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STRETCH - Smart Textiles for RETrofitting and Monitoring of Cultural Heritage Buildings (iRESIST+)

The STRETCH project aims to develop a hybrid structural-plus-energy retrofit with structural health monitoring tailored for masonry cultural heritage building envelopes. The innovative multifunctional system integrates textile-reinforced mortar with thermal insulation materials and strain/temperature fibre optic sensors. The proposed system can be instrumental in assessing and preserving cultural heritage buildings.

Using a lime-based and cement-free mortar matrix to design the textile-reinforced mortar will ensure strengthening while respecting the compatibility with the physical and mechanical characteristics of historic masonry. Fibre optic sensors integrated into the textile and embedded into the textile-reinforced mortar composites will provide distributed strain/temperature measurement.

Besides traditional thermal insulation materials (e.g. EPS insulation boards), the adoption of innovative solutions such as capillary tubes inserted in the textile reinforcement will also be investigated as a valid alternative to improve the energy efficiency of the envelope (this functionality is explored under the  international project SEP+).

different layers to creat Stretch
© European Commission

 

 

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