Project description

Due to the variable ratio between the spandrel and vision glass, Eensulate will match any existing façade design (where there are no constraints on original architecture) as well as new buildings. Furthermore, Eensulateis expected to allow for fast retrofitting due to its characteristics, which would minimize the disruption of business and impact on occupants. The innovation potential and market competitive advantage lies in the combination of three different material innovations in a single product platform, scalable from Basic to Premium. Eensulate components will make use as much as possible of existing components such as frames, structural silicon, gaskets, etc.), although some kind of adaptation will certainly be require.

EENSULATE Technology

EENSULATE project aims to develop innovative lightweight (35% weight reduction compared to the current best performing modules), highly insulating energy efficientcomponents as well as associated enabling materials for cost-effective retrofitting and new construction of curtain wall facades. Eensulate represents an ambitious project, which aims to introduce a novel unitized curtain wall system capable of meeting the market demand.It is expected to be an affordable(28% reduction of total refurbishment costs), high performance prefabricated façade retrofitting solution with reduced weight and thickness. It aims to bring existing curtain wall buildings to “nearly zero energy” standards, reducing energy bills by at least 20% while complying with the structural limits of the original building structure and national building codes.

Eensulate draws a strategy for sustainability of curtain walls by leveraging on:

High durability (maximum service life) of the enabling materials and overall component
Good thermal breaks between the curtain wall and the sub-structure through the innovative spray foam
High R-value due to the Vacuum Glass as those achievable with triple glazing systems but with lower weight and less material use. Also, the low temperature manufacturing process for the vacuum glass allows the use of low-E and spectrally selective glass coatings, which can significantly reduce energy loads and improve comfort close to the wall

Market Demand & Expected Impacts

Improvement by at least 25% of the insulation properties
Reduction by at least 20% of the total costs
Improvement by at least 20 % of durability
At least a 15% reduction of the energy spent during the whole life cycle of a building
Easier implementation

Environmental, social and regulatory drivers

Respect for sustainability principles
Improvement in indoor air quality
Contribution to standardization and certification activities

EENSULATE Products

Due to the variable ratio between the spandrel and vision glass,Eensulate will match any existing façade design (where there are no constraints on original architecture) as well as new buildings. Furthermore,Eensulateis expected to allow for fast retrofitting due to its characteristics, which would minimize the disruption of business and impact on occupants. The innovation potential and market competitive advantage lies in the combination of three different material innovations in a single product platform, scalable from Basic to Premium. Eensulate components will make use as much as possible of existing components such as frames, structural silicon, gaskets, etc.), although some kind of adaptation will certainly be require.

The project output is a product family that will be promotedin two different levels of performance. First, Eensulate Basic expects to tackle both the vision glass and spandrel, and drastically reduces thermal bridges associated with interfaces between the spandrel and the sub-structure. Second, Eensulate Premium expects to add, through thermo tuneable coating, the dynamic solar control behaviour in a cost-effective way and integrate multi-functionalities as self-cleaning and anti-fogging properties. During the installation of these products, special spray foam – Eensulate spray foam – is used to increase insulation of the building.

Eensulate Basic modules

Thermal and acoustic insulation will be provided by the novel VIG and “smart foam” in the spandrel combined with state of the art low-E coated glass.

Eensulate Premium modules

Multifunctionality by integrating novel thermo-chromic coated glass with additional self-cleaning and anti-fogging properties.

Two key commercial insulating products

Eensulate is expected to be an affordable (28% reduction of total costs) and lightweight (35% weight reduction) solution for envelope insulation to bring existing curtain wall buildings to “nearly zero energy” standards, while complying with the structural limits of the original building structure and national building codes.

EENSULATE FOAM

Highly insulating mono-component and environmentally friendly spray foam for the cost-effectiveautomated manufacturing and insulation of the opaque components of curtain walls as well as for thesignificant reduction of thermal bridges during installation.

EENSULATE GLASS

Lightweight and thin double pane vacuum glass for the insulation of the transparent component of curtain walls, manufactured through an innovative low temperature process using polymeric flexible adhesives and distributed getter technology, thus allowing to use both annealed and tempered glass (including laminated safety glass) as well as low emissivity coatings (1% emissivity). A multifunctional thermo tuneable coating will allow for dynamic solar gain control as well as anti-fogging and self-cleaning properties.

EENSULATE Targets and Objectives

Characterize and understand how the Eensulate Basic and Premium components work in real conditions considering the dynamic and thermos-tuneable characteristics of the glass coating, developing accelerated testing procedures based on UV radiation, temperature, moisture and soiling factors
Develop quality control procedures enabled by sensors and industrial measuring techniques
Develop durability testing procedures at material and component scale integrating results from accelerated testing of the different enabling material innovations
Prepare a testing procedure for the materials and components to comply with major regulations and standards including fire resistance
Validate in 4 different demo buildings located in two different climates (Italy and Poland) the performance of the curtain wall and fenestration products by means of a monitoring system based on sensors embedded onto the glazed components, designed for the evaluation of the room thermo-hygrometric, lighting, acoustic and air quality
Develop design, installation and operational guidelines gathering insights on how Eensulate components affect occupant comfort, satisfaction, and acceptance of the technology. In this respect we aim at developing a BIM library, which would then allow an easy integration of Eensulate products in design practice, but also during building operations taking into account the active functionalities we are aiming for and the durability characterization work which may affect performances along time
Develop a ten-year product development and scale-up roadmap with associated financial plans leveraging on current manufacturing assets by the partners as well as an extended network of licensed parties across EU and beyond
Validate the environmental and resources sustainability for the Eensulate product family, preliminary evaluation of the impacts through LCA approach, according to ISO 14040/14044 standards
Quantify the benefits for users (ROI, reduced bills, etc.)
Develop a commercialization Strategy and associated Business Plan with potential economic benefits assuming mature market costs. Continuously updating the business plan, including more detailed marker research based on market segmentation, analytically define competitive technologies, arranging price policies and marketing strategies.

EENSULATE Demo versions

The performances of the Eensulate insulating solution will be assessed at full scale prototype. Demonstration buildings are located in two different climates (Italy and Poland). The focus will be placed on the thermo-acoustic behaviour of demo buildings and indoor comfort and different parameters will be monitored: