INNOVATIVE USE OF GIANT REED AND CORK RESIDUES FOR PANELS OF BUILDINGS IN MEDITERRANEAN AREA

The environmental impact of buildings has to be assessed not only in reference to the energy consumed by theiruse but also with reference to the energy inside materials with which they are made of. The "Sick BuildingSyndrome" (SBS) is increasing. It was discovered that the major causes are linked to chemical contaminants fromindoor sources such as building materials, inadequate ventilation, excessive use of Heating, Ventilation and AirConditioning (HVAC) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The insulation building materials have a relevantrole in the SBS for the capacity, not only to limit the use of HVAC but also to limit the emission of pollutantsinside a building environment. The present paper reports an up- to- date review of some innovative uses ofwastes deriving from agricultural production in order to build walls and partitions for Mediterranean houses.Some test methods of building elements, made with giant reed and agglomerate cork which are two typicalnatural materials of the Mediterranean area, are illustrated. These vegetal materials are often residues derivingfrom agricultural production, the agricultural residues are often a problem for farmers or firms because theorganic wastes are considered dangerous and the disposal of such material is very expensive, therefore the reuseof the wastes is the best way to recycle these materials. This paper analyzes a cavity wall panel made with awood skeleton on which two double crossed layers of giant reed stems were fixed and a multilayer agglomeratedcork wall with a double cavity multilayer BOTH 20CM THICK. The dynamic thermal analysis carried out for thehouses with the proposed walls highlights a better environmental performance of buildings with agglomeratedcork and with giant reed walls rather than brick walls. The production of CO2 for the indoor environmentalthermal control of the house with giant reed walls is less than 1/2 and the house with agglomerated cork walls isless than 1/4 compared to the brick wall house.