Construction and Building Materials 181 (2018) 238–252

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Construction and Building Materials

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/conbuildmat

Thermal transport in: Building materials

Z. Pezeshki a,⇑, A. Soleimani a, A. Darabi a, S.M. Mazinani b
a
Faculty of Electrical and Robotic Engineering, Shahrood University of Technology, Shahrood, Iran
b
Electrical Department, Faculty of Engineering, Imam Reza International University, Mashhad, Iran

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Building materials, have recently been demonstrated to have great potential for improving the heat trans-
Received 24 September 2017 fer properties of solids. Building materials play different roles in construction industry and they should
Received in revised form 19 May 2018 have suitable characteristic behaviors. Several characteristic behaviors of building materials have been
Accepted 27 May 2018
identified, including thermal conductivity, heat flux and emissivity constant effects. This paper reviews
Available online 15 June 2018
the new approaches of building materials (such as Aluminum, Brick, Ceramic, Cement, Concrete, Glass,
Marble, Plaster, and Granite) for thermal transport and other properties associated with them and in
Keywords:
the following it discusses and classifies the nonthermal and thermal properties of building materials.
Heat transfer
Thermal conductivity
At the end, this review points out several important clues in future issues.
Building materials Ó 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Emissivity constant

Contents

1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
1.1. Building material studies in construction industry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
1.2. Building materials synthesis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240
1.3. Interfacial thermal resistance and heat transfer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241
2. Experimental studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242
2.1. Aluminium . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242
2.2. Brick . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243
2.3. Ceramic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243
2.4. Cement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243
2.5. Concrete . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244
2.6. Glass. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244
2.7. Marble . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244
2.8. Plaster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244
2.9. Granite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244
2.10. Importance of another properties other than thermal conductivity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245
2.10.1. Physical properties of materials. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245
2.10.2. Mechanical properties of materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247
2.10.3. Durability of materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248
2.10.4. Decorativeness of materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248
3. Thermal properties in building materials: insights from theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
3.1. Thermal conductivity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
3.2. Thermal capacity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
3.3. Thermal deformation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
3.4. Flame resistance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
4. Summary of the current understanding of heat transfer and other mechanisms in building materials. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
5. Outlook and future challenges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251

⇑ Corresponding author.
E-mail address: tejaratemrooz@gmail.com (Z. Pezeshki).
URL: http://www.shahroodut.ac.ir (Z. Pezeshki).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2018.05.230
0950-0618/Ó 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
 Z. Pezeshki et al. / Construction and Building Materials 181 (2018) 238–252
Disclosure statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
1. Introduction
One important element in the concept of sustainable building is
the use of materials. The higher the use of sustainable materials in
building, the more sustained the building is. Rational selection of
building materials for their optimal performance and minimal
environmental impact is complex, as materials are multi-
functional [1,2]. Development of new and innovative materials to
meet the ever increasing demand of construction industry without
compromising sustainability has always been a challenge for civil
or construction engineers [3]. In the following, we discuss the
building material studies and their synthesis in regard to thermal
transport, saving energy, strength and stability. Then we speak
about interfacial thermal resistance and heat transfer. In Section 2,
we review the new experimental studies of building materials
(such as Aluminum, Brick, Ceramic, Cement, Concrete, Glass, Mar-
ble, Plaster, and Granite) and the importance of another properties
on building materials. In Section 3, thermal properties in building
materials have been reviewed. In Section 4, we conclude thermal
transport along with other mechanisms in mentioned building
materials by identifying outstanding and key studies that still need
to be done, and in Section 5 we present an outlook and our per-
spective on the future directions of materials of the buildings
research.
1.1. Building material studies in construction industry
Multiple problems arise from poorly insulated properties, and
the twin foci regards the performance of residential external wall
insulation [4]. Most of the building codes for energy saving are
focused on strengthening the insulation and air tightness of the
building envelope. Insulation and air tightness of the building
envelope reduces heat loss during the heating season, but can lead
to overheating in the cooling season according to the building
types owing to the internal heat gain levels. Less total energy
was required for heating and cooling by enforcing the insulation
level in buildings with low internal heat gain levels, while more
energy was required in large office buildings with high internal
heat gain levels. According to the studies, annual cooling energy
consumption has increased as the thermal insulation has improved
regardless of the indoor thermal density. As expected, the annual
heating energy consumption has decreased with increasing
strength of the thermal insulation in all cases. Thus, the current
policy of strengthening the thermal insulation of the envelope
effectively improves the energy consumption during heating in
building. The annual energy consumption for cooling and heating
has decreased proportionally when the U-value (one of the envel-
ope thermal insulation properties) of the building envelope is
small and the internal heat gain is less than 38:2 W=m2 [5].
Numerous theoretical and experimental studies have shown
that composite materials are good thermal insulators with thermal
conductivity less than 0.5 W/m.K, which depends on the straw
amount. Even less than 0.5 wt% straw reflects on the insulating
properties by decreasing the thermal conductivity coefficient with
nearly 50% [6]. Experiments of heat transfer on brick consist of
time that is needed for heat transfer and thermal conductivity test
as well. Experiments were conducted on a wall coated by Phase
Change Material (PCM) which was exposed on a day and night
cycle to analyze the heat storage and heat release. PCM used in
239
these experiments was coconut oil. The use of encapsulation on
an empty brick can increase the time of thermal heat transfer.
Thermal conductivity values of a brick containing encapsulated
PCM was lower than hollow bricks, where each value was
1.3 W/m.K and 1.6 W/m.K [7]. Physical processes occurring during
time-dependent phase change heat transfer in PCMs and PCM-
incorporated element that has been numerically modeled using
COMSOL Multiphysics. The numerical analysis showed that all
three PCM-enhanced building elements, incorporating 5% by
weight PCM, 10% by weight PCM, and 20% by weight PCM, reduced
the impact of the diurnal temperature variation in the interior
spaces of the building elements in comparison to the reference
plaster building element [8].
A building envelope is made-up of several individual elements
such as brick, mortar, surface finishes, external coatings, etc. It acts
as an interface separating the external environment from the
indoors environment. That is responsible for regulating indoor
thermal comfort in response to external climatic conditions. The
heat transfer through the material is a combination of conductive,
convective and radiative heat transfer components. A schematic
representation of the heat transfer mechanism through the porous
building-material microstructure is shown in Fig. 1. Conduction
involves heat transfer through excitation of atoms, while convec-
tion involves heat transfer through molecule movement induced
by differential temperature variation; radiative heat transfer
involves heat-transfer through electromagnetic energy [9].
Heat transfer through porous material mainly depends on the
material forming constituents (type of particle, shape, size and par-
ticle structuring) and their microstructure (pore structure). Build-
ing material configurations to form the building envelope can be
altered by appropriately arranging the materials to obtain the
required performance. Building materials properties that are easily
alterable (packing density, composition and mix-proportions) are
distinct from those that are unalterable (micro-pore size and
geometry, inherent mineral property) [9]. Also heat transfer
depends on the geometry of the material specimen and the
fatigue tester as well as on material boundary conditions such as
concrete [10].
Fig. 1. Heat transfer mechanisms through the porous building material [9].
240 Z. Pezeshki et al. / Construction and Building Materials 181 (2018) 238–252
Fig. 2. Correlation of center tension and average particle weight in thermally tempered glass plates [12].
1.2. Building materials synthesis
The unified concept of elaboration of building materials with
special properties is adduced (on the basis of analysis of kinetic
processes of structure formation and main physical-mechanical
characteristics of a material) from an estimation of their mathe-
matical modelling accuracy with simultaneous experimental and
theoretical ascertainment of connections between parameters of
structure and kinetic processes. The formation processes of pri-
mary physical and mechanical properties of composite materials
(radiation stability, durability, modulus of elasticity, chemical sta-
bility, water resistance, etc.) are characterized by kinetic parame-
ters. The process of optimizing structures and properties of the
radiation-protective material (absorption rate, resistance to radia-
tion, durability) performs on the basis of parameters of kinetic pro-
cesses [11].
The fracture of thermally tempered glass is another primary
study [12] which has been discussed in terms of both the stored
elastic strain energy in the glass due to tempering and the elastic
energy release rate of crack extension. The two methods discussed
are based on (1) the stored elastic energy in the glass, and (2)
linear-elastic fracture mechanics. The analytically predicted corre-
lation between center tension and particle weight is shown by the
line drawn in Fig. 2. All the experimental data for rCT > 6000 psi
are within 70% of the analytical prediction. As expected, the anal-
ysis breaks down at a given low temper level, which occurs for
rCT < 6000 psi. One reason for this is plate size; i.e. when a plate
of a given size and at a low temper level is fragmented, it will
not give a valid statistical sample. More important, the fracture
surface of a plate of low temper is very smooth; thus the fracture
process does not generate the critical flaws necessary for bifurca-
tion. (Note that rCT is center tension in plate).
Nowadays [13] Chinese tempered glass has entered a fast and
stable growing era. Generally speaking, a tempered glass has to
experience cutting, printing and tempering in sequence before it
could be sold on the market.
In recent years [14], superhydrophilic and photocatalytic self-
cleaning nanocoatings have been widely used in the easy-to-
clean surfaces field. In the building sector, self-cleaning glass was
one of the first nanocoating applications. These products are based
on the photocatalytic property of a thin layer of titanium dioxide
(TiO2 ) nanoparticles deposited on the surface of any kind of com-
mon glass. When exposed to UV radiation, TiO2 nanoparticles react
with the oxygen and water molecules adsorb on their surface to
produce radicals leading to oxidative species. These species are
able to reduce or even eliminate airborne pollutants and organic
substances deposited on the material’s surface. NanoTiO2 self-
cleaning coated float glass is cut into the customer’s required size.
The obtained glass is then polished to bevel the edges and corners.
The successive cleaning step is a process that is able to clean the
glass surface using ultrasound and acetone as solvent media. The
clean glass is subsequently coated with five layers of nanoTiO2 sus-
pension at a coating rate of 85 mm/min. Finally, nanoTiO2 coated
float glasses are packed in a wooden box.
Today Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (AAC) [15] is a novel pro-
duct available in the market with some desired qualities, but when
these walls are used as structural walls there are some major prob-
lems of low compressive strength and high water absorption. Due
to the problem of high water absorption there arises the problem
of reduced compressive strength than the specified compressive
strength. That is the compressive strength of AAC blocks not in line
with compressive strength of burnt clay bricks. The compressive
strength of AAC blocks is 41.167% smaller than burnt clay bricks.
Also the water absorption capacity of AAC blocks is higher than
burnt clay bricks. The water absorption capacity of AAC blocks is
7% greater than burnt clay bricks. But AAC blocks have very low
density when compared with burnt clay bricks. That is, they are
of very light weight in nature. Also the thermal conductivity of
AAC blocks is immensely smaller (514%) than burnt clay bricks.
So if the water absorption capability of AAC blocks can be reduced,
highly energy efficient building design can be made possible and
they become an excellent substitute for burnt clay bricks.
Different aluminum complexes were synthesized by the reac-
tion of aluminum alkyls with a hexadentate salen-type Schiff base.
This reaction produces the intermediate methyl complex and then
subsequent intramolecular methyl migration to give aluminum
complex. Reaction of the same ligand with AlEt3 under the same
experimental conditions involved the ethane elimination, ethylene
 Z. Pezeshki et al. / Construction and Building Materials 181 (2018) 238–252
elimination and intramolecular hydrogen migration. The solid-
state structures of aluminum complexes were determined by
single-crystal X-ray diffraction [16]. A new aluminium scorpionate
[17] based complexes have been prepared and used for the synthe-
sis of cyclic carbonates from epoxides and carbon dioxide. That is
from bimetallic oxo-bridge heteroscorpionate aluminium com-
plexes family bearing an alkoxide as the pendant donor arm. Sys-
tematic studies [18] of the reactions of two selected
aminophenols, 2-[(p-tolylamino) methyl]-4-(2,4,4-trimethylpen
tan-2-yl) phenol and 2-cyclohexylaminomethyl-4-methylphenol,
with alkyl compounds of aluminium, gallium and zinc have
resulted in the formation of a variety of products depending on
the type of metallic centre and alkyl groups bonded to metal
atoms. New trinuclear aluminium complexes, monomeric alu-
minium and other compounds, and dinuclear gallium complexes
have isolated and characterized. The structure of these products
depends mainly on the alkyl groups bonded to metal atoms and
the type of metallic centre. Aminophenols used in our reactions
are very attractive proligands because of their multifunctionality.
The OH and NH groups can react with alkyl metal compounds with
elimination of alkyl groups and formation of oxygen-metal and
nitrogen-metal bonds. Moreover, oxygen and nitrogen atoms are
able to coordinate to metallic centres. It should be noted that only
methyl groups bonded to aluminium atoms were sufficiently reac-
tive to react with NH protons.
Many surfactant molecules are available to produce stable
aqueous foams and these molecules can strongly interact with
cement grains. Most surfactants do adsorb on cement grains,
inducing concentration-dependent effects on the yield stress of
cement paste. For some of these surfactants, the yield stress
increases significantly as inter-particle hydrophobic attractive
forces develop at the surface of the grains. There are several dis-
tinct behaviors for surfactants for cement paste: 1. precipitation,
which in turn leads to loss of foamability of the molecule, 2.
adsorption on cement grains surface and 3. no interaction with
cement grains. In case (2), the surfactant noticeably affects the rhe-
ology of the cement paste [19]. Blended commercial CEM I 52.5 R
(a kind of cement) with slag and limestone maintains a clinker to
Supplementary Cementitious Material (SCM) ratio of 50:50 with
up to 20% slag replaced by limestone. The sulphate content main-
tains at 3% in all composite systems. Presence of limestone
241
enhances both clinker and slag hydration. The nucleation effects
account for enhanced clinker hydration while the space available
for hydrate growth plus the lowering of the aluminium concentra-
tion in the pore solution leads to the improved slag hydration [20].
Recently, an alternative natural marble (such as Thassoss mar-
ble, Greek) has synthesized and produced using natural raw mate-
rials, namely silica sand, magnesite, limestone, phosphate and
fluorspar. A ceramization casting of glass powder employed to pro-
duce a similar tile to the common natural marble with outstanding
properties [21].
About the granite, it is a natural source extracted from the nat-
ure, for example Kawadgaon area in Bastar Craton, Central India
[22], contains a wide range of ore minerals of Nb, Ta, Be, Sn, Zr,
Ti, and REE, including columbite-tantalite, ixiolite, pseudo-
ixiolite, wodginite, tapiolite, microlite, fersmite, euxenite, aeschy-
nite, beryl, cassiterite, monazite, xenotime, zircon, ilmenite,
triplite, and magnetite.
The development of high performance air entraining agents for
concrete is of great importance. Ideal synthetic surfactants for the
development of novel air entraining for concrete are Three gemini
surfactants: First, the gemini surfactants have higher surface activ-
ity, foamability and foam stability compared with the correspond-
ing single-chained surfactants. Second, the gemini surfactants
show higher air entraining ability compared with both the corre-
sponding single-chained surfactants and the benchmark surfac-
tants used in the industry, indicating great potential of the
gemini surfactants for practical applications. Third, different anio-
nic groups modifying gemini surfactants show that the sulfate
group modifying gemini surfactant has the highest surface activity,
foamability, foam stability and air entraining performance [23].
1.3. Interfacial thermal resistance and heat transfer
The study of the propagation of light through the matter, partic-
ularly solid matter, comprises one of the important and interesting
branches of optics. The many and varied optical phenomena exhib-
ited by solids include such things as selective absorption, disper-
sion, double refraction, polarization, electro-optical, and
magneto-optical effects. Many of optical properties of solids can
be understood on the basis of classical electromagnetic theory
[24]. Quantum theory describes the interaction between light
and matter, or the absorption and radiation of light. The thermal
radiation is called the electromagnetic energy of a hot object. Con-
duction occurs only if there is a difference in temperature between
two parts of the conducting medium. Consider a slab of material of
thickness Dx and cross-sectional area A. One face of the slab is at a
temperature T 1 , and the other face is at a temperature T 2 > T 1
(Fig. 3). The law of thermal conduction is as follow [25],
 
T 2  T 1 
E ¼ kA  ð1Þ
Dx 

where the proportionality constant k is the thermal conductivity

 
coefficient of the material and T 2DTx
Fig. 3. Energy transfer through a conducting slab with a cross-sectional area A and
a thickness Dx. The opposite faces are at different temperatures T 1 and T 2 [25].
1
is the temperature gradient
(the variation of temperature with position). In the building mate-
rials, A is the area of the material used in m2 and Dx is the thickness
of material used in buildings in meter. E is rate of energy transfer
[25].
The heat transfer is determined by the thermal conductivity and
the thickness of the boundary layer of the fluid, the latter is depen-
dent on the flow and material parameters. In the boundary layer
the heat is transferred by conduction. Heat transfer is possible only
in x direction [26]. The most important of the design of heat
exchangers [27] is the notion of an overall heat transfer coefficient.
This is a measure of general resistance of a heat exchanger to the
flow of heat (also known as thermal boundary resistance, or
242 Z. Pezeshki et al. / Construction and Building Materials 181 (2018) 238–252
Kapitza resistance), and usually it must be built up from analysis
of component resistances. Heat transfer coefficient (h)
can be
written as,


E ¼ hAðT 2  T1Þ
This above energy transferred by the movement of a heated sub-
stance is said to have been transferred by convection [27,28]. Radi-
ant energy [28] is transmitted from the heated material to the
indoor of the building with convection, and after radiation is con-
verted to thermal radiation energy. So, Thermal radiation is a result
of the exchange of electromagnetic waves between two surfaces of
different temperature. Depending on its surface characteristic, radi-
ation waves will be fully or partially reflected, transmitted or
absorbed at the surface of a body. The heat flux transferred by radi-
ation from the pane to the walls can be determined by the following
equation,
E ¼ rAeðT 4amb  T 41 Þ
Where T amb is ambient temperature, r is Stefan-Boltzmann coeffi-
cient constant equal to 5.6696108 m2W: K 4 , and e is the emissivity
constant. The value of e can vary between zero and unity, depending
on the properties of the surface of the building materials. The emis-
sivity is equal to the fraction of the incoming radiation that the sur-
face absorbs [28,29]. An ideal absorber is defined as an object that
absorbs all the energy incident on it, and for such a body, e = 1, such
an object is often referred to as a black body. An ideal absorber is
also an ideal radiator of energy. In contrast, an object on which
absorbs none of the energy incident on it, such an object, reflects
all the incident energy, and thus is an ideal reflector.
Therefore, if there is a convective heat transfer, the overall heat
transfer is obtained from the following Equation [26, 28, 29]:


E ¼ Econv þ Erad ¼ hAðT 2  T 1 Þ þ rAeðT amb  T 1 Þ
4 4
The emission changes with the characteristic of the emitting surface
and the thermal radiation has an influence on thermal distribution
and reduces the amount of the temperature points in a space.
In addition to the above mentioned description: At exterior sur-
face of the wall, heat transfer between environment is caused by:
(1) convection between the air and surface of the wall, and (2) radi-
ation caused by: (a) heat flux from sun if it is insolated (direct, dif-
fused radiation), (b) heat flux from other surface (ground, tree, and
other buildings).
2. Experimental studies
Materials of high thermal conductivity are needed for the con-
duction of heat for the purpose of heating or cooling [30,31]. For
example, copper is a good thermal conductor but its Coefficient
of Thermal Expansion (CTE) is high. Therefore, copper-matrix com-
posites containing low CTE filters such as carbon fibers or molyb-
denum particles are used [30]. In construction industry we don’t
need building materials with high thermal conductivity and heat
transfer [32] proceeding by three modes: conduction, radiation,
and convection. Conduction and radiation depend on the thermal
properties of the material. Convection differs in that heat transfer
depends on the properties of the fluid adjacent the material sur-
face. However, heat transfer may also proceed by a fourth mode.
Like convection altering the surface of the material, the fourth
mode of heat transfer requires coating the surface of the material
with a nanoscale layer of a material having a higher refractive
index. Unlike conduction, radiation, and convection that find basis
in classical physics, the fourth mode is based on Quantum
Mechanics (QM) with the heat transferred to the surroundings by
Electromagnetic (EM) radiation.
In examining the available drawings [33] there is a variety of
tubing materials used in the construction solar water heaters.
The capability of piping materials to absorb and transfer collected
solar heat to the liquids flowing within the pipes is critical to the
ð2Þ absorbers efficiency. The thermal conductivity of the piping mate-
rials is given in terms of their material makeup and the associated
conditions. The difference between the tubing materials occurs
when the heating of the collector equalizes the temperature within
the pipe materials when they are in applied subjected to the
intense heat in a solar collector.
In order to better understand the ways to improve the thermal
performance of clay bricks [34], analyses (factor analysis and mul-
tiple linear regression analysis) have highlighted the role played by
some mineralogical components, in particular Ca-rich silicates
(wollastonite and melilite), quartz, and amorphous, in depressing
the insulating properties of clay bricks. On the other hand, among
the microstructural parameters, the role of open porosity in
ð3Þ improving the thermal performances of bricks is predominant
but, in many cases, the role of pore size and specific surface should
be more accurately evaluated in the structural design of materials.
AAC [15] is a novel product available in the market with some
desired qualities. Nowadays these blocks are used as partition
walls or thermal insulation walls. AAC can be also used as the load
bearing structures for two floor housing buildings.
The construction industry is one of the largest consumers of
natural resources. In the production of building materials and in
the construction process, large amounts of energy are consumed
and harmful substances that pollute the environment are emitted.
The modified method of transient plane source can be used to reli-
ably determination of the thermal characteristics of building mate-
rials with inhomogeneous structure. Even small quantities of straw
(less than 0.5 wt%) result in significant change of the thermal beha-
viour of the composite material and contribute to a significant
ð4Þ increase in specific heat capacity (more than 50%) and appreciable
decrease of the thermal conductivity (up to 56%). The addition of
straw (even less than 0.5 wt%), as a result, has improved the heat
accumulative and thermal insulating properties of the environ-
mentally friendly composite material, which makes it suitable
material for energy efficient and even passive building [6]. In the
following, new approaches for thermal transport in some building
materials have been reviewed.
2.1. Aluminium
0 0
The new salalen aluminum complexes 2 (AlL ) [L = (2-O-3,5-
t
Bu2 C 6 H2 ÞCH = NC 6 H4 OCH2 CH2 OC 6 H4 NCH(Me)(2-O-3,5-t Bu2 C 6 H2 )]
00 00
and 3 (AlL ) [L = (2-O-3,5-t Bu2 C 6 H2 ) CH = NC 6 H4 OCH2 CH2 OC 6 H4
NCH2 (2-O-3,5-t Bu2 C 6 H2 )] are formed by migration of a methyl or
hydrogen group to the imine carbon atom of the aluminum alkyl
complex bearing a hexadentate salen-type Schiff base. It has been
found that the methyl or hydrogen migration is affected by the
molar ratio of aluminum alkyl and original ligand. When the hex-
adentate salen-type Schiff base reacted with one equivalent of AlR3
(R = Me, Et), the migration proceeds smoothly, whereas no migra-
tion is observed when two equivalents of AlR3 are used, and the
expected binuclear complexes 4½ðAlMe2 Þ2 L and 5½ðAlEt2 Þ2 L are
obtained. These aluminum complexes are found to be active in
the cycloaddition reaction of terminal epoxides and CO2 at
Table 1
Water absorption of burnt clay bricks [15].
Specimen Initial Weight (kg) Final Weight (kg) Water Absorption (%)
1 2.224 2.606 17.176
2 2.183 2.576 18.000
3 1.998 2.396 19.910
 Z. Pezeshki et al. / Construction and Building Materials 181 (2018) 238–252
Table 2
Compressive strength of burnt clay bricks [15].
Specimen Load (kN) Area (mm2 ) Comp. Strength (N=mm2 )
1 108 20000 5.40
2 108 20000 5.40
3 107 20000 5.35
Fig. 4. Compressive strength testing of brick [15].
atmospheric pressure. Further works in this field are now in pro-
gress [16]. Under the optimal reaction conditions [17], complex 9
[AlMe2(k2-bpzbe)(-O) AlMe3] in combination with tetrabutylam-
monium bromide acts as a very efficient catalyst system for the
conversion of both monosubstituted and internal epoxides into
the corresponding cyclic carbonates showing broad substrate
scope. Complex 9 and tetrabutylammonium bromide is the second
most efficient aluminium-based catalyst system for the reaction of
internal epoxides with carbon dioxide. A kinetic study has been
carried out and showed that the reactions were first order in com-
plex 9 and tetrabutylammonium bromide concentrations. Based on
the kinetic study, a catalytic cycle is proposed.
2.2. Brick
AAC [15] is a novel product available in the market with some
desired qualities. When AAC blocks are compared with burnt clay
bricks they are of very light weight in nature and produce high
thermal resistance. In order to use AAC blocks as structural walls
the problem of high water absorption is to be reduced. Table 1 rep-
resents the observation data corresponding to water absorption of
burnt clay bricks of 200  100  65 mm dimensions.
In this research, the compressive strength of burnt clay bricks of
200  100  65 mm dimension were selected for testing. Com-
pressive strength was determined for an average of three in num-
ber. Table 2 represents data corresponding to the dry compressive
243
strength of AAC blocks. The testing is done in compression testing
machine. The size of the brick is made conformed to IS 1077:1992.
The procedure for testing is as follows: place the specimen with
flat faces horizontal and carefully centered between plates of test-
ing machine. Fig. 4 corresponds to the testing of burnt clay bricks
in compression testing machine. Apply the load axially till failure
occured and noted load at failure. The test procedures have been
carried out by the regulations mentioned in IS 3495 Part 1: 1992.
The compressive strength of AAC blocks is 41.167% smaller than
burnt clay bricks. Also the water absorption capacity of AAC blocks
is higher than burnt clay bricks. The water absorption capacity of
AAC blocks is 7% greater than burnt clay bricks. But AAC blocks
are having very low density when compared with burnt clay bricks.
That is, they are very light weight in nature. Also the thermal con-
ductivity of AAC blocks is immensely smaller (514%) than burnt
clay bricks. So if the water absorption capability of AAC blocks
can be reduced, highly energy efficient building design can be
made possible and they become an excellent substitute for burnt
clay bricks.
2.3. Ceramic
Fabricated antibacterial and photocatalytic ceramic tiles [25]
can be industrialized to overcome environmental pollution prob-
lems and infection risks of indoor and outdoor application. The
antibacterial activity of the tiles against E. coli was provided by
metal ion-doped CaP antibacterial ceramic powder which was suc-
cessfully synthesized between 30 and 80 nm in size with a wet
chemical technique. Both pure and modified TiO2 powders were
deposited on the antibacterial ceramic tiles by a spray coating
method. The results revealed that SiO2 -modified TiO2 -coated tiles
showed significantly higher photocatalytic activities than uncoated
and unmodified TiO2 -coated tiles in the degradation of methylene
blue. It showed that a nearly 100% cleanability degree was
observed for SiO2 -modified TiO2 -coated tiles in 120 min for 30
mg/L methylene blue concentration. On the other hand, no
complete cleaning was detected for uncoated and unmodified
TiO2 -coated tiles for the same methylene blue concentrations.
The mechanical properties of the ceramic scaffolds have been
found to be strong functions of their dimensions with larger pore
size scaffolds showing lower strength and fracture toughness val-
ues than the smallest 300 lm pore size scaffold. The mechanical
properties of the scaffold structures fabricated are similar to the
mechanical properties of other ceramic and glass scaffold struc-
tures, made from a range of bioactive glasses and ceramics [35].
2.4. Cement
Cement paste [19] is a suspension of solid cement grains in
aqueous phase. This cement paste at water-to-cement ratio 0.4 is
prepared by adding cement to distilled water and is mixed by hand
for 1 min. The yield stress sy depends on the interaction of each
solid particle with its closest neighbors. To understand the change
of yield stress with surfactant addition, analysis of the interactions
between cement grains must be carried out. The paste is mixed
with cement to avoid any air entrainment or foaming for 5 min.
Foamability of surfactant solutions in water and in cement pore
solution are summarized in Table 3.
Yield stress results of compatible surfactants on cement have
been done in Fig. 5.
The presence of limestone has multiple effects on the hydration
and phase assemblage of ternary cements. Carbonate ions stabilize
monocarboaluminate over monosulphoaluminate or hemicarboa-
luminate, leading to an increased ettringite content. A microstruc-
tural analysis reveals that additional space for hydrate formation in
244 Z. Pezeshki et al. / Construction and Building Materials 181 (2018) 238–252
Table 3
Precipitation and foamability of surfactants in distilled water and synthetic cement pore solution [19].
Surfactant Precipitation
+ TTAB No
+/ Betain No
 SDS Yes
. Steol 270 No
. Bio-Terge No
0 Triton X100 No
0 Brij 700 No
0 Tween 20 Yes
0: No foam; +: Foam volume below 20 mL; ++: Moderately stable foam; +++: Tube filled with 40 mL foam for longer than 1 h.
the limestone-bearing samples compared to the limestone free
analogue, cannot be responsible for accelerated slag hydration,
thus confirming the impact of the pore solution. The presence of
limestone modifies the composition of both the C-S-H phase and
of hydrotalcite. The C-S-H has lower Al/Si ratio in the presence of
limestone, while the hydrotalcite is characterized by a higher
Mg/Al ratio. Both phenomena can be explained by the lowering
of the alumina concentration in the pore solution in the presence
of calcite [20].
2.5. Concrete
Three gemini surfactants modified with different anionic groups
(sulfonic, sulfate and phosphate groups) have designed and syn-
thesized for concrete. By using them as the air entraining agents,
the results clearly have shown that the gemini surfactants have
higher surface activity, foamability, foam stability and air entrain-
ing performance compared with the corresponding single-chained
surfactants, and the sulfate group modified gemini surfactant has
the highest performance [23].
2.6. Glass
Today the ecodesign of the industrial scale-up of TiO2 nanopar-
ticles self-cleaning coated float glass production has performed by
the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology and applies new
human toxicity indicators to the impact assessment stage. The
comparison analysis between nanoTiO2 functionalized float glass
and uncoated float glass have shown that the latter building mate-
rial causes higher environmental damage, mainly as a result of the
higher solar factor value of uncoated glass compared to that of
nanocoated glass [14].
2.7. Marble
Natural marble such as Thassos marble from Greece is an ideal
material for manufacturing floor tiles, as it is not affected by envi-
ronmental temperature variations. Over the world, synthetic mar-
ble is rapidly replacing natural marble. It is possible to produce
artificial marble similar to the common natural marble. For exam-
ple, synthetic white marble properties are almost the same or bet-
ter than those of natural product. This suggests that synthetic
marble can replace traditional materials for covering walls, floors
and sanitary products. The production of this material involved
the conversion of relatively common raw materials through the
melt quench route (comprising 95–100% of the initial composition,
with less than 5% additives) and then subjecting to pluverizing,
casting and sintering into valuable polycrystalline materials. The
prepared synthetic materials have outstanding physical properties
as micro-hardness, compression and flexural strength, which are
better than the common natural one. However, other properties
Foam Compatibility
In water In cement sol.
+++ ++ Yes
++ 0 No
+++ 0 No
+++ +++ Yes
+++ +++ Yes
++ ++ Yes
+ 0 No
+ 0 No
such as porosity and water absorption depend upon grain size
and casting condition [21].
2.8. Plaster
Cellulose flakes typically used for blown-in insulation were con-
sidered for incorporation within a lime plaster. The flakes, as an
insulation material, would result in an approximate density of
3
45 kg=m with a thermal conductivity of 0.0498 W/mK [36].
Recently [37], the composition of the lime plaster has developed
specifically for the cellulose flakes and is presented in Table 4. This
is necessary due to the impact of the lightweight aggregate on the
paste workability. Formulations have thus been optimized with a
view to their paste workability. Two different sand grades are used
to control the workability and the aggregate grading are slightly
modified when the lightweight aggregate is added. The formula-
tion composition and the results are given in Table 4 with the typ-
ical specimens shown in Fig. 6.
The addition of bio-aggregates improved some properties of the
coatings and this is clearly seen in that the aggregate addition leads
to the intended reduction of density. This reduction in density is
beneficial for moisture buffering but had an impact on the
mechanical properties of the coatings. The cause of this reduction
in density is not linear with increasing mass fractions of aggregate
additions. This has largely been attributed to the increase in water
demand to achieve suitable workability requirements. The aggre-
gates affect the mixing of water in two ways: changing the granu-
larity of the mix and absorbing water into the aggregate
microstructure. This raises the possibility that the current methods
of quantifying suitable workability requirements are not entirely
compatible with the use of bio-aggregates. In addition to the
improved moisture buffering properties, cement-lime based coat-
ing with a low amount of bio-aggregates showed good capacity
to remove harmful gases from air, thus improving the indoor air
quality in both ways. The long term performance of the coatings
and the impact on occupant health and wellbeing needs to be
established.
2.9. Granite
The granite exhibits a hypidiomorphic granular texture and, in
places, myrmekitic and granophyric textures, along with graphic
intergrowth of quartz and microcline. The granite comprises
mainly of quartz, microcline, perthite, albite-oligoclase, with mus-
covite, biotite and hornblende (rare), (secondary) hydrated mus-
covite, sericite, and chlorite as accessories. In addition, zircon,
rutile, sphene, ilmenite, magnetite, zoisite, and clinozoisite are also
present. In places, the granite hosts pale yellow euhedral monazite
crystals displaying a brown dotted pigmentation (Fig. 7a). Quartz
crystals are strained. The dominance of primary muscovite over
biotite (Fig. 7b) in the granite suggests that it is peraluminous.
 Z. Pezeshki et al. / Construction and Building Materials 181 (2018) 238–252 245

modifications are due to late phase metasomatism and attendant

mineralization of rare metal and/or rare earths (Fig. 7a) [22].

2.10. Importance of another properties other than thermal

conductivity

Another properties of building materials including physical

property, mechanical property, durability and decorativeness [38]
are also important.

2.10.1. Physical properties of materials

Physical properties are divided into 12 subjects.
1. Density: Density is the dry mass per unit volume of a sub-
stance under absolute compact conditions. It is defined by:
m
q¼ ð5Þ
V
Where q is the density (g=cm3 ), m is the mass under dry condi-
tions (g), and V is the volume under absolute compact conditions
(cm3 ). The volume under absolute compact conditions refers to
the solid volume without the volume of inner pores. Except glass,
and few other materials, most materials contain some pores in
natural state.
2. Apparent Density: Apparent density is the dry mass per unit
volume of a substance under natural conditions. It is defined by:
m
q0 ¼ ð6Þ
V0

Where q0 is the apparent density (kg=m ), m is the mass under

3

dry conditions (kg), and V 0 is the volume under natural condi-

tions (m3 ). The volume of a substance under natural conditions
refers to the solid volume and the volume of inner pores. It is
a regular shape, the volume can be directly measured; if it is
an irregular shape, the volume can be measured by the liquid
drainage method after sealing pores with wax; the liquid drai-
nage method can be directly used to measure the volume of
sandstone aggregate utilized in concrete but the volume here is
the solid volume plus the volume of closed pores without the
volume of the pores open to the outside. Because the sandstone
is compact with only a few pores, the volume of the pores open
to the outside is little. Thus the volume measured by the liquid
drainage method can be called apparent density which was called
virtual density in the past.
3. Bulk Density: Bulk density refers to the per unit volume of a
substance under the conditions that powdery or granular materials
are packed. It is defined by:
m
q00 ¼ ð7Þ
V 00

Where q00 is the bulk density (kg/m3 ); m is the mass under dry con-
ditions (kg); V 00 is the volume under packing conditions (m3 ). Bulk
density is measured by volumetric container. The size of volumetric
container depends on the size of particles.
The density, apparent density and bulk density of common
building materials are listed in Table 5.
4. Solidity: Solidity refers to the degree of how the volume of a
material is packed with solid substances, which is the ratio of the
Fig. 5. Yield stress results of compatible surfactants on cement [19]. solid volume to the total volume. It is defined by:
V q0
D¼  100% or D¼  100% ð8Þ
Based on the modal abundances of quartz (23–58%), alkali feldspar
V0 q
(30–72%), and plagioclase (1–32%), along with accessory minerals 5. Porosity: Porosity (P) is the percentage of the pores volume
(2–7.8%), the parent rock falls in the granite-alkali feldspar granite to the total volume with the volume of a substance. It is defined by:
field. The granite shows minor post-crystallization alteration of
V0  V V q
feldspars to sericite, illite, and kaolinite, and biotite to muscovite, P¼  100% ¼ ð1  Þ  100% ¼ ð1  0 Þ  100% ð9Þ
hydrated muscovite, and chlorite (Fig. 7a). These incipient V0 V0 q
246 Z. Pezeshki et al. / Construction and Building Materials 181 (2018) 238–252

Table 4
Composition of lime [37].

Cellulose flakes Lime binder Sand1 Sand2 Water Slump

(wt%) (wt%) (wt%) (wt%) (wt%) (mm)
0 15.0 30.0 55.0 16.5 165.0
2.5 17.5 31.0 49.0 25.0 164.0
5 20.0 27.5 47.5 33.6 165.0

Fig. 6. Cement-lime specimens [37].

Fig. 7. (a) Muscovite (M) granite Exhibiting Incipient Modifications (IMF) of its constituent minerals. IMF may be linked with hydrothermal activity due to late phase
metasomatism responsible for kaolinisation and/albitisation and attendant mineralization. Note yellow-coloured, euhedral Monazite (Mz) crystal with dotted brownish
pigmentation lines. (b) Muscovite-biotite granite showing dominance of muscovite (M) over biotite (B) [22].

Table 5
The density, apparent density, bulk density, and porosity of common building materials [38].

Name Density Apparent Density Bulk Density Porosity

(g=cm3 ) 3
(kg=m )
3
(kg=m ) (%)

Granite 2.6–2.9 2500–2850 – 0–0.3

Limestone 2.6–2.8 2000–2600 – 0.5–3.0
Cement 3.0–3.2 – 1300–1700 –
Ordinary Concrete – 2100–2600 – 5–20
Asphalt Concrete – 2300–2400 – 2–4

The relationship between solidity and porosity can be expressed as:

Fig. 8. The wetting schematic diagram of materials [38].
DþP ¼1 ð10Þ
Both solidity and porosity reflect the compactness of materials.
Porosity and characteristics of pores (including size, connectivity,
distribution, etc.) affect the properties of materials greatly. Gener-
ally, for the same material, the lower the porosity is, the less the
connected pores are. Thus the strength will be higher, the water
absorption will be smaller, and the permeability and frost resis-
tance will be better, but the thermal conductivity will be greater.
Porosity of some common materials is listed in Table 5.
 Z. Pezeshki et al. / Construction and Building Materials 181 (2018) 238–252
6. Fill Rate: Fill Rate (D0 ) is the degree how granules pack the
granular materials in the bulk volume. It is defined by:
V0 q00
D0 ¼  100% or D0 ¼  100%
V 00 q0
7. Voidage: Voidage (P 0 ) is the percentage of the void volume
among granules to the bulk volume in the bulk volume of granular
materials. It is defined by:
 
V 00  V 0 q0
0
P0 ¼  100% ¼ 1  100%
V 00 q0
Voidage reflects the compactness among granules of the granu-
lar materials. The relationship between fill rate and voidage can be
expressed as:
D0 þ P 0 ¼ 1
8. Hydrophilicity and Hydrophobicity: When the material is
exposed to water in the air, it will be hydrophilic or hydrophobic
according to whether it can be wetted by water or not. If it can
be wetted by water, it is the hydrophilic material; if not, it is the
hydrophobic material. When materials are exposed to water dro-
plets in the air, there will be two cases, shown in Fig. 8. In the inter-
section of the material, water and air, a tangent is drowning along
the surface of the water droplet, and the angle between the surface
and the tangent is an angle, known as wetting angle.
When angle h is smaller than or equals to 90°, the material is
hydrophilic, such as wood, brick, concrete and stone. When angle
h is bigger than 90°, the material is hydrophobic, such as asphalt,
wax, and plastic.
9. The Water Absorption and Hygroscopicity: Water absorp-
tion refers to the property of absorbing water when materials are
exposed to water. It is expressed by the water-absorption ratio.
And there are two types of expression:
(1) Specific Absorption of Quality
Specific absorption of quality refers to the percentage of the
absorbed water to the dry mass when the material absorbs
water to saturation. It is defined by:
mb  mg
Wm ¼  100%
mg
Where W m is the specific absorption of quality (%); mb is the
mass when the material absorbs water to saturation (g); and
mg is the mass when the material is dry (g).
(2) Specific Absorption of Volume
The specific absorption of volume refers to the percentage of
the absorbed water volume to the materials natural volume
when the material absorbs water to saturation. It is defined
by:
mb  mg 1
WV ¼   100%
V0 qW
Where W V is the specific absorption of volume (%); qW is the
density of water(g=cm3 ), usually 1:0 g=cm3 at the room tem-
perature. The relationship between specific absorption of
quality and that of volume is as follows:
W V ¼ W m :q0
Hygroscopicity is the property of materials to absorb water
in the air. It can be expressed by moisture content. Mois-
ture content is the percentage of the water quality con-
tained in a material to its dry mass, expressed by W h (%).
It is defined by:
ms  mg
Wh ¼  100%
mg
Where ms is the mass when the material contains water (g).
247
10. Water Resistance: Water resistance is the ability to main-
tain its original properties when the material is affected by water
in long term. The water resistant ability of different materials var-
ð11Þ ies in expressing ways. For example, the water resistance of struc-
tural materials mainly refers to the changes in intensity, and with
softening coefficient it is defined by:
fb
KR ¼ ð18Þ
fg
ð12Þ Where K R is the softening coefficient of a material; f b is the com-
pressive strength of a material in water saturation state (MPa); f g
is the compressive strength of a material in dry state (MPa).
11. Impermeability: Impermeability is the ability of a mate-
rial to resist the pressure of water or the infiltration of other liq-
uids. It is expressed by permeability coefficient which is defined
ð13Þ
by:
Qd
K¼ ð19Þ
AtH
Where K is the permeability coefficient (cm/s); Q is the volume of
water seepage (cm3 ); d is the thickness of a specimen (cm); A is
the seepage area (cm2 ); t is the seepage time (s); H is the water
head (cm). Permeability coefficient K reflects the rate of water flow-
ing in a material. The bigger K is, the faster the flow rate of water is
and the weaker the impermeability is.
12. Frost Resistance: Frost resistance is the property that a
material can withstand several freeze-thaw cycles without being
destroyed and its strength does not decrease seriously when the
material absorbs water to saturation. It is expressed by frost resis-
tant level. Frost resistant level is indicated by the biggest freeze-
thaw cycle times of a specimen that both its quality loss and
strength reduction are within provisions when it is affected by
freeze-thaw cycles in water saturation state, such as F25, F50,
F100 and F150. The reason for the freeze damage is a volume
expansion (about 9%) caused by freeze of the water within the
material’s pores. If a material’s pores are full of water, its volume
will expand and there will be a great tensile stress to pore walls
when water is frozen into ice. If this stress exceeds the tensile
strength, the pore walls will crack, the porosity will increase and
ð14Þ
the strength will decrease. The more the freeze-thaw cycles are,
the greater damages there will be. And it will even cause the com-
plete destruction of a material.
2.10.2. Mechanical properties of materials
Mechanical properties are divided to 4 subjects.
1. Strength and Strength Grade of Materials: Strength is the
greatest stress that a substance can bear under external forces
(loads) without destruction. According to different forms of exter-
nal forces, the strength includes tensile strength, compressive
ð15Þ strength, bend strength, shear strength and others. These kinds of
strength are all determined by static test, known as the static
strength. The stress states of a material are shown in Fig. 9.
The tensile strength, compressive strength and shear strength
can be defined by:
P
ð16Þ f ¼ ð20Þ
A
Where f is the strength of a material (MPa); P is the largest load of a
specimen when it is destructed (N); A is the force bearing area of a
specimen (mm2 ).
The bend strength is related to the force that a material bears
and the cross-section shape. For the strip specimen with
ð17Þ rectangular cross-section, when it is supported at both ends and
a load converges in the middle, its bend strength can be
calculated by:
248 Z. Pezeshki et al. / Construction and Building Materials 181 (2018) 238–252
Fig. 9. The stress states of a material [38].
3Pl
f ¼ 2
ð21Þ
2bh
Where f is the bend strength of a substance (MPa); l is the distance
between two supporting ends (mm); b is the width of the cross-
section (mm); h is the height of the cross-section (mm).
The strength can be divided into a number of different grades in
accordance with the ultimate strength of most building materials,
known as strength grade. The grades of brittle materials are mainly
divided based on their compressive strength, such as ordinary clay
brick, stone, cement and concrete; and those of plastic materials
and ductile materials depend on their tensile strength, such as
steel. It is significant to classify the strength grades for mastering
functions and choosing proper materials.
The specific strength is a material strength divided by its
apparent density. It is an important index for measuring the high
strength and lightweight materials. The specific strength of
ordinary concrete (along the grain) is 0.053. The higher specific
strength is, the higher strength and lighter weight the material
is.
2. Elasticity and Plasticity: The elasticity is the property of a
substance to deform with external forces and return to its original
shape when the stress is removed. The deformation fully capable of
restoration is called elastic deformation. Within the range of the
elastic deformation, the ratio of the stress (r) to the strain (e) is
a constant (E) which is known as elastic modulus, namely,
E ¼ r=e. The bigger E is, the more difficult the material deforms.
The elastic modulus of concrete is a variable value, with its
strength grades increasing from C15 to C60 and its elastic modulus
E increasing from 1.55104MPa to 3.65  104MPa.
The plasticity describes the deformation of a material undergo-
ing non-reversible changes of shape in response to external forces.
This non-reversible deformation is called plastic deformation.
Among building materials, there are no pure elastic materials.
Some materials only have elastic deformation if the stress is not
large, but plastic deformation will happen to them when the stress
is beyond a limit, such as low-carbon steel.
3. Brittleness and Toughness: Brittleness describes the prop-
erty of a material that fractures when subjected to stress but has
a little tendency to deform before rupture. Brittle materials are
characterized by little deformation, poor capacity to resist impact
and vibration of load, high compressive strength, and low tensile
strength.
Impacted or vibrated by stress, a material is able to absorb
much energy and deform greatly without rupture, which is known
as toughness, also called impact toughness. Tough materials are
characterized by great deformation, high tensile strength, and high
compressive strength, such as wood and rubber.
4. Hardness and Abrasive Resistance: Hardness refers to the
property of a material to resist pressing-in or scratch of a sharp
object. The hardness of steel, wood and concrete is tested by the
pressing-in method.
Abrasive resistance refers to the capacity of a material to resist
abrasion. It is expressed by the abrasion ratio, calculated as:
m1  m2
N¼ ð22Þ
A
Where N is the abrasion ratio (g=cm2 ); m1 is the mass before abra-
sion (g); m2 is the mass after abrasion (g); A is the abrasive area
(cm2 ).
2.10.3. Durability of materials
In the process of usage, materials are able to resist the erosion
from various media around and maintain their original properties,
known as durability. In this process, materials are subjected to
physical, chemical, biological and other natural factors besides var-
ious kinds of stress.
Durability is a comprehensive property of materials. Materials
of different compositions and structures have different kinds of
durability. For example, steel is easy to be corroded; stone, con-
crete, mortar, sintering ordinary clay brick, and other inorganic
non-metallic materials mainly resist frost, wind, carbonization,
wet-and-dry change, and other kinds of physical action; when con-
tacting with water, some materials can be destroyed by chemical
changes; and asphalt, plastic, rubber and other organic materials
will be damaged due to aging.
2.10.4. Decorativeness of materials
Decorativeness of materials are divided to 3 subjects.
1. Color: Color is an important factor for the appearance of
buildings, even impacting on the environment. All the buildings
are ornamented by colors. Generally, white or light-colored eleva-
tion hue often gives people a clean and fresh feeling; dark-colored
elevation appears dignified and stable; people usually feel enthusi-
astic, excited and warm when see red, orange, yellow and other
warm colors indoors; and green, blue, violet and other cold colors
can enable people to be peaceful, elegant and cool. As living condi-
tions, climates, traditions, and customs are different, people have
various feelings and evaluations on colors.
2. Texture: Texture is a comprehensive impression given by the
appearance of a material, such as roughness, unevenness, grain,
patterns, and color differences. For example, the rugged surface
of concrete or brick appears relatively massy and rough; and the
surface of glass or aluminum alloy is smooth and delicate which
seems light and vivid. Texture is connected with characteristics,
 Z. Pezeshki et al. / Construction and Building Materials 181 (2018) 238–252
Table 6
Thermal conductivity coefficients and specific heat capacities [38].
Building material Heat Conductivity
Coefficient k
(W/m.K)
Granite 2.9
Ordinary Concrete 1.8
Ordinary Clay Brick 0.55
Glass Wool Board 0.04
Scaled Air 0.025
processing degrees, construction methods, and the types and ele-
vation styles of buildings.
3. Linetype: Linetype mainly refers to the decorative effect of
the dividing joints and the convex lines ornamented on elevations.
For example, plastering, granitic plaster, pebble dash, natural
stone, and aerated concrete should be all latticed or divided, which
will create various elevation effects and also prevent cracking. The
size of dividing joints should be suitable for materials. Generally,
the width should be 10–30 mm, and the blocks of different sizes
will create different decorative effects.
3. Thermal properties in building materials: insights from
theory
Thermal properties of the building materials are one of their
physical properties. There are four thermal properties for building
materials [38]:
3.1. Thermal conductivity
The property of a material that indicates its ability to conduct
heat is known as thermal conductivity. It is expressed by the coef-
ficient of thermal conductivity k, which is defined by:
Q Dx
k¼
ðT 2  T 1 ÞAt
Where k is the coefficient of thermal conductivity of materials
(W/m.K); Q is the conducted heat quantity (J); Dx is the thickness
of a material (m); A is the heat transfer area (m2 ); t is the time
for the heat transfer (s); T 2  T 1 is the temperature difference of
the two things (°K) (see Fig. 3).
The smaller the value of A is the better insulation of the mate-
rial will be. The thermal conductivity of a material is related to its
composition and structure, the porosity and the characteristics of
its pores, the water content, temperature and other conditions.
The coefficient of thermal conductivity of metallic materials is big-
ger than that of non-metallic materials. In metallic and some of the
non-metallic materials (for example in buildings: natural stones,
bricks, concrete, AAC, . . .) the bigger the porosity is, the higher
the coefficient will be. Tiny and closed pores indicate low coeffi-
cient; big and open pores are easy to create convection heat, which
indicates that the coefficient is high. The thermal conductivity
coefficient of a material containing water or ice increases dramat-
ically because the coefficient of water and ice is bigger than that of
air [38].
3.2. Thermal capacity
Thermal capacity is the property of a material to absorb heat
when it is heated and to release heat when it is cooled. It is defined
by:
Q ¼ m  CðT 2  T 1 Þ
249
The specific heat, also called specific heat capacity (C), is the
measure of the heat energy that a substance in a unit quality
Specific Heat absorbs or releases when the temperature increases or decreases
Capacity C 1°K. The bigger the specific heat is, the better the stability of the
(J/g.K) indoor temperature will be. Table 6 shows the thermal conductiv-
0.80 ity coefficients and specific heat capacities of several common
0.88 building materials. m is the mass of the thing we are heating up
0.84
0.88
(kg).
1.00
3.3. Thermal deformation
Thermal deformation is the property of a substance to expand
with heat and contract with cold, customarily called temperature
deformation. It is expressed by linear expansion coefficient a,
which is defined by:
DL
a¼ ð25Þ
L  Dt
Where a is the linear expansion coefficient of a substance (1/°K); DL
is the expansion or contraction value of a specimen (mm); L is the
length before heating or cooling (mm); and Dt is the temperature
difference (°K).
3.4. Flame resistance
Materials can be divided into non-flammable materials, fire-
retardant materials and flammable materials according to their
reaction to fire.
Non-flammable materials are the ones that cannot be fired, car-
bonized or slightly burned when contacting with fire or high tem-
perature in the air, such as brick, natural stone, concrete, and
mortar. Fire-retardant materials are the ones that are hard to be
burned or carbonized when contacting with fire or high tempera-
ture in the air and stop burning or slightly flaming immediately
when leaving fire, such as gypsum board, cement asbestos board,
and plaster. Flammable materials are the ones that are ignited or
flame immediately when contacting with fire or high temperature
ð23Þ in the air and continue to burn or slightly flame when leaving fire,
such as plywood, fiberboard, wood and foil. In construction, the
selection of non-flammable materials or fire-retardant materials
also depends on fire resistant levels of buildings and the parts
where materials are used.
4. Summary of the current understanding of heat transfer and
other mechanisms in building materials
We have evaluated the extent to which the four specific mech-
anisms discussed in the literature could contribute to thermal con-
ductivity. None of these mechanisms alone seems to be able to
explain the anomalous increases in thermal conductivity in build-
ing materials.
In new salalen aluminum [16] the hydrogen atoms in these
complexes were generated geometrically, assign appropriate iso-
tropic thermal parameters, and is allowed to ride on their parent
carbon atoms. All of the hydrogen atoms are held stationary and
included in the structure factor calculation in the final stage of
full-matrix least-squares refinement. The structures are solved
and refined using SHELEXL-97 programs. In aluminium heteroscor-
pionate complexes [17] thermal ellipsoids are set at 50% probabil-
ity and hydrogen atoms are omitted for clarity by Mercury crystal
structure visualization software of the Cambridge structural
database.
Whereas such porous materials contribute to the improved
thermal performance and energy efficient design of buildings,
AAC [15] is such a light weight porous material that is used in con-
ð24Þ temporary buildings. The raw materials used for the preparation of
250 Z. Pezeshki et al. / Construction and Building Materials 181 (2018) 238–252
AAC are fly ash, cement, gypsum, lime and aluminum powder. The
silica rich material fly ash is the key ingredient for manufacturing.
The raw materials are mixed to a slurry form and poured in molds
and allowed to rise. The aluminum powder reacts with calcium sil-
icate hydrate to liberate hydrogen gas. During the autoclaving pro-
cess, the hydrogen gas escapes from the matrix leaving behind a
large number of pore spaces. The unique thermal properties, low
density and high fire resistance makes the building material more
environmental friendly. It is observed that the thermal conductiv-
ity of AAC blocks has been considerably increased when the dry
specimen becomes moist one. The insulating performance of the
material reduces with increasing moisture content. Due to the
wrong interpretation of thermodynamic processes occurring in
the testing of moist specimens the reason for reduction in the ther-
mal conductivity is contradictory. For the measurement of thermal
conductivity of building materials, a temperature gradient is to be
maintained inside the material. Also by investigating and measur-
ing thermal conductivity of 29 samples of clay bricks [34] and the
correlations of the thermal performance with the compositional,
physical, and microstructural features of products, the results
obtained directed attention toward a better understanding of the
role played by some parameters (i.e., mineralogical components
and pore size distribution), other than bulk density, in improving
or depressing the insulating properties of bricks. Among them,
the unfavorable role of quartz, Ca-rich silicates, and amorphous
phase came out, while the role of pore size and specific surface
should be more accurately evaluated in the structural design of
materials.
Cement foams are promising materials. Indeed, adding of air
into cement paste besides substantial material savings, improved
thermal properties may also offer. In order to control cement foam
morphology, the destabilization mechanisms of fresh cement
foams, until cement hardening, must be stopped or slowed. Stabi-
lization can be achieved by monitoring rheological properties of
the fresh cement paste, especially its yield stress [39–41]. In new
studies [20] hydration is followed by a combination of isothermal
calorimetry, chemical shrinkage, scanning electron microscopy,
and thermogravimetric analysis. The hydration of slag is also fol-
lowed by Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) image analysis
and the Quantitative phase analysis by X-ray Diffraction (QXRD)
or Partial or No Known Crystal Structure (PONKCS) methods. The
accuracy of the calibrated PONKCS phase is assessed on slag and
corundum mixes of varying ratios, at different water/solid ratios.
Thus, the method is used to analyze hydrated cement without
dehydrating the specimens.
Some studies have said the development of thermally stable
anatase TiO2 above 1000°C is required for ceramic applications
[42,43]. Because of these considerations, newer studies [25] have
focused on the application of metal ion (Ag+)-doped calcium
phosphate-based antibacterial powder and anatase-based SiO2 -
modified TiO2 on ceramic tiles. TiO2 -coated antibacterial ceramic
tiles and original tiles have been compared according to the decol-
oration of methylene blue under direct sunlight irradiation.
The polymers are removed by a heat treatment in air as part of
the thermal cycle during sintering. Gel casting and the choice of
suitable oligomers have been reviewed by Janney et al. [44,45].
In newer studies the gel casting suspension [35] has used based
on Chu [46] and Chopra [47] gel casting method for porous ceramic
scaffolds. Today, there are many investigations which have demon-
strated that materials performance can be dramatically altered by
nano-scale particles additions, for example higher mechanical
resistance, hardness, ductility, wear resistance, dielectric and ther-
mal capacity, magnetic properties, and etc [48,49]. Nanotechnol-
ogy is rapidly growing as a new technology alternative to create
advance materials with unique characteristics and performance
for different applications in several industrial sectors. Electric insu-
lators are components with high importance in the electricity net-
work system; reliability and high performance are essential
characteristics demanded by actual markets. Recent study reviews
the state-of-the-art of nanotechnology applications for outdoor
insulators base on nano-concepts for ceramic insulators [50].
In a new study done on concrete [23], gemini surfactants as
novel air entraining agents for concrete clearly show that the gem-
ini surfactants have higher surface activity, foamability, foam sta-
bility and air entraining performance compared with the
corresponding single-chained surfactants, and the sulfate group
modified that gemini surfactant has the highest performance.
These surfactants have been tested merely as model compounds
and they have shown higher air entraining ability compared with
the benchmark surfactants used in the industry, indicating great
potential for practical applications (such as cooling to room
temperature).
In accordance with Fujishima et al. [51], the heat reflected out-
side and the heat that transferred through the glass was assessed.
In summer time, the nanoTiO2 coating kept the indoor room cooler
thus obtaining a benefit. On the contrary, in winter, this phe-
nomenon means that part the solar heat doesn’t pass through the
glass windows, decreasing the radiation heat inside the room.
According to recently work studies [14], the ecodesign of the
industrial scale-up of TiO2 nanoparticles self-cleaning coated float
glass production has performed by the LCA methodology and
applies new human toxicity indicators to the impact assessment
stage. Production, particularly the TiO2 nanoparticle application,
is the life cycle phase most contributing to the total damage.
According to the ecodesign approach, the production choices car-
ried out have exacerbated environmental burdens.
Residual stresses make the product more stress resistant. In the
first study done on tempered glass, analytical solution to the prob-
lem of fracture of tempered glass applies two-dimensional linear-
elastic fracture mechanics analysis to obtain an analytical solution
for predicting the average particle size generated during the failure
of thermally tempered glass or various thicknesses and temper
levels [12,52].
The granite contains lower abundances of the ore minerals,
beryl, columbite-tantalite, monazite xenotime, and ilmenite, than
the pegmatites. Beryl occurs as tiny euhedral crystals, occasionally
up to 5 cm in length. Other ore minerals are small in grain size, and
have been found in heavy mineral concentrates recovered from
granites. Mineralogical data reveals that the investigated granite
is mostly a two-mica (biotite and muscovite) type. The key geo-
chemical features of the studied granite are its sub-alkaline and
strongly peraluminous (A/CNK ratio = 0.98 to 3.17; av. 1.21) nat-
ure. Also, the granite has a high K/Na ratio and high silica, total
alkalies, and Rb contents. The biotite-granite and muscovite-
biotite granites are purely crustal-derived granites that are closely
associated with the melting of crustal metasedimentary and/or
Trondhjemite, Tonalite, and Granodiorite (TTG) suite of rocks
[53,54]. Field, petrological, and geochemical studies of such intru-
sive granites from different parts the conclusion that the granites
were derived from melting of crustal metasedimentary rocks
[55–57]. The mineral assemblage that results from metasomatic
alteration is a function of temperature, pressure, host-rock (i.e.
those pegmatites that are hosted in fertile granites) and fluid com-
position, and fluid/rock ratio [58,59]. According to the study,
among other factors, decrease in temperature is considered the
most obvious cause for precipitation of metals from metaso-
matic/hydrothermal fluids [54].
Nowadays, the physical and mechanical properties of the pro-
duced synthetic samples have been investigated. These properties
include density, water absorption, porosity, hardness, compression
 Z. Pezeshki et al. / Construction and Building Materials 181 (2018) 238–252
and flexural strength. Some of these properties of synthetic sam-
ples such as marble are better than the common tile similar to
marble or granite. The porosity (as volume percentage) is
calculated from the density values. The linear coefficient of ther-
mal expansion is measured using a dilatometer (NETZSCH DIL
402 PC, Geratebau GmbH, Selb, Germany) with a heating rate of
10°C/min [21].
A novel bio-based plaster (The bio-based cement-lime plaster)
[37] with improved hygrothermal performance and Volatile
Organic Compound (VOC) sorption characteristics has been devel-
oped. Cellulose flakes, used for blown insulation, are added into a
cement-lime substrate in three different proportions. A range of
mechanical, hygrothermal, VOC emission and VOC adsorption
properties improved Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) in bio-based
cement-lime plaster. This novel plaster has resulted an improved
thermal conductivity and an improvement in the material’s mois-
ture buffering capacity and VOC adsorption capacity.
5. Outlook and future challenges
As described in this review, many interesting properties of
building materials have been reported. This isn’t particularly
remarkable and encouraging because of the relatively long period
(87 years) of active investigation in this area. Perhaps, study in this
region must be hard. While static measurements of thermal con-
ductivity have been carried out most extensively, several studies
have recently initiated reviews of other properties, often with
remarkable results. Although the potential for the use of building
materials in a wide variety of applications is promising, and we
conclude this review by pointing out that several important clues
in future issues to the mechanism of heat transfer have begun to
emerge from the growing number of studies of building material
properties:
1. Future issue 1. To investigate the heat transfer of concrete spec-
imen to the indoor environment, further study [10] must be
planned to determine the exact nature of influencing factors
such as the geometry of the specimen and the fatigue tester
as well as on boundary conditions.
2. Future issue 2. The prescriptive design guideline [5] should be
revised to consider the internal heat gain, envelope properties
and outdoor conditions. In addition, the performance-based
design method should be urgently applied for designing envel-
opes with maximal energy savings.
3. Future issue 3. The range of mechanical properties is also suffi-
ciently close to that of hard tissue for ceramic scaffolds to be
candidates for use in bone or hard tissue regenerative medicine
applications [35].
4. Future issue 4. A strong technological link between industry
and academia [50] must be considered to integrate adequately
nanotechnology concepts and achieve a successful implementa-
tion of new technologies to manufacture the future nanostruc-
tured ceramic outdoor insulators.
5. Future issue 5. Newer studies to explore ideal synthetic surfac-
tants for the development of novel air entraining materials and
techniques are recommended [23].
6. Future issue 6. Some possible directions of future research for
tempered glass manufacturing problem include [13]: (1) finding
an efficient lower bounding procedure and (2) optimizing the
adjustment procedure in the proposed algorithms.
Disclosure statement
This review is related to my thesis entitled ‘‘Energy modeling
for estimation of indoor temperature of the building based on
the BIM platform”.
251
Acknowledgments
The authors wish to express sincere gratitude to the anonymous
reviewers for their constructive comments and helpful sugges-
tions, which lead to substantial improvements of this paper.
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