Analytical Model for Predicting Thermal Bridge Effects due to Vacuum Insulation Panel Barrier Envelopes

Because of a necessity for sustainability and thus for a reduction of the amount of primary energy generated with fossil fuels, vacuum insulation panels (VIP) have recently caught the attention of practitioners in the building industry. The reduction of layer thickness may be considered among the most promising features for large-scale application of VIPs in buildings. The high barrier laminate (or casing) with relatively high thermal conductivity envelops the core material, thus introducing a thermal bridge at the panel edges and corners. Especially for barrier laminates containing "thick" metal foils, the thermal bridge effect needs to be considered thoughtful. In this contribution analytical models are presented which on the one hand allow rapid estimation of the VIP?s overall thermal performance and on the other hand show the influence of material and geometric parameters on this performance. The analytical models are validated through numerical simulations.