This book, Drying and Wetting of Building Materials and Components, provides a collection of recent contributions in the field of drying and wetting in porous building materials. The main benefit of the book is that it discusses some of the most important topics related to the drying and wetting processes, namely, innovations and trends in drying science and technology, drying mechanism and theory, equipment, advanced modelling, complex simulation and experimentation. At the same time, these topics will be going to the encounter of a variety of scientific and engineering disciplines. The book is divided in several chapters that intend to be a resume of the current state of knowledge for benefit of professional colleagues.

This work presents an extensive experimental characterisation of two different ceramic brick blocks with different interface, at different heights, during the drying process. First, a laboratory characterization of the building material used (ceramic bricks and different mortars) is presented, showing their hygrothermal, mechanical and thermal properties, namely, bulk porosity and density, water vapour permeability, capillary absorption, retention curve, moisture diffusivity as a function of moisture content and thermal conductivity. Moreover, the moisture transfer in multi-layered systems was analysed in detail taking into account the interface contact between the building elements.

First Published in 2004. This volume presents the proceedings of the seventh Conference on the Durability of Building Materials and Components, held in May 1996. Emphasis is given to service life data and in-service performance, and the text reflects current research activity in these areas.

Almost all homes, apartments, and commercial buildings will experience leaks, flooding, or other forms of excessive indoor dampness at some point. Not only is excessive dampness a health problem by itself, it also contributes to several other potentially problematic types of situations. Molds and other microbial agents favor damp indoor environments, and excess moisture may initiate the release of chemical emissions from damaged building materials and furnishings. This new book from the Institute of Medicine examines the health impact of exposures resulting from damp indoor environments and offers recommendations for public health interventions. Damp Indoor Spaces and Health covers a broad range of topics. The book not only examines the relationship between damp or moldy indoor environments and adverse health outcomes but also discusses how and where buildings get wet, how dampness influences microbial growth and chemical emissions, ways to prevent and remediate dampness, and elements of a public health response to the issues. A comprehensive literature review finds sufficient evidence of an association between damp indoor environments and some upper respiratory tract symptoms, coughing, wheezing, and asthma symptoms in sensitized persons. This important book will be of interest to a wide-ranging audience of science, health, engineering, and building professionals, government officials, and members of the public.

The knowledge of moisture migration inside building materials and construction building components is decisive for the way they behave when in use. The durability, waterproofing, degrading aspect and thermal behaviour of these materials are strongly influenced by the existence of moisture within their interior, which provoke changes in their normal performance, something that is normally hard to predict. Due to the awareness of this problem, the scientific community have per-formed various studies about the existence of moisture inside porous materials. The complex aspects of moisture migration phenomenon tended to encompass monolithic building elements, since the existence of joints or layers contributes to the change of moisture transfer along the respective building element that contribute to the change of mass transfer law. The presentation of an experimental analyses concerning moisture transfer in the interface of material that makes up masonry is described in such a way as to evaluate the durability and/or avoid building damages. In this work it was analysed, during the wetting process, the influence of different types of interface, commonly observed in masonry, such as: perfect con-tact, joints of cement mortar, lime mortar, and the air space interface. The results allow the calculation of the hygric resistance. With these results, it is possible to use any advanced hygrothermal simulation program to study the water transport in building elements, considering different interfaces and their hygric resistance.