A critique on “An efficient numerical model for liquid water uptake in porous material and its parameter estimation”

Abstract

In February 2019 this journal published the article “An efficient numerical model for liquid water uptake in porous material and its parameter estimation”, (re)introducing the Scharfetter-Gummel numerical model for simulation of moisture transfer in building materials, and applying it for the inverse characterization of hygric properties based on a capillary absorption experiment. This critique voices concerns on the moisture transfer model defined and on the moisture transfer simulations performed. It moreover formulates doubts on the obtained identification and intended identifiability of the moisture transfer properties. This critique invites the article’s authors to address these concerns, to confirm their outcomes’ reliability.

KEYWORDS:

• Boltzmann transformation
• capillary absorption
• critique
• hygric properties
• independent validation
• inverse identification

Conflict of interest

The author declares no conflicts of interest.

Additional information

Funding

This research was in part supported by the KU Leuven C2 research grant 3E180434, which is gratefully acknowledged.