In the next five years, external wall insulation materials will comprehensively transition from single functional materials to systematic, low-carbon, and intelligent building enclosure solutions. The core trend revolves around four main lines: material performance breakthroughs, construction method innovations, carbon accounting driven, and industrial ecological reconstruction.
1. Nano thermal insulation materials become the core carrier of ultra-low energy buildings
Aerogel composites:
The thermal conductivity has stabilized at 0.008-0.015 W/(m · K), and the thickness is only 1/5 of XPS. It is widely used in retrofitting of existing buildings, curtain wall interlayers, and passive residential exterior walls.
Nanofiber aerogel has achieved a breakthrough in flexibility, tailorability and impact resistance. Since 2026, it has entered the pilot project of high-end residential buildings in Linyi to support the construction of special-shaped components.
Vacuum insulation panel (VIP):
The national standard GB/T 37608-2019 has been fully implemented, with a thermal conductivity of ≤ 0.006 W/(m · K) and a thickness of only 3cm to meet 75% energy-saving requirements. It is suitable for high-rise public building facades and zero carbon communities.
Anti damage technology upgrade: adopting composite barrier film+honeycomb reinforcement structure, the service life is extended from 3 years to over 15 years, and the cost is reduced by 40%.
Practice in Linyi, Shandong: The pilot project of "aerogel+VIP" dual materials will be launched in 2025, and the government will subsidize 30% of the cost of covering materials to promote technology from demonstration to scale.
2. The integrated insulation and decoration board has fully entered the era of "intelligent installation"
Overlapping buckle groove structure:
It has become a mandatory standard for new construction projects. In 2026, Linyi City requires all integrated board projects to provide mechanical testing reports for buckle groove structures to prevent false overlap.
Homework+modular construction:
The prefabrication rate in the factory exceeds 90%, requiring only anchoring and sealing on site, shortening the construction period by 60%, reducing wet operations by 80%, and completely solving the pain points of cracking and leakage.
Intelligent installation system:
BIM models directly generate board layout diagrams and anchor point coordinates, achieving millimeter level precision pre installation;
Laser positioning robots have been piloted in Qingdao and Jinan, automatically identifying wall flatness and accurately drilling holes with a construction error of less than 2mm.
3. Full lifecycle carbon accounting drives material selection and policy compliance
Policy enforcement:
The "Industry Standard Conditions for Building Insulation Materials (2025 Edition)" clearly require:
Rock wool VIP、 Grade A materials such as aerogel are preferred;
Prohibit HBCD flame retardants and CFCs foaming agents;
Enterprises are required to provide a full lifecycle carbon footprint report (including raw material extraction, production, transportation, construction, and demolition).
Carbon credit mechanism:
Projects using VIP or aerogel can get extra points in carbon emission accounting, which directly affects the green building rating and financial subsidy amount.
Starting from 2026, Shandong will implement the "dual assessment of energy conservation and carbon emissions", and the material selection will shift from "cost oriented" to "carbon efficiency oriented".
4. Digitization and intelligence run through the entire material chain
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Shandong case: A certain affordable housing project in Linyi deployed a "digital twin platform for insulation system" to achieve full process data traceability from material storage to completion acceptance.
5. Coordinated evolution of international trends and China's path
European and American direction:
The National Decarbonization Blueprint for the Construction Industry in the United States requires a 90% reduction in implicit carbon emissions from building materials by 2050, and promotes the research and development of bio based materials such as wood fibers and mycelium;
The European Union promotes the mandatory certification of EPD (Environmental Product Declaration), and aerogel has been included in the ASTM C1728 international standard.
China's advantages:
VIP and aerogel mass production capacity is the world leader. In 2025, China will account for more than 65% of the global aerogel production capacity;
The construction standard for overlapped integrated panels is the world's first and has been exported to Southeast Asia and the Middle East.
Summary of Future Trends: From "Insulation" to "Carbon Management"
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Ultimate goal: External wall insulation is no longer just an "energy-saving component", but a core node of building carbon neutrality systems. In the future, it will be deeply integrated with photovoltaic curtain walls, intelligent temperature control, and energy storage systems to build an "adaptive energy-saving enclosure system".
Linyi suggested that in 2026, new projects should give priority to the use of aerogel composite board+lap joint integrated board, and synchronously access the local "building carbon management platform" to obtain policy dividends and green credit support.
Shandong Huaneng Insulation Materials Co., Ltd. is a pipeline insulation manufacturer in Linyi. As an integrated insulation and decoration manufacturer in Shandong, our main products include integrated insulation and decoration, pipeline insulation, exterior wall insulation materials, extruded polystyrene board, thermosetting polystyrene board, and rubber insulation. If you need it, you can contact us by phone.