Dear Colleagues,

Buildings are a critical piece of our shift to a lower-carbon future. They are where we live, study, and work—and they are responsible for a significant proportion of total global energy consumption and carbon emissions. The energy demand from buildings is expected to continue to rise and will have major social consequences and climate change-related impacts. Drivers include population growth, improved access to electricity and adequate housing worldwide, and growing demands for air conditioning.

A large portion of energy use in building is due to heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems. While reducing the energy consumption of HVAC presents a great opportunity to curb energy demand growth rates, occupancy comfort and health must not be compromised. HVAC regulates the temperature, humidity, and quality of air in a building, which is essential for maintaining a comfortable and healthy indoor environment.

Smart HVAC systems can significantly reduce carbon emissions and energy consumption. Additionally, these systems can help automate processes, reduce costs, and improve indoor environment quality. Using integrated sensors, smart HVAC systems monitor the building’s indoor climate, cool, heat and ventilate areas as required, minimising unnecessary energy usage. For example, by using occupancy data to automatically adjust the operation of HVAC systems, the over-conditioning of spaces, which causes discomfort and energy wastage, can be prevented. It also provides valuable data to help building owners and managers decide how to manage the climate control infrastructure and detect HVAC system faults. The availability and affordability of monitoring and sensing technologies have allowed the gathering of tremendous amounts of data for optimising the operation of HVAC, further aided by data-driven and artificial intelligence (AI) methods.

There is no doubt that, by optimising energy consumption, smart HVAC systems make buildings more sustainable. The automation of HVAC is a significant first step in the green transformation of buildings. However, technology and automation must be used with significant testing. As with any smart device, smart HVAC systems also have their share of potential threats. Anything that is connected to the cloud or internet can get hacked. Therefore, cyber-security and regular sanity checks on all connected devices are extremely important to safeguard sensitive information and security. Thus, technological advancements must be paired with the security of those using them.

The goal of this Special Issue is to bring researchers and stakeholders together to share their findings and present perspectives in the field of smart HVAC systems. Research papers, short communications and reviews on techniques, systems and technologies aiming to improve energy performance, indoor environment quality, and thermal comfort are welcomed. Topics that could be covered include but are not limited to the following:

• Smart HVAC controls and technologies;
• Intelligent energy management systems;
• Internet of things (IoT) devices for HVAC;
• Artificial intelligence, machine and deep learning;
• Data-driven approaches for HVAC systems;
• Fault detection and diagnosis of HVAC systems;
• HVAC integration with renewable energy technologies;
• Thermal comfort and indoor environment quality;
• Handling cybersecurity in smart HVAC;
• Measurement and simulation methods;
• Modeling and optimisation;
• Case studies and innovative approaches.

Dr. John Kaiser Calautit
Dr. Hassam Nasarullah Chaudhry
Guest Editors

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