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Deepak Padmakar Patil,
Jayant Hemchandra Bhangale,
- Ph. D. Scholar, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Matoshri College of Engineering and Research Centre, Eklahare, Nashik, Maharashtra, India
- Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Matoshri College of Engineering and Research Centre, Eklahare, Nashik, Maharashtra, India
Abstract
Cellulose fibre insulation structures made from used newspaper can be installed in attics, filling gaps between doors and windows. Many researchers focused on loose-filled cellulose fibre insulation. This study investigates the thermal conductivity, R- Value and thermal transmittance of cellulose fibre insulation manufactured from recycled cellulose materials with densities ranging from 280 to 360 kg / m³ and specimen thicknesses of 10 – 30 mm. A total of 25 structures were prepared and tested using a guarded hot plate method considering 3-D steady-state heat transfer conditions. To validate the experimental results, a 3-D finite element honeycomb meshing model was tested in simulation software ANSYS Fluent 2025 R2 using the same specimen geometry and thermal boundary conditions. Analysis of the experimental data revealed that, the thermal conductivity increased with change in density, ranging from 0.0363 W/m-K for the 10 mm-thick specimens at 280 kg / m³ to 0.0693 W/m-K for the 30 mm-thick specimens at 360 kg/m³. The increase in thermal conductivity is attributed to reduced air voids and increased contact between cellulose fibres at higher densities. The ANSYS simulations closely agreed with the experimental measurements, with deviations generally below 4%, demonstrating the reliability of the developed numerical model. The results show that, recycled cellulose fibre insulation exhibits thermal conductivity values comparable to those of commercially available bio-based insulation materials while offering significant environmental benefits through the utilisation of recycled waste. The validated numerical model provides an effective tool for predicting the thermal parameters of cellulose fibre insulation.
Keywords: Cellulose fibre, Additives, Thermal conductivity, Density, Thermal resistance, Thermal transmittance
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Journal of Polymer & Composites
| Volume | 14 | |
| 05 | ||
| Received | 19/08/2026 | |
| Accepted | 19/09/2026 | |
| Published | 29/09/2026 | |
| Publication Time | 41 Days |