Effect of aging and durability on constitution of panels used for the wireless hut built in 1957 at Syowa Station, Antarctica

Abstract

The wireless hut built in 1957 at Syowa Station brought back to Japan in 1997 is one of the first wooden panel-structured and prefabricated buildings in our country. In April 1981, the living hut for the first wintering party was brought back and evaluated by a performance test in 1982. This time, the wireless hut for the first wintering party was brought back after 40 years. We tested the performance of the construction material and framework members. The wireless hut panels were formed by adhesion of plywood to both surfaces of the frame material and injecting expanded polystyrene into the hollow part so that the panels are light-weight and have high heat resistance. We conducted performance tests on the adhesive strength of plywood and frame material, strength of the panel frame material, thermal conductivity of heat insulating material, and heat transmission flow rate of panel, and compared those results with research done in 1982. From the performance test results, we concluded that the construction material and framework members of the wireless hut being 40-year old at Syowa Station in the Antarctic have hardly changed, except for a few parts.