Modelling of mould growth in building envelopes:Existing models, discussion on improvement aspects, sensibility analysis

The requirements for durability of the buildings and indoor air quality are growing. Therefore the focus in hygrothermal modelling of whole buildings is moving towards a kind of risk analysis. One of the main risks in this sense is the mould growth and following decay of the constructions. This paper gives a state-of-art of models predicting mould growth. But what is more important, this paper discusses the whole problem of modelling such a phenomenon. A sensitivity analysis of modelled mould growth and comparison with measured mould growth are also presented. To understand the biological, chemical and physical phenomenon of the mould in building structures and modelling of it is challenging. However, approaches to model this kind of complex problem have been done and are still going on. The basis for a good model is many and good measurements. A large experimental study on 8 different building materials is going on in collaboration with VTT and TTY, Finland. The studies and discussion in this paper are a part of developing of an improved mould growth model based on these experiments that are described in another paper to this meeting