Development of a New Heat Flux Sensor for Building Applications

Buildings account for more than 40% of EU final energy demand. Most of the existing buildings will be standing over 30 years time, when the new construction rate is still low. This means that the existing building refurbishment represents a key factor for the primary energy saving potential of EU, up to 2050. The heat exchange measurements in situ are so crucial for real dynamic behaviour characterization for standard and new solutions, such as the operative settings investigation due to user and external constrains. A new heat flux sensor development, called Tile, is exposed in this paper. The research started from the study of a commercial sensitive element based on semi-conductor materials. Its thermal and electrical properties were experimental investigated. An effective and dedicated frame was set up, aiming at accuracy and stability advantages in terms of its influence on the measured values. Some prototypes of Tile sensor were realized and checked.