Nanomaterials and Smart Nanodevices for Modular Dry Constructions: The Project “Easy House”

This paper reports the preliminary experimental results of a research project aiming at applying innovative materials and devices to a new modular construction system, named Easy House. The goal of the project is to use specific enabling nanotechnologies to achieve a significant enhancement of thermal performances of the building envelope as well as visual comfort indoor. With this aim, we perform a synthetic chemical route to obtain stable and monodispersed amorphous silica nanocapsules containing phase change materials (PCMs). The first results deriving from in vitro toxicological analyses, here reported, showed that such structures are not harmful and they can be adopted as suitable capsules to host a PCM, typically used in finishing materials, acting as thermal buffers. Moreover, the paper reports the possible advantages deriving from the integration of chromogenic devices, able to ensure energy saving and optimizing the use of daylighting.