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evention of mold formation based on continuous condition monitoring of
timber constructions
Jan Včelák 1,2
1. Czech Technical University in Prague, University Centre for Energy Efficient Building, Třinecká 1024, Buštěhrad, jan.vcelak@cvut.cz
2. InnoRenew CoE, Livade 6, Izola, Slovenia, jan.vcelak@innorenew.eu
Wood as a construction material is more and more used not only for single floor buildings but also for
tall buildings. The legislation in EU countries is changing, and as a result, it allows using wood for multi-
storey buildings constructed partially or fully from the wooden material. The EU statistics show that in
reality fire is less dangerous for timber construction than water. Timber constructions deserve at least
the same prevention against water which is currently applied as prevention to fire. Wood as a renewable
construction material is used for residential as well as commercial buildings. The total number of new
buildings made from wood is still quite low, on average 15% in the EU. The leader of the constructions
from wood is Scandinavia (85%).
Long-term exposure of wood to high humidity level causing the formation of mold at a first stage and
fungi and insect decay in a longer perspective. Because of sorption isotherms for various species of
wood, the ambient humidity higher than 80% will cause mold formation on the surface of the timber
construction.
A mathematical model of the mold growth on building materials was developed in VTT by Vitanen and
others (Viaten et al., 2015; Dietsch et al., 2014; Skaar, 1988; Siau, 1984). It well describes the influence of
temperature and humidity on the risk of mold formation on the surface of various building materials
covering gypsum, concrete, mortar, plywood, or softwood. To reliably determine the risk of mold formation
it is necessary to record the values of humidity and temperature directly in the building structure. The
values of humidity and moisture inside the wall structure might be very different from values obtained in
the interior of the buildings
The work is focused on practical use of mathematical mold growth model applied to the data from the
timber construction of a wooden building. Since for some timber building, the data are available for
more than four years, the model will be applied for long periods to observe long-term behaviour of the
construction including small common accidents (leaks) included in the dataset. The obtained results will
be discussed in the presentation.
Keywords: wood, timber construction, mold, SHM
Acknowledgement
This work was supported by the Horizon 2020 Framework Programme of the European Union, H2020
WIDESPREAD-2-Teaming: #739574 .
References
Vitanen H. , Ojanen T., Krus M. at. Al. Mold Risk Classification Based on Comparative Evaluation of Two Established
Growth Models, Energy Procedia 78, DOI: 10.1016/j.egypro.2015.11.165, IBPC 2015, Italy
Dietsch, Philipp, Franke, Steffen, Franke, Bettina, Gamper, Andreas, and Winter, Stefan. (2014). Methods to determine
wood moisture content and their applicability in monitoring concepts. Journal of Civil Structural Health Monitoring.
5. 115-127. 10.1007/s13349-014-0082-7.
Skaar, C., Wood-Water Relations, Springer, Berlin, 1988.
Siau, J.F., Transport processes in wood, Springer, New York, 1984.
INNORENEW COE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE 2021
30
timber constructions
Jan Včelák 1,2
1. Czech Technical University in Prague, University Centre for Energy Efficient Building, Třinecká 1024, Buštěhrad, jan.vcelak@cvut.cz
2. InnoRenew CoE, Livade 6, Izola, Slovenia, jan.vcelak@innorenew.eu
Wood as a construction material is more and more used not only for single floor buildings but also for
tall buildings. The legislation in EU countries is changing, and as a result, it allows using wood for multi-
storey buildings constructed partially or fully from the wooden material. The EU statistics show that in
reality fire is less dangerous for timber construction than water. Timber constructions deserve at least
the same prevention against water which is currently applied as prevention to fire. Wood as a renewable
construction material is used for residential as well as commercial buildings. The total number of new
buildings made from wood is still quite low, on average 15% in the EU. The leader of the constructions
from wood is Scandinavia (85%).
Long-term exposure of wood to high humidity level causing the formation of mold at a first stage and
fungi and insect decay in a longer perspective. Because of sorption isotherms for various species of
wood, the ambient humidity higher than 80% will cause mold formation on the surface of the timber
construction.
A mathematical model of the mold growth on building materials was developed in VTT by Vitanen and
others (Viaten et al., 2015; Dietsch et al., 2014; Skaar, 1988; Siau, 1984). It well describes the influence of
temperature and humidity on the risk of mold formation on the surface of various building materials
covering gypsum, concrete, mortar, plywood, or softwood. To reliably determine the risk of mold formation
it is necessary to record the values of humidity and temperature directly in the building structure. The
values of humidity and moisture inside the wall structure might be very different from values obtained in
the interior of the buildings
The work is focused on practical use of mathematical mold growth model applied to the data from the
timber construction of a wooden building. Since for some timber building, the data are available for
more than four years, the model will be applied for long periods to observe long-term behaviour of the
construction including small common accidents (leaks) included in the dataset. The obtained results will
be discussed in the presentation.
Keywords: wood, timber construction, mold, SHM
Acknowledgement
This work was supported by the Horizon 2020 Framework Programme of the European Union, H2020
WIDESPREAD-2-Teaming: #739574 .
References
Vitanen H. , Ojanen T., Krus M. at. Al. Mold Risk Classification Based on Comparative Evaluation of Two Established
Growth Models, Energy Procedia 78, DOI: 10.1016/j.egypro.2015.11.165, IBPC 2015, Italy
Dietsch, Philipp, Franke, Steffen, Franke, Bettina, Gamper, Andreas, and Winter, Stefan. (2014). Methods to determine
wood moisture content and their applicability in monitoring concepts. Journal of Civil Structural Health Monitoring.
5. 115-127. 10.1007/s13349-014-0082-7.
Skaar, C., Wood-Water Relations, Springer, Berlin, 1988.
Siau, J.F., Transport processes in wood, Springer, New York, 1984.
INNORENEW COE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE 2021
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