Damage risk assessment of building materials with moisture hysteresis

Heat and Moisture Transfer (HMT) simulations are used to evaluate moisture related damage risks in building envelopes. HMT simulations are commonly performed accepting the hypothesis of not considering the moisture hysteresis of materials. The results of HMT simulation of a timber wall with hysteresis are presented, and compared to the results of three simplified models, showing the effects of hysteresis on the simulation results and on the assessment of the risk of decay. Moisture content is the most influenced variable, while temperature and relative humidity are slightly affected. The wood decay risk analysis is performed using the simplified 20% moisture content rule. Similar temperature values and relative humidity values are calculated as simplified models, while the moisture content annual average values have differences up to 2.3%. The wood decay risk obtained with the simplified models could be overestimated if the simulation is performed using the desorption curve, while it could be underestimated with the adsorption curve. The best approximation is obtained with the mean sorption curve, while the desorption curve and the adsorption curve could be used to calculate the upper and lower boundary of the moisture contents respectively.

Phosphorus sorption - desorption by purple soils of China in relation to their properties

The understanding of phosphorus (P) sorption and desorption by soil is important for better managing soil P source and relieving water eutrophication. In this study, sorption–desorption behaviour of P was investigated in purple soils, collected from 3 kinds of purple parent materials with different kinds of land cover, in the upper reaches of Yangtze River, China, using a batch equilibrium technique. Results showed that most of the farmed purple soils had P sorption capacity (PSC) values ranging from 476 to 685 mg P/kg, while higher PSC values were observed in the soils from forestland and paddy field. A single-point P sorption index (PSI) was found to be significantly correlated with PSC (R2 = 0.94, P < 0.001), suggesting its use in estimating PSC across different types of purple soils. The PSC of purple soils was positively and strongly related to the contents of amorphous Fe and Al oxides (r = 0.73, P < 0.001), clay (r = 0.55, P < 0.01), and organic matter (r = 0.50, P < 0.05). Furthermore, the constant relating to binding strength was positively correlated with the content of amorphous Fe and Al oxides (r = 0.66, P < 0.01), but negatively correlated with labile Ca (r = –0.43, P < 0.05) and soil pH (r = –0.53, P < 0.01). Some acidic purple soils with high binding energy featured a power desorption curve, suggesting that P release risk can be accelerated once the P sorbed exceeds a certain threshold. Other soils with low binding energy demonstrated a linear desorption curve. The P desorption percentage was significantly correlated with soil test P (r = 0.78, P < 0.01) and the degree of P saturation (r = 0.82, P < 0.01), but negatively correlated with PSC (r = –0.66, P < 0.01).

EFFECTS OF SOIL TEMPERATURE ON PHOSPHORUS EXTRACTABILITY. II. SOIL PHOSPHORUS IN SIX CARBONATED AND SIX NON-CARBONATED SOILS

The change in the extractability of soil phosphorus (P) in response to temperature was examined in 12 Manitoba soils. These soils varied in carbonate and P contents. The soil P was labelled with 32P to facilitate measurements. Sodium bicarbonate extractions, anion exchange resin extractions, P desorption curves and short-term plant uptake using wheat were used to measure P extractability. An increase in soil temperature increased the extractability of P. This was apparent for P extracted by NaHCO3 only in soils low in P. The P extracted by resin appeared to respond similarly but was quite variable. Effects of temperature on the desorption curve parameters were significant only in soils high in P. The latter may reflect the detection limits for P using the desorption curve extraction system. Plant uptake was closely correlated to root growth. Both increased markedly as temperature increased. However, in certain soils the increase in P uptake due to temperature was far greater than the corresponding increase in root growth. The estimates of the labile pool accessed by plants increased as temperature increased. The principle hypothesis, that the effect of temperature on P extractability changed from soil to soil, was confirmed. The only controlling soil factor that could be identified was the basic soil P content. Key words: Temperature, soil phosphorus, carbonated, non-carbonated, plant uptake, wheat

Thermal desorption under conditions of freely occurring readsorption: A method for evaluation of the experimental data

A method is proposed which permits to determine the differential enthalpy, differential entropy and kinetic order of desorption from the thermal desorption experiments carried out under close-to-equilibrium conditions. The main preference of the proposed method can be seen in the possibility to use for evaluation the entire range of the desorption curve, as well as, in the unified description of the most frequently used types of heating. The approximations enabling such a unified description lead to deviations which are, in major, mutually eliminated and the resulting error is therefore negligible if compared with the accuracy of the experimental data.

SOIL WATER DESORPTION CURVES ESTIMATED FROM LIMITED DATA

A procedure is described by which the soil water desorption curve, modeled as a power curve, can be approximated from a limited number of measured water contents at specific tensions. Applicability of the model was tested on 90 soils. The results indicated that measurements at the two extremes were the most important, if only two water contents were measured. The best results were obtained when the curve was fitted through three measured water contents, respectively, at saturation, at an intermediate (5.0–35.0 kPa) tension and at a high (1500.0 kPa) tension. Key words: Soil water desorption curves, limited data, power curve