Hygro-thermo-mechanical model for building materials exposed to different climate loads

Freezing-thawing cycles affect strongly durability and service life of porous building materials. Two reference years, where one represents a mild climate and second represents severe climate, are taken into account. Freezing-thawing cycles are modelled with the help of porosimetry curve and the Gibbs-Thompson equation. Distribution of volumetric moisture content and temperature are obtained from coupled heat and moisture transfer. Finally, the volume of frozen water is used for determination of volumetric strain which is used in mechanical analysis.