Insulation

Heating and cooling systems are some of the biggest energy guzzlers, but passive temperature control could reduce emissions. Phase-change materials show promise for this, and now engineers have developed a new PCM composite that can be 3D printed.

Kevlar and Twaron are tough materials, but there’s a bit of a trade-off to be made between strength, heat resistance and weight. Now, researchers have created a new nanofiber material that’s just as strong, but much more insulating against heat.

Different materials can play different roles when it comes to trapping and dissipating heat. But could one material have it both ways? A new breakthrough suggests that it could, made by scientists who believe heat needn’t just be a one way street.

​For years now, scientists have marvelled at the insulating qualities of polar bear fur, suggesting that it could inspire manmade heat-retaining materials. Well, Chinese researchers have now developed just such a substance, which reportedly outperforms real fur.

​Back in 2014, we heard how scientists from Germany's Fraunhofer Institute for Wood Research had developed a wood-based foam that could be used as eco-friendly insulation. Now, they've combined it with metal to create a composite that has a much wider range of potential applications.

Aerogels are among the best thermal insulators, but their cloudy appearance doesn't work for windows, one of the worst offenders for letting heat escape a building. Now, researchers at Colorado University Boulder have found a way to make them transparent, recycling a beer by-product in the process.

University of Maryland engineers have created a new insulating material capable of blocking at least 10 degrees more heat than styrofoam or silica aerogel. It’s also 30 times stronger than styrofoam, and appears to be much more environmentally friendly.

Why bother adding a layer of insulation to a brick wall, if you can just build that wall using hollow bricks that are stuffed with insulation? That's the thinking behind bricks which incorporate materials such as perlite. Now, scientists have created the best-insulating brick yet, using aerogel.

​Although ceramics are known for being able to withstand high temperatures, they also have a reputation for being brittle. That's not the case, however, with a spongey new material made from ceramic nanofibers. It could find use in high-temperature insulation or water filtration.

If you're a regular camper, you probably know what it's like to pitch a tent on a warm evening and wake up the next morning feeling like you're sleeping in an oven. Cold weather camping can be just as grim, too. Derek O'Sullivan reckons he's solved these issues with his Thermo Tent.

A house made from straw didn't work out so well in the story of the Three Little Pigs, but maybe it's not such a bad idea after all. Sustainable building firm BaleHaus recently unveiled some new straw homes which promise an incredible 90 percent fuel bill reduction.

Say you were the third generation of a sheep-farming family in the southwest of Scotland, and you intended to build a new farmhouse that made a statement about resource consumption. Well, you would, wouldn't you?