Whew... One Down

Well, a big stressor for this past semester is now in the can: I submitted the final paper for my case studies class this afternoon. If I maintain my sanity (i.e., never go for a PhD), this is the last term paper I will ever submit. This was despite my best efforts to not pull it off--I decided, "Oh, I'm ahead of schedule, so I'll deal with grading over the weekend instead." Also, as if on cue, my implant tooth started acting up on Sunday--apparently, the chip has opened up a trap for infection underneath. Swell. So to speak.

As always with work like this, it came annoyingly down to the wire: draft was finished by midnight; after giving up on proofreading at 2 AM ("Spellcheck is schoolin' my ass at this point..."), I got up at 6 to finish proofing and printing.

The project was pretty cool--it is a perfect example of why I came to grad school. It's a topic that I have been interested in for a while (when you renovate an old factory into loft apartments and insulate it, how likely is it that you will spall all the bricks to hell and destroy the building?). It gave me the chance to research the literature in detail, write up a case study on a building my former boss renovated, run a bunch of simulations, and learn techniques that will be useful later in my careeer.

So 228 megabytes of one-dimensional hygrothermal of simulation later, I can say that yes, you are increasing risks of damaging your wall. But way more important than that: make sure the wall doesn't get wet from bulk rainwater, by keeping it as sheltered as possible, and not doing dumb things like this (referring article is here).

Anyway, in a week, I will be done with all the classes I need for my master's. Wow. Celebration is definitely in order after that.

Durability Impact of Interior Insulation of Massive Masonry Structures: A Literature Review and Case Study



Over the past several decades, there has been a trend to reuse and rehabilitate existing commercial building stock for current use; many of these structures are uninsulated massive masonry construction. A common example is the renovation of factory, warehouse, and industrial buildings into residential loft apartments. With this change in use, however, comes a need to bring the building up to current expectations of comfort and energy efficiency. This implies the need for thermal insulation of the building enclosure.

However, there is a strong concern that the addition of insulation will reduce the durability of the structure by reducing heat flow through the wall, resulting in colder temperatures through the thickness of the masonry. This would result in higher chances of freeze-thaw damage due to both lower temperatures and greater wetness of the masonry (from the reduced drying potential).