Publications related to Building insulation

Correlating long-term performance and aging behaviour of building integrated PV modules

Christophe Ballif, Alessandro Francesco Aldo Virtuani, Ebrar Özkalay

Because building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) modules are fully integrated into a building envelope, the back of the module can be exposed to little or no ventilation, resulting in increased operating temperatures. As the temperature increases, the perfo ...

Elsevier Science Sa2024

A state-of-the-art, systematic review of indoor environmental quality studies in work-from-home settings

Giorgia Chinazzo

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a significant increase in working from home worldwide, making the workfrom-home (WFH) setting a crucial context for studying the influence of indoor environmental quality (IEQ) on workers' well-being and productivity. A nar ...

Pergamon-Elsevier Science Ltd2024

Spatial Modeling for Building Design Evaluation: from Visual Landscape Quality Assessment to Devaluation Risk Estimation

Adam Robert Swietek

Zoning reform is a crucial tool for cities to adapt to contemporary challenges. However, its implementation remains challenging. Property owners, with a vested interest in the value of their neighborhoods, are sensitive to local developments and the potent ...

EPFL2024

Transparent structured conductive coating for applications in smart windows

Jérémy Jacques Antonin Fleury

Solar radiation reaching the surface of the earth for a period of one hour contains more energy than that consumed by mankind over an entire year. Some of this solar energy is already collected by photovoltaic cells to cover the electricity needs of buildi ...

EPFL2023

Tailoring Organic/Inorganic Interface Trap States of Metal Oxide/Polyimide toward Improved Vacuum Surface Insulation

Chao Wang, Guang-Yu Sun, Haoxiang Zhao

High-voltage and high-power devices are indispensablein spacecraftfor outer space explorations, whose operations require aerospace materialswith adequate vacuum surface insulation performance. Despite persistentattempts to fabricate such materials, current ...

AMER CHEMICAL SOC2023

Autodigit-RAD: Towards an automation of the radon’s concentration dataflow in a new and innovative building

Sergi Aguacil Moreno, Sebastian Duque Mahecha

Radon is a noble, natural, and radioactive gas coming mainly from the ground which might accumulate indoors and lead each year to 200-300 deaths from lung cancer in Switzerland. A brand new and innovative living lab will be built as of 2023 in Fribourg (Sw ...

2023

Experimental study of the hydrodynamic and thermal performances of ventilated wall structures

Dolaana Khovalyg, Mohammad Rahiminejad

The presence of a ventilated air gap behind the external cladding in a building envelope is known to have a tangible contribution to the overall performance of the wall assembly. In the present study, the hydrodynamic and thermal performances of ventilated ...

2023

Toward contactless human thermal monitoring: A framework for Machine Learning-based human thermo-physiology modeling augmented with computer vision

Alexandre Massoud Alahi, Dolaana Khovalyg, Mohamed Ossama Ahmed Abdelfattah, Mohamad Rida

The transition towards a human-centered indoor climate is beneficial from occupants’ thermal comfort and from an energy reduction perspective. However, achieving this goal requires the knowledge of the thermal state of individuals at the level of body part ...

2023

Thermal Conditions in Indoor Environments: Exploring the Reasoning behind Standard-Based Recommendations

Dolaana Khovalyg

Professionals in the building design and operation fields typically look at standards and guidelines as a reliable source of information and guidance with regard to procedural, contractual, and legal scope and requirements that are relevant to accountabili ...

2023

Efficacy of temporal and spatial abstraction for training accurate machine learning models: A case study in smart thermostats

Rachid Guerraoui, Alexandre David Olivier Maurer, Omid Ardakanian

Smart thermostats are increasingly popular in homes and buildings as they improve occupant comfort, lower energy use in heating and cooling systems, and reduce utility bills by automatically adjusting room temperature according to measurements of their bui ...

ELSEVIER SCIENCE SA2023

Non-intrusive physiological parameters sensing for personalized human thermal comfort prediction

Alexandre Massoud Alahi, Dolaana Khovalyg, Mohamed Ossama Ahmed Abdelfattah, Mohamad Rida

Sensing and projecting an individual’s human thermal comfort in buildings is a complex but crucial task for transitioning toward human-centered indoor climate control. Non-intrusive collection of physiological and personal information from the human body, ...

2023

Impact of the ventilated air-space behind traditional (passive) and BIPV (active) façades on the thermo-hydrodynamic performance of the building wall structures

Mohammad Rahiminejad

For many decades, ventilated cavities in wall assemblies of buildings have been essential for creating moisture-resilient constructions by allowing airflow within the air gap to promote drying. In addition to that, the airflow in the cavity can contribute ...

EPFL2022

Combining thermal insulation and mobile communication in buildings: influence of laser-treated glazing on microwave propagation

Andreas Schueler, Josef Andreas Schuler, Luc Burnier, Jérémy Jacques Antonin Fleury, Héloïse Ludivine Delaporte

With the purpose of reducing the heating energy in buildings, it is common practice to install energy-efficient windows to increase the thermal insulation of a façade. These insulating glass units (IGIJ) include a thin silver coating acting as an infrared ...

IOP2022

Reaching Thermal Comfort Zone Limits for Resilient Building Operation: A Winter Case Study for Offices

Dolaana Khovalyg, Verena Marie Barthelmes, Arnab Chatterjee

A specific range of acceptable indoor thermal conditions is stipulated by building performance standards to assure minimum dissatisfaction of occupants. Thus, the operation of buildings in practice tends to follow a cautious approach by setting the indoor ...

Routledge2022

Numerical and experimental study of the dynamic thermal resistance of ventilated air-spaces behind passive and active façades

Dolaana Khovalyg, Mohammad Rahiminejad

The variation of the thermo-hydrodynamic behavior of the airflow in the ventilated cavity behind external claddings in a wall structure could potentially affect the overall thermal resistance of the entire structure. Although the impact of an enclosed air- ...

2022

Variation in Indoor Thermal Environmental Parameters in an Open Space Office

Dolaana Khovalyg, Verena Marie Barthelmes, Arnab Chatterjee

Building energy modelling is an indispensable component of today’s design method. However, as per research findings, real-life buildings could utilize almost twice the amount of their ideal energy performance. Thus, it is important to understand the variat ...

TU Delft2022

Importance of 3D radiative transfer effects on high-resolution NO2 remote sensing in cities

Marc Damien Schwärzel

Urban air quality is a major concern in the context of human health since cities are at the same time emission hot spots and home to a large fraction of the world's population. Airborne imaging spectrometers may be a valuable addition to traditional air po ...

EPFL2022

Performance of lightweight and heavyweight building walls with naturally ventilated passive and active facades

Dolaana Khovalyg, Mohammad Rahiminejad

Well-designed ventilated air-spaces behind external claddings in the building envelope can potentially reduce thermal energy flow in the entire wall structure. In this study, the impact of the dynamic thermo-hydraulic behavior of the flow in the naturally ...

2021

Thermal resistance of ventilated air-spaces behind external claddings; definitions and challenges (ASHRAE 1759-RP)

Dolaana Khovalyg, Mohammad Rahiminejad

The presence of an air-space within a building envelope is known to have a varying contribution to the overall thermal performance of the wall assembly due to the combined effect of convection and radiation in the air cavity. In particular, the thermal res ...

2021

A performance-driven simulation workflow for PV integration into the design process: application on an innovative building project in Switzerland

Sergi Aguacil Moreno

In the construction sector, the integration of active elements functioning both as building envelope material and on-site electricity generator is identified as a key measure to achieve the 2050 targets and carbon neutrality (Aguacil Moreno, 2019; Aguacil ...

2021