Charakterisierung von Gebäudestrukturen mit Mikrowellenmessverfahren

Abstract

The German government has declared that by 2050, the country aims to re-duce its primary energy consumption by 50 percent compared to the level reached in 2008. Germany must take measures to achieve this goal, not only in sectors such as industry and transport but also in the energy used for heating of buildings, which accounts for 26 % of the country's total final energy con-sumption. The most efficient way to save energy in this sector is to install insulation layers in buildings' walls. To exploit the full potential of insulation systems, precise information about the internal structures of the walls to be insulated is required. Acquiring this information can be rather challenging, though, since a large proportion of the buildings in Germany were constructed either before or shortly after the end of World War II; for a majority of these buildings, there is no or only insufficient information about their walls' actual makeups. The present thesis aims to develop a comprehensive methodology using microwaves for wall characterization, i.e., a methodology that includes all steps starting from the calibration of the measurement systems to the final analysis of the radar images generated. The thesis features first-time investiga-tions on multilayer wall structures of different compositions. The most im-portant instrument used is microwave radiation, as it provides significant benefits in generating high-resolution echo images of a given buildings' enve-lope. Based on the results gained, one can conclude the number of layers in the wall investigated, the thickness of each layer, and the material used to build these layers. These parameters are key to finding the optimum insulation for each given wall. The research results of this thesis serve as a basis for future, fast operating radar measurement systems – probably drones – that will be used in urban environments to do reflection measurements for extracting a maximum of information about the internal structures of the buildings investi-gated.