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Progress in Thermal and Visual Performance of Transparent Envelopes for Energy Saving

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Energy Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2021) | Viewed by 2617

Special Issue Editors

Department of Architecture and Industrial Design, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, 81031 Aversa, Italy
Interests: daylight; electric lighting; smart window; virtual reality for lighting; daylight and electric lighting integration; energy efficiency
Department of Architecture and Industrial Design, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, 81031 Aversa, Italy
Interests: building physics; building energy systems; energy efficiency; integrated solutions for daylight and electric lighting; smart window, building façades
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Department of Architecture and Industrial Design, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, 81031 Aversa, Italy
Interests: energy and buildings; energy saving and efficiency; sustainable energy systems; building simulation; energy system simulation; buildings energy efficiency; smart windows

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The reduction of energy consumption in the buildings sector can provide a significant contribution to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and support the forthcoming green deal. Building envelopes are of paramount importance and can play a key role in achieving the EU climate change and energy sustainability targets for 2030 while enhancing the wellbeing of citizens. Therefore, the impact of windows, fenestration, and glazed structures is becoming more and more important, given the fact that the thermal protection of opaque buildings elements is gradually improved; in this context, both new and refurbished buildings can benefit from the use of transparent components for building envelopes, especially in buildings with a large glazed surface. Dynamic transparent façades and building envelope elements, as well as smart windows, are expected to reduce energy demand and improve indoor environmental quality significantly. They are, therefore, crucial to the 2030 Net Zero Energy/Emission Buildings target. Differently to conventional systems, dynamic and smart elements can change their thermal and visual characteristics upon varying the boundary conditions. In recent years, a lot of different innovative technologies and solutions have been proposed to ensure better thermal performances and indoor environmental quality, as well as to improve the aesthetic appeal of buildings. However, the evaluation of the impact of these innovative elements on people’s satisfaction and building energy efficiency is a complex task that needs further experimental end theoretical research.

This Special Issue aims at investigating the progress on innovative and smart transparent envelopes and their effects on the users’ comfort and building energy consumption. Scientific and multidisciplinary research on innovative and smart transparent envelopes able to improve human comfort and building efficiency looking beyond the limits of current knowledge is welcomed.

Experimental and theoretical approaches to new methodologies or procedures to evaluate the visual and thermal performances of transparent components are appreciated as well.

We are also calling on case studies, articles, and reviews on sustainable energy preservation and regeneration methods, innovative prototypes, simulation methodologies, simulation software relevant for visual and thermal building users’ comfort, as well as for the reduction of building energy consumption and correlated effects on the environment.

We look forward to your contribution to this Special Issue.

Dr. Michelangelo Scorpio
Prof. Dr. Sergio Sibilio
Dr. Giovanni Ciampi
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. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly 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 2400 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

  • transparent envelope
  • dynamic glazing
  • thermal performance
  • visual performance
  • daylighting
  • adaptive glazing
  • fenestration
  • energy savings
  • energy efficiency
  • sustainable energy systems
  • environmental effects
  • sustainable energy preservation methods
  • indoor comfort
  • smart windows
  • transparent material
  • smart façades
  • building energy management
  • active glazing control
  • lighting control

Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

19 pages, 7037 KiB  
Article
Specification of Glazings for Façades Based on Spectrophotometric Characterization of Transmittance
by Helenice Maria Sacht, Luís Bragança, Manuela Almeida and Rosana Caram
Sustainability 2021, 13(10), 5437; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su13105437 - 13 May 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1975
Abstract
The correct specification of glazings for façades can reduce the energy consumption in buildings. The heat exchange occurs through transparent surfaces and radiation reaches the building as light and heat. Therefore, glazings significantly contribute to the heat transfer between outdoor and indoor spaces [...] Read more.
The correct specification of glazings for façades can reduce the energy consumption in buildings. The heat exchange occurs through transparent surfaces and radiation reaches the building as light and heat. Therefore, glazings significantly contribute to the heat transfer between outdoor and indoor spaces and act directly on daylighting and thermal comfort. This paper reports on the spectrophotometric characterization of glazings transmittance for the study of components of a modular façade system and its suitability for the climate of Portugal (temperate climate). The study focused on results of spectrophotometric measurements of optical properties, specifically the transmittance of some types of glazings (solar control, self-cleaning, low-e, float, and extra-clear) and two types of double glazings. The results show the percentage of transmission to ultraviolet, visible, and near-infrared regions and its importance, which enabled the analysis of the glazing efficiency regarding daylighting and the correlation to thermal performance. Subsidies and indications for the specification and adequate uses of transparent surfaces have been presented and complemented the datasheets available from the manufactures. Full article
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