Optimization strategies of the envelope insulation for a detached house based on load sensitivity and thermal storage performance

Reasonable thermal insulation in cold regions is the key to improve the indoor thermal environment. In this paper, the detached house is taken as the research object, and the sensitivity analysis method is used to quantify the influence of each parameter on the building heat load in three different climate zones. The attenuation characteristics of the heat storage body to the outdoor temperature wave are studied by using the A·M Shklovel calculation method, and the thermal insulation strategy of the envelope structure is optimized by genetic algorithm (GA). The results show that the heat transfer coefficient of roof and exterior wall has the most significant influence on the building heat load. The mean effect response of each factor shows that the Delta (Delta is the value used in Taguchi design methodology to express the relative effect of each factor on the response) of roofs in the three regions is the highest, 3.061, 4.061, and 5.88, respectively. The influence of the type and thickness of the insulation material on the heat storage performance is different. The indoor and outdoor temperature wave penetration attenuation multiple increases with the increase of the thickness of the insulation layer, increases with the decrease of the thermal conductivity of the insulation material, and increases with the increase of the specific heat capacity. The choice of insulation materials is not only related to the above two parameters, but also directly affected by the price. Considering the influence of various factors, the economy of choosing expanded polystyrene board for thermal insulation in the three regions is the best. The optimal thermal insulation thickness of the north wall and roof is 8 and 16 cm (3A climate zone), 10 and 17 cm (2B climate zone), 13 and 20 cm (2A climate zone), respectively.