Uncertainty Updating in the Description of Coupled Heat and Moisture Transport in Heterogeneous Materials

TL;DR

This paper applies Bayesian inference to improve the estimation of heat and moisture distribution in heterogeneous materials, accounting for uncertainties in material properties and spatial fluctuations, to enhance structural durability assessments.

Contribution

It introduces a Bayesian framework for uncertainty updating in coupled heat and moisture transport models in heterogeneous materials, integrating multiple information sources.

Findings

Bayesian inference effectively combines different data sources.

Probabilistic models capture material heterogeneity and uncertainties.

Enhanced accuracy in heat and moisture distribution estimation.

Abstract

To assess the durability of structures, heat and moisture transport need to be analyzed. To provide a reliable estimation of heat and moisture distribution in a certain structure, one needs to include all available information about the loading conditions and material parameters. Moreover, the information should be accompanied by a corresponding evaluation of its credibility. Here, the Bayesian inference is applied to combine different sources of information, so as to provide a more accurate estimation of heat and moisture fields [1]. The procedure is demonstrated on the probabilistic description of heterogeneous material where the uncertainties consist of a particular value of individual material characteristic and spatial fluctuations. As for the heat and moisture transfer, it is modelled in coupled setting [2].