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Advances in Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ)
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Advances in Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ)

A special issue of Buildings (ISSN 2075-5309). This special issue belongs to the section "Building Energy, Physics, Environment, and Systems".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 February 2024) | Viewed by 5567

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Giovanni Semprini

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Industrial Engineering, Alma Mater Studiorum - Università di Bologna, 40136 Bologna, Italy
Interests: building physics; building energy systems
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Aminhossein Jahanbin

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Industrial Engineering, Alma Mater Studiorum - Università di Bologna, 40136 Bologna, Italy
Interests: computational fluid dynamics; heat transfer; indoor environmental quality; building energy systems
Dr. Simone Secchi

E-Mail Website1 Website2
Guest Editor
Department of Architecture, Università di Firenze, 50125 Firenze, Italy
Interests: building physics; acoustic comfort; architecture technology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Indoor built environments significantly affect human health, wellbeing, and productivity since people spend most of their time indoors. Healthy and comfortable built environments are an emerging field of research focusing on topics related to indoor environmental quality control and sustainability. The importance of providing healthy indoor air has recently been exacerbated by the spread of COVID-19 and its consequences. Thus, research on design guidelines, modeling, and advanced simulation methods for improving indoor environmental quality is urgently required.

The present Special Issue provides a platform for the discussion and exchange of knowledge of ideas, designs, and techniques for the establishment of a healthy and sustainable indoor built environment. This Special Issue is open to any subject area relating to advances in indoor environmental quality. Research papers, analytical reviews, case studies, conceptual frameworks, and policy-relevant articles are welcome.

Topics covered in this Special Issue include but are not limited to the following themes:

  • Indoor air quality (IAQ);
  • Thermal, visual, and acoustic comfort in built environments;
  • Advanced simulation methods in indoor environmental quality (thermal, lighting and acoustical simulations);
  • Application of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) in indoor environments;
  • Sustainable and smart HVAC technologies;
  • Occupant-centered ventilation for improving microclimates;
  • Indoor pollutant sources and control strategies for contaminant removal;
  • Innovative indoor air cleaning and decontamination technologies;
  • Control of indoor airborne infectious disease;
  • Health, productivity, and well-being related to the built environment.

Dr. Giovanni Semprini
Dr. Aminhossein Jahanbin
Dr. Simone Secchi
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Buildings is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • building physics
  • indoor air quality
  • thermal comfort
  • acoustic and visual comfort
  • ventilation
  • HVAC systems
  • pollutant dispersion in a built environment
  • control of airborne infectious disease
  • CFD application in a built environment

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 27670 KiB  
Article
The Effects of Eye Illuminance Distribution in the Horizontal Field of View on Human Performance in a Home Paper-Based Learning Situation
by Yuanyi Luo, Yixiang Zhao, Xin Zhang, Bentian Niu, Hongxing Xia and Wei Wang
Buildings 2024, 14(5), 1456; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings14051456 - 17 May 2024
Viewed by 338
Abstract
Previous studies have focused on task/ambient illumination for visual effects and eye illumination for non-visual effects. In this context, eye illumination within the non-visual realm was defined as vertical non-visual eye illuminance. Considering the functional specificity of central vision and peripheral vision, this [...] Read more.
Previous studies have focused on task/ambient illumination for visual effects and eye illumination for non-visual effects. In this context, eye illumination within the non-visual realm was defined as vertical non-visual eye illuminance. Considering the functional specificity of central vision and peripheral vision, this study aims to explore whether the distribution of eye illuminance in the horizontal field of view (FOV) affects human performance in home paper-based learning settings. In this study, a within-subject design was used to investigate the effects of eye illuminance distribution on mental perception, task performance, and physiological health while maintaining constant task illuminance and correlated color temperature (CCT). The findings revealed that eye illuminance and its distribution in the horizontal FOV had complex effects on visual fatigue, Landolt ring performance, heart rate variability, and luminous environment appraisal. A relatively optimal lighting configuration was suggested—Scene 4, which was characterized by an eye illuminance level in central FOV of 186 lx and an “m” shaped eye illuminance distribution pattern. This indicates the importance of considering eye illuminance distribution in the horizontal FOV, rather than solely focusing on vertical eye illuminance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ))
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17 pages, 3086 KiB  
Article
Interaction Effects between Mood State and Background Sound Level on Students’ Sound Perceptions and Concentration Levels in Study Spaces
by Dadi Zhang, Kwok-Wai Mui and Ling-Tim Wong
Buildings 2024, 14(5), 1419; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings14051419 - 15 May 2024
Viewed by 396
Abstract
This study investigated the impacts of students’ mood states and background sound levels on students’ sound perceptions and academic performance in four library rooms. The background sound level was measured for five days. Meanwhile, around 300 students were invited to participate in a [...] Read more.
This study investigated the impacts of students’ mood states and background sound levels on students’ sound perceptions and academic performance in four library rooms. The background sound level was measured for five days. Meanwhile, around 300 students were invited to participate in a survey of questions about their acoustic perceptions and mood states and a concentration test. Pearson correlation, one-way ANOVA, and two-way ANOVA were applied to establish the relationships between the LAeq, students’ mood states, acoustic perceptions, and concentration levels on both the individual level and the room level and to identify the interaction effect between the background sound levels and mood states on students’ acoustic perception and concentration. The results indicated that LAeq in learning spaces significantly impacted students’ acoustic satisfaction, but only at the room level. In contrast, mood states mainly influenced students’ sound perception and concentration at the individual level. Furthermore, this study reports significant interaction effects between mood state and LAeq on students’ sound perceptions and reveals different impacts of mood states due to different sound levels. These results could help improve occupants’ acoustic perceptions and performance in learning spaces in the future. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ))
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24 pages, 34296 KiB  
Article
Influence of Sun Shading Devices on Energy Efficiency, Thermal Comfort and Lighting Comfort in a Warm Semi-Arid Dry Mediterranean Climate
by Carlos Pérez-Carramiñana, Ángel Benigno González-Avilés, Nuria Castilla and Antonio Galiano-Garrigós
Buildings 2024, 14(2), 556; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings14020556 - 19 Feb 2024
Viewed by 930
Abstract
The dry Mediterranean climate (BShs) is the European region with the highest number of hours of sunshine per year. The high annual solar radiation makes sun shading devices necessary to comply with current energy efficiency standards. However, these standards do not sufficiently consider [...] Read more.
The dry Mediterranean climate (BShs) is the European region with the highest number of hours of sunshine per year. The high annual solar radiation makes sun shading devices necessary to comply with current energy efficiency standards. However, these standards do not sufficiently consider their effect on the indoor lighting comfort of buildings. The objective is to qualitatively and quantitatively determine how movable sun shading devices jointly influence the energy efficiency, thermal comfort and lighting comfort of buildings in BShs climate. The scientific novelty of the work consists of demonstrating the limitations of the sun shading systems commonly used in southeastern Spain and determining the optimal technical solution in this climate to simultaneously improve thermal and lighting comfort. This research comparatively studies the influence of various movable sun shading systems on the daylighting and thermal performance of an educational building. This study conducted on-site measurements, user surveys and computer simulations to study how to improve the thermal and lighting performances of the building. This work demonstrates that interior solar shading provides little improvement in thermal comfort and reduces the cooling demand by only 25%. External movable sun shading improves thermal comfort and reduces the cooling demand by more than 60%, but only adjustable blinds or awnings achieve adequate and homogeneous illuminance values as they diffuse daylight. The paper concludes that energy efficiency standards should be modified to ensure adequate lighting comfort in buildings. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ))
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28 pages, 7889 KiB  
Article
Indoor Microclimate and Microbiological Risks in Heritage Buildings: A Case Study of the Neologic Sinagogue, Oradea, Romania
by Dorina Camelia Ilieș, Lucian Blaga, Thowayeb H. Hassan, Alexandru Ilieș, Tudor Caciora, Vasile Grama, Grigore Vasile Herman, Paula Dejeu, Mihaela Zdringa, Tracy Marshall, Ana Cornelia Pereș and Janzakov Bekzot
Buildings 2023, 13(9), 2277; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13092277 - 7 Sep 2023
Viewed by 1263
Abstract
Heritage buildings face risks related to the degradation of exhibited or stored artefacts, up to their destruction over time, as well as the health of workers and visitors. The main causes are microclimatic parameters (temperature, humidity, brightness, particles suspension, pollutants, degree of ventilation [...] Read more.
Heritage buildings face risks related to the degradation of exhibited or stored artefacts, up to their destruction over time, as well as the health of workers and visitors. The main causes are microclimatic parameters (temperature, humidity, brightness, particles suspension, pollutants, degree of ventilation or air circulation), biological (bacteria, fungi, molds and insects) and anthropogenic ones (improper maintenance of the building and overcrowding of rooms). In accordance with these, the present study considers a quantitative and qualitative analysis of the air quality and the degree of microbiological contamination of the surfaces and the air inside a synagogue in the municipality of Oradea, Romania. The microbiological study highlighted the presence of some potentially harmful genera of fungi (Alternaria sp., Penicillium sp., Aspergillus sp., Botrytis sp. and Cladosporium sp.) in the indoor air and on the surfaces inside the synagogue; suggesting an average degree of fungal contamination, with possible risk to individual health, especially in children and people with allergic status or allergic respiratory diseases. Statistical analysis concerning the occupational exposure to airborne microbes poses health risks to employees and visitors. Multivariate regression analysis results emphasize that higher symptoms scores were independently associated with experiencing a too low indoor air temperature; these symptoms would disappear within one to two hours after leaving the space. Air pollutants have become part of everyday life; therefore, consistent monitoring of indoor environments offers an effective approach to prevent or minimize the adverse health risk to building occupants in spaces such as heritage buildings. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ))
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42 pages, 19821 KiB  
Article
Natural Ventilation in Low-Cost Housing: An Evaluation by CFD
by Lívia A. Rocha, Ricardo S. Gomez, João M. P. Q. Delgado, Antônio N. O. Vieira, Ivonete B. Santos, Márcia R. Luiz, Vital A. B. Oliveira, Guilherme L. Oliveira Neto, Danielle B. T. Vasconcelos, Márcio J. V. Silva, Adriano S. Cabral and Antonio G. B. Lima
Buildings 2023, 13(6), 1408; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13061408 - 30 May 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1929
Abstract
With the spread of sustainability concepts, due to the global energy crisis and the unrestrained consumption of natural resources, the importance of rational use and reduction of energy consumption has been intensified, albeit in short steps. This concern has taken up bioclimatic concepts [...] Read more.
With the spread of sustainability concepts, due to the global energy crisis and the unrestrained consumption of natural resources, the importance of rational use and reduction of energy consumption has been intensified, albeit in short steps. This concern has taken up bioclimatic concepts in buildings, especially housing buildings for low-income people, aiming at improving the quality of housing production in terms of its habitability. The objective of this research is to theoretically and experimentally study the natural ventilation in a housing building, which fits into the low-cost pattern. The use of Computational Fluid Dynamics to predict natural ventilation was adopted as a tool to perform these analyses. Experiments were carried out by visiting the study area to collect data on air velocity, temperature, and relative humidity in all rooms of the residence in order to carry out the intended analyses. Computer simulation of natural ventilation considering the building with the doors and windows open and with fixed geometry was performed. Results proved that the proposed mathematical model was able to reproduce, with rich details and physical coherence, the internal and external air flow inside the building, indicating better internal ventilation performance in environments that have door and window openings, with recesses, revealing the importance of cross ventilation to reduce the internal temperature and consequent improvement in thermal comfort. The idea is to help civil engineers and specialists in the economically viable design of low-cost buildings from the economic, social, and thermal comfort points of view. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ))
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