Optimum insulation thickness and environmental impacts in various climate zones of Turkiye

In this study, optimum insulation thicknesses were determined for the external walls of buildings in different climatic regions of Turkiye. Energy, economic and environmental performance analyses were carried out by applying optimum insulation thickness for extruded polystyrene (XPS) and glass wool as insulating material. According to the thermal insulation rules (TS 825) in buildings, for Diyarbakır, Konya and Kars provinces located in second-, third- and fourth-degree day zones, optimum insulation thicknesses and related energy, economic and environmental performance analyses were made. Life cycle assessment (LCA) method was used to determine environmental performance. The optimum insulation thicknesses vary between 0.043 and 0.12 m. Compared to XPS, optimum insulation thickness is higher, both payback period and LCA payback period (PP_LCA) are shorter, and both E_S and avoided environmental impact (AEI) amounts are higher when glass wool is used for the investigated three provinces. The results indicated that E_S and AEI amounts are considerably augmented and PP_LCA is reduced when coal is used compared to natural gas for both insulating materials. According to obtained results, it is suggested that coal as the fuel type and glass wool as the insulation material can be utilised for buildings in the studied three provinces.