The Benefits of Phenolic Foam Pipe Insulation

Phenolic Foam with a foil facing is one of the most commonly used insulation products in the UK market today, so we thought it might be worth looking at the comparative benefits of using such products. In this article we will look at the following: Thermal Performance, Fire Performance, Moisture Resistance,Environmental Impact and last but not least... Price.

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Thermal Performance

When looking at phenolic foam insulation, thermal performance is probably the most obvious place to begin; why? Because phenolic foam is simply better than every other commonly available product, and by quite a distance. Typically phenolic insulation has a thermal conductivity of around 0.025W/m.K at +10ºC, (The initial value is usually more like 0.021W/m.K for a good quality foam but this will age over the first 90 days and then stabilise) compared to to around 0.032W/m.K for glass wool at the same temperature. Does this make it a better insulation? Yes and no, thermally speaking it is certainly the superior product, but we always advocate that you need to use the right insulation for the right application. Phenolic foam is suitable for a wide range of heating and cooling applications, and as it is such an efficient product (due to the very fine cell structure) you can usually use a thinner layer of insulation to achieve the same results. This also means the material has a smaller surface area, so if you are using finishing materials such as PIB sheeting or Aluminium Cladding then you do not need to use as much.

Fire Performance

Phenolic Foam has excellent fire performance characteristics. It is difficult to ignite, has either zero or very low flame spread and low smoke emission with a very low level of toxic gas emission. As phenolic foam is a thermoset material it will not run, melt or drip when it comes into contact with a fire source. For this reason it is capable of meeting or exceeding all international building regulation requirements. The toxic gases that are given off by phenolic foam in the event of a fire tend to be limited to either carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide with very low levels of other gases.

Phenolic foam usually achieve a Class 0 Fire Rating to BS476: Parts 6 & 7, and to the Euroclass Fire Rating should achieve Euroclass B-s1-d0.

Moisture Resistance

Phenolic foam typically has a low water vapour permeance, thus it is highly resistant to the passage of water vapour and it also has very low water absorption characteristics. The material is also "non wicking", this means that if the vapour barrier is punctured and water or moisture that gets in will be limited to the damaged area. This means that you have a measure of damage limitation; you will have to replaced the damaged section, but it will not compromise the system as a whole.

The excellent moisture resistance characteristics make phenolic foam particularly suitable for low temperature hot water, chilled and cold applications (on colder applications the use of a good quality mastic is advisable as foil tape alone does not fully protect the joins from the passage of moisture).

Environmental Impact

Good quality phenolic foam (such as Supaphen or 3DPHEN) are both CFC and HCFC free, though some cheaper materials are still manufactured with a HCFC blowing agent. Both products also have also have an Ozone Depletion Potential of Zero.

Independent UK Based Phenolic Manufacturers

To quote the EPFA, phenolic foam has "low environmental impact per unit of thermal performance compared with many other materials".

Price

For more information, please visit Langfang Clear Chemical.

At first glance, phenolic foam is amongst the most expensive materials in the industry, but that is missing they key benefit of the product.

As it is so efficient thermally speaking you can usually use a thickness below to achieve the same results as a mineral fibre product. eg You can often use 15mm Thickness Phenolic where you would have to use 20mm Thickness Mineral Fibre, which is very often the cheaper option. Typically phenolic has a temperature range of -180ºC to +120ºC, so it is not always true that you can simply substitute one for the other - which comes back to the issue of choosing the right insulation for the right application.

Another factor to consider, especially on larger installations, is whether or not you need to use any kind of facing materials on the insulation, such as PIB or Aluminium Cladding. As you can use thinner insulation, the surface area of the insulation will be less, therefore you can use less facing material which in turn saves you more money.

Weight Savings - Save Your Energy in the Field

Ductwork made out of rigid phenolic foam can provide significant weight savings on your project. Indoor systems offer the highest savings, with rectangular, round and flat oval systems all capable of providing over a 70% reduction in weight compared with sheet metal wrapped in fiberglass.

High R-Values - Superior Thermal Performance

Phenolic has an excellent thermal performance with some of the best R- values per inch of insulation available on the market .This superior insulating efficiency means that the required R-value can be achieved with thinner insulation that are highly resistant to heat transfer. This results in reduced energy consumption and lower operating costs for your applications. With the increasing pressure of energy codes always moving towards more insulation, Phenolic duct systems provide solutions that don&#;t only meet today&#;s code requirements but those of the future too.

Space Saving - Tight Spaces are No Problem!

Phenolic ductwork is pre-insulated, which means it does not require any additional insulation wrapping. Because of this, space requirements are minimal and duct can be installed in tighter places, including flush to ceilings and walls to free up more space where every square inch matters. You may also need fewer hangers to contend with depending on the size of the ductwork.

Lower Air Leakage - Cut Energy Costs

Pre-Insulated phenolic ductwork assembled and installed in line with the SMACNA Phenolic Duct Construction Standards can easily achieve anything between a SMACNA Class 1 and SMACNA Class 3 leakage rating. The long term benefits of this lower air leakage can include reduced runtime on HVAC equipment over the life of the system therefore bigger energy savings, better Indoor air quality with phenolic&#;s smooth aluminum interior and improved comfort.

UL 181 Listed Safety - 25/50 Fire and Smoke Performance

Some Phenolic Ductwork systems have gone through extensive UL testing to achieve a UL 181 Listed status, starting with - Kingspan KoolDuct back in . This is an extensive and rigorous series of tests and ongoing inspections that covers many aspects of safety and product durability - structural testing, pressure testing, mold and bacteria growth, static load and flame and smoke spread, among others.

Are you interested in learning more about Phenolic Insulation Price? Contact us today to secure an expert consultation!