Materials, Technologies, and Methods for the Building Indoor Comfort

A special issue of Atmosphere (ISSN 2073-4433). This special issue belongs to the section "Biometeorology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (26 October 2022) | Viewed by 5515

Special Issue Editor

Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, University of Brescia, Via Branze 38, 25123 Brescia, Italy
Interests: thermal comfort; energy; buildings; heat transfer; fire safety

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by all United Nations member states in 2015, aims to identify strategies to eliminate inequality and address climate change; at the same time, it aims to improve people's health and education, while fostering economic growth. The achievement of these objectives pushes research towards a multidisciplinary approach.

Among the problems that society must face, there is energy poverty that leaves millions of people in non-comfort housing conditions. Living comfort encompasses different aspects, such as thermal comfort, acoustic comfort, air quality, daylighting, and beyond.

The purpose of this Special Issue is to collect contributions that propose materials, technologies, and methods for the improvement of living comfort. Particular attention is given to solutions that support the circular economy and enable approaches that can be used in disadvantaged contexts.

Dr. Manuela Neri
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • building indoor comfort
  • building materials
  • energy poverty
  • circular economy
  • materials properties
  • reuse and recycling
  • building performance
  • building retrofitting
  • disadvantaged context
  • energy saving
  • thermal comfort
  • air quality
  • sustainable developments

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

23 pages, 11095 KiB  
Article
Indoor Thermal Environment in Different Generations of Naturally Ventilated Public Residential Buildings in Singapore
by Ji-Yu Deng, Nyuk Hien Wong, Daniel Jun Chung Hii, Zhongqi Yu, Erna Tan, Meng Zhen and Shanshan Tong
Atmosphere 2022, 13(12), 2118; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos13122118 - 16 Dec 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2168
Abstract
This study aims to evaluate and compare the indoor air velocities and thermal environment inside different generations of public residential buildings developed by the Housing and Development Board (HDB) of Singapore and analyze the impact of façade design on the indoor thermal environment. [...] Read more.
This study aims to evaluate and compare the indoor air velocities and thermal environment inside different generations of public residential buildings developed by the Housing and Development Board (HDB) of Singapore and analyze the impact of façade design on the indoor thermal environment. To achieve this goal, several case studies were carried out, namely, five typical HDB blocks built in different generations from the 1970s to recent years. Firstly, these five blocks with different façade design features were simulated to obtain the indoor air temperatures for both window-closed and window-open scenarios by using the EnergyPlus V22.2.0 (U.S. Department of Energy) and Design-Builder v6 software(DesignBuilder Software Ltd, Stroud, Gloucs, UK). Meanwhile, the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations were conducted to obtain the area-weighted wind velocities in the corresponding zones to evaluate the indoor thermal comfort. Accordingly, the effects of façade design on indoor air temperatures under both the window-closed and window-open conditions were compared and analyzed. Positive correlations between the facades’ window-to-wall ratio (WWR) and the residential envelope transmittance value (RETV) and Ta were confirmed with statistical significance at a 0.05 level. Furthermore, the indoor thermal comfort based on the wind open scenarios was also investigated. The results indicate that the thermal environment can be greatly improved by implementing proper façade design strategies as well as opening the windows, which could result in an average 3.2 °C reduction in Ta. Finally, some principles were proposed for the façade design of residential buildings in tropical regions with similar climate conditions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Materials, Technologies, and Methods for the Building Indoor Comfort)
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18 pages, 6379 KiB  
Article
Thermal and Acoustic Characterization of Innovative and Unconventional Panels Made of Reused Materials
by Manuela Neri
Atmosphere 2022, 13(11), 1825; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos13111825 - 02 Nov 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1428
Abstract
Europe calls for a transition to the circular economy model based on recycling, reuse, the proper design of products, and repair. Recycling requires energy and chemical products for waste processing; on the contrary, reusing reduces the impact of transportation and expands the life [...] Read more.
Europe calls for a transition to the circular economy model based on recycling, reuse, the proper design of products, and repair. Recycling requires energy and chemical products for waste processing; on the contrary, reusing reduces the impact of transportation and expands the life of materials that cannot be recycled. This article highlights the characteristics of selected end-of-life materials; it aims to raise awareness among manufacturers to consider products’ conscious design to facilitate their reuse in different sectors. Panels 7 cm thick, realized by assembling cardboard packaging, egg boxes, bulk polyester, and felt, have been experimentally tested to understand whether they can be installed indoors to improve thermal and acoustic comfort. The panels’ equivalent thermal conductivity λeq measured through the guarded hot plate method is 0.071 W/mK. Acoustic tests have been performed in a sound transmission room and a reverberation room. The weighted sound reduction index Rw is 19 dB, the weighted sound absorption coefficient αw is 0.30, and the noise reduction coefficient NRC is 0.64. The measured properties have been compared to those of commercial materials, and the results show that the panels have interesting properties from the thermal and acoustic points of view. They could be employed in the building sector and in disadvantaged contexts where low-income people cannot afford commercial insulating materials. Although other factors, such as fire resistance, need to be evaluated, these results show that the proposed approach is feasible. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Materials, Technologies, and Methods for the Building Indoor Comfort)
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16 pages, 6778 KiB  
Article
Assessing Indoor Environmental Quality in a Crowded Low-Quality Built Environment: A Case Study
by Mohammad Al-Rawi, Annette Lazonby and Abel A. Wai
Atmosphere 2022, 13(10), 1703; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos13101703 - 17 Oct 2022
Viewed by 1394
Abstract
Home heating, cooling and ventilation are a major concern for those living in low-quality built environments, particularly those with high occupancy rates (crowded houses). In New Zealand, both owner-occupiers and tenants can experience problems associated with poor Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ), such as [...] Read more.
Home heating, cooling and ventilation are a major concern for those living in low-quality built environments, particularly those with high occupancy rates (crowded houses). In New Zealand, both owner-occupiers and tenants can experience problems associated with poor Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ), such as poor thermal comfort and dampness, when Heating Ventilation and Air-Conditioning (HVAC) systems are not installed, improperly installed or too expensive to run. Occupants of poorer households are the most affected by high installation or running costs of HVAC systems, and are also more likely to live in households with a higher level of crowding. Poor IEQ in housing is associated with adverse health outcomes, particularly respiratory illness. This paper outlines the IEQ problems experienced by households living in an area of New Zealand with higher levels deprivation and shows how an HVAC system could be employed to remedy poor IEQ. This report presents a case study of a house with poor IEQ that was selected from a survey conducted across 24 homes in the Manukau, Auckland region of New Zealand. The IEQ results are presented for this house, which performs poorly in terms of relative humidity, temperature and thermal comfort. This house is then analysed using the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) approach in ANSYS CFX 2021R1 based on the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Airconditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) standard 55-2017 and a model of temperature and air flow is created in the software, which can identify ways to improve these parameters in the house. These results are compared with the New Zealand Healthy Homes Standards 2019. The simulation showed the system was capable of lifting the indoor temperature to above 21 , eliminating cold spots and improving thermal comfort, and reduced relative humidity to below 50%. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Materials, Technologies, and Methods for the Building Indoor Comfort)
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