meteorological drivers of brick deterioration in spring. These findings highlighting the need for careful assess-ment and management of nature-based solutions (NbS) in heritage environ-ments.

The appropriate choice of window structures for a future or renovated building plays a key role in terms of the user and their future costs for the operation and heating of the building. In this paper, the author deals with the analysis of the results measured on the glazing of a plastic window, which is installed in the pavilion laboratory of the Department of Building Engineering and Urban Planning of the Faculty of Civil Engineering of the University of Zilina (Slovakia), where it was tested in standard indoor climatic conditions and real outdoor climatic conditions. During the laboratory measurements, the surface temperature from both the interior and exterior sides of the glazing was recorded at points defined by a regular grid pattern. The data were recorded in minute time steps. The paper will present the effect of surface temperature on the heat flux density passing through the glazing.