Fibre Crimp and Bulk Factor Measurement
topic
Glass wool and mineral wool fibre crimp is characterised by fibre curl index measurement from image analysis of fibre segments comparing actual fibre length to end-to-end chord length, while bulk factor or loft measurement compares the volume of a known fibre mass under defined load to the mass of solid fibre to quantify the air entrapment efficiency that determines thermal and acoustic insulation performance per unit mass.
Role
Quantifies the structural properties of discontinuous mineral wool insulation fibres that determine their thermal and acoustic performance in installed building insulation products, enabling process control of fibre crimping operations that govern loft, and quality control of fibre bulk density that is the primary parameter determining thermal resistance of mineral wool insulation products.