Early-stage analysis of a novel insulation material based on MPCM-doped cementitious foam: Modelling of properties, identification of production process hotspots and exploration of performance trade-offs

This study presents an early-stage design exploration of NRG-Foam, an innovative insulation material composed of cementitious foam doped with microencapsulated phase change materials (MPCMs). The study comprises the static part that utilizes life cycle assessment and life cycle costing assessment for getting insight into the impacts of the NRG-Foam production process and the dynamic part that identifies the trade-offs between performance characteristics of NRG-Foam using multi-objective optimization. The production of MPCMs was found to be a major contributor to environmental impacts while the addition of small amounts of reduced graphene oxide amplifies the impacts even further. The hot spot analysis pinpointed high electricity consumption as the main driver of environmental impacts. A multi-objective optimization analysis revealed trade-offs between performance characteristics, emphasizing the necessity of compromises during material development. The selection of the MPCM type was shown to be determinative of the final properties of NRG-Foam.