Building Envelopes Research Program

The Building Envelopes Program at ORNL is a program within the Buildings Technology Center (BTC), a premier U.S. research facility devoted to developing technologies that improve the energy efficiency and environmental compatibility of residential and commercial buildings. Our program is divided into two parts: building envelope research, which focuses on the structural elements that enclose a building (walls, roofs and foundations), and materials research, which concentrates on the materials within the envelope systems (such as insulation). The building envelope provides the thermal barrier between the indoor and outdoor environment, and its elements are the key determinants of a building's energy requirements that result from the climate where it is located.

Facilities and Equipment
The ORNL Buildings Technology Center is made up of a cluster of six buildings with over 20,000 square feet of laboratory space. Within this complex are four major experimental apparatuses used primarily for building envelope research. They are the Large Scale Climate Simulator (LSCS), Rotatable Guarded Hot Box (RGHB), Roof Thermal Research Apparatus (RTRA), and Envelope Systems Research Apparatus (ESRA).

Research Staff
The Building Envelope & Materials program staff consists of scientists, engineers, and technicians with diverse backgrounds and experiences. Responsibilities range from research and authoring to product testing and development.

How to Work with Us
One of the main missions of the Building Envelope Research Program is to work with private industry, universities, and other government agencies to accelerate the market penetration of the most promising energy-efficient opaque building wall systems. There are at least three mechanisms for private industry and others to gain access to the unique facilities and capabilities of the Building Envelope Research Program. These mechanisms are:

• User Agreement
• Work for Others
• Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA)

Point of Contact:
Andre Desjarlais, Group Leader
Building Envelopes Research Group
Engineering & Transportation Services Division
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
P.O. Box 2008, MS 6070
Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831-6070
Phone: 865-574-0022