Textile as a sustainable insulating material for buildings

Abstract

The introduction of the concept of "sustainability" in the construction industry has led to the production of alternative insulation products made of textiles from virgin or recycled materials, besides the conventional ones. Some of them are already present in the European market, while others are still being researched. There is no ideal insulation material, so it is useful to evaluate conventional and alternative insulating materials. The assessment of insulation materials is an issue which needs to be analyzed from different aspects: the physical properties of the material, their effect on people and the environment, installation difficulty and price. In this paper, conventional and alternative insulation materials from textiles are examined in terms of sustainability criteria. Insulation materials from recycled textiles are considered sustainable materials due to the possibility of recycling, reuse and low value of embodied energy. However, as a result of insufficient consumer awareness, insulating materials from textiles are not represented in the markets as much as they deserve to be.

Keywords

• insulation
• recycled textiles
• evaluation