Impact of Columns and Beams on the Thermal Resistance of the Building Envelope

Abstract

This paper addresses the effect of thermal bridging due to columns and beams on energy consumption and peak load requirements of typical private residential villas in Kuwait. Although it is common practice to apply thermal insulation to walls and roofs, columns and beams are often not considered. The local climate pattern coupled with uninsulated skeleton structure of reinforced concrete that forms 27% of the external total wall area can have a significant effect on the thermal resistance of the buildings envelope. Multi-dimensional heat transfer method was implemented to assess the magnitude of this effect and then to incorporate this in a whole building energy simulation program to assess the impact on the overall thermal performance of the buildings considered. It was found that the thermal resistance of constructions can be reduced by 48% due to uninsulated columns and beams. In addition, the average effect on the overall annual energy consumption and peak load demand for Kuwaiti type villas was found to be 1.8% and 2.3% respectively.