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The school environment plays a critical role in the early years of a child's learning journey. This is especially true for autistic children, whose ability response to school environments significantly differs from that of their non-autistic peers. Autism is a complex developmental condition characterized by social and communication differences, repetitive behaviours, sensory reactivity differences, and need for consistency and routines. The impact of indoor environmental quality (IEQ) parameters of school environment on the behaviour of autistic pupils represents a nascent area of research. The review represents a leap forward by providing comprehensive framework that explain the interaction between IEQ, autistic sensory processing and behaviours. Also, through a systematic review, this paper aims to synthesize and critically assess the existing studies on how IEQ parameters affect autistic behaviours within classroom settings. A total of Eleven relevant studies were identified, indicating a nascent correlation between IEQ parameters—primarily lighting and acoustics—and various autistic behaviours. Other parameters impact such thermal has less attention while the air quality is not studied. Furthermore , there is a significant lack in quantitative research that could support architectural design practices for classrooms catering to autistic pupils. The notable differences in educational outcomes and classroom designs for autistic pupils as compared to those in mainstream schools highlight the insistent need for further research into the impact of IEQ. Such investigations are essential not only to bridge current knowledge gaps but also to guide the development of educational spaces that meet the unique needs of autistic pupils, enhancing their learning and development. • A comprehensive understanding of IEQ impact on autistics' behaviours in classroom. • There is a significant lack of quantitative research to capture the impact of IEQ. • Indoor air quality is important to autistic pupils' behaviors but yet explored. • Lack of evidence-based autism classrooms design. • Autism classroom designs differ from mainstream schools, affecting the IEQ. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Indoor air pollution caused by formaldehyde associated with building materials imposes a variety of acute and chronic adverse effects on people's health. The aim of this research is to investigate the concentrations of formaldehyde in residences and develop emission rate prediction model in residential buildings. On-site measurements including the indoor and outdoor concentrations of formaldehyde and CO 2 were carried out in 42 urban residences in Chongqing. The people occupancy schedule in different functional rooms was obtained by observing the change in CO 2 concentration. A robust model for the estimation of formaldehyde emission rates using CO 2 as the tracer gas; associated with a Monte-Carlo simulation of occupant activities and the characteristics of residences; has been developed. It is revealed that the mean indoor formaldehyde concentration was 30.12 μg/m3, which was slightly higher than the outdoor concentration of 27.80 μg/m3. The emission rates of 61.82 ± 52.39 and 49.69 ± 42.13μg/h/m2 (mean ± SD) during the daytime and nighttime, respectively with a daily average of 57.20 ± 48.79μg/h/m2. The significant contribution to indoor formaldehyde concentration was from indoor sources. Indoor formaldehyde source control is suggested to be an efficient way to control the indoor concentration. Graphical abstract Image 1 Highlights • CO 2 concentration was used as the tracer gas to calculate the indoor ventilation airflow rate. • Monte-Carlo simulations were conducted for sensitivity analysis. • A time-averaged effective emission rate predicts the formaldehyde emission rate in residences. • Occupant activity was taken into account to calculate the emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the barriers that inhibit the deployment of renewable energy technologies to achieve long-term reductions in carbon emissions from the use of fossil fuels is paramount to Barbados. Although there are targets towards renewable energy (solar, wind, biomass, geothermal) uptake, the share of these technologies in the energy mix does not exist in Barbados due to the total dependence on fossil fuels. In this paper, a review of potential challenges and the main problems for deployment of alternative energy sources is presented. Through interviews, questionnaires with a focus group of key personnel's, the paper documents the lack of renewable energy sources (with emphasis on solar energy) as one of the main alternatives to meet the carbon emission targets set by the country. The barriers and challenges facing the implementation of solar energy deployment have been clarified. From the results, it is evident that significant policy barriers still exist at the country level, which has reduced the effectiveness of a concerted national effort to deploy renewables. The current policy landscape which benefits from fossil fuel imports, the lack of technical know-how and the lack of research and development in the renewable energy space are amongst the key barriers identified. The paper also outlines the key policy's frameworks, regulatory environment and the lack of incentives, which encompasses the renewable energy sector, and presents a critical analysis of the barriers faced by the industry. A mitigation framework is proposed to bridge the gap of solar energy (renewable energy) deployment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with both energetic and exergetic performance assessments of two combined systems as a whole. The first one is a Building Integrated Photovoltaic (BIPV) system while the second one is a wastewater (WW) Source Heat Pump (WWSHP) system. Both systems were installed at Yasar University, Izmir, Turkey within the framework of EU/FP7 and the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) funded projects, respectively. The BIPV system was commissioned on 8 February 2016 and has been successfully operated since then while the WWSHP system was put into operation in October 2014. The BIPV system has a total peak power of 7.44 kW and consists of a total of 48 Crystalline Silicon (c-Si) modules with a gap of 150 mm between the modules and the wall, and a peak power per PV unit of 155 Wp. The WWSHP system consists of three main subsystems, namely (i) a WW system, (ii) a WWSHP, and (iii) an end user system. Two systems considered have been separately operated while the measured values obtained from both systems have been recorded for performance assessment purposes. In this study, a combined system was conceptually formed and the performance of the whole system was evaluated using actual operational data and some assumptions made. Exergy efficiency values for the WWSHP system and the whole system were determined to be 72.23% and 64.98% on product/fuel basis, while their functional exergy efficiencies are obtained to be 20.93% and 11.82%, respectively. It may be concluded that the methodology presented here will be very beneficial to those dealing with the design and performance analysis and evaluation of BIPV and WWHP systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fundamental purpose of a building has evolved from merely providing protection from external environmental climate to more emphasis on integrating building services through building regulations to provide the synergy of comfort, efficiency and safety to the indoor environment. This research recognizes the rising demand and increasing quality of indoor environmental quality (IEQ) in the modern society compared to the acceptable level of previous traditional buildings. Generally due to its varied operations, educational buildings, in this case University libraries have its own set of challenges and barriers such as minimizing damages and decay of books and maintaining indoor conditions with an oversight of providing good IEQ to occupants. This paper presents a detailed evaluation of a 1960s-educational library with 24-hour access at the University of Reading. Through in-situ measurements, modelling and simulations of the building's energy consumption, IEQ parameters and occupancy patterns, investigations have been performed. Varied scenarios using the Integrated Environmental Solution (IES) software were also investigated. The findings illustrate that due to mixed façade configuration (i.e. sandstone and bricks) there is the unflinching need to balance aesthetics of the facade and functionality of a building to reduce excessive energy use via heating, without compromising on occupant comfort and well-being Although it is envisaged that refurbishing the library building will provide energy savings of up to 40%, this is farfetched and can only be achieved at the detriment of occupant comfort levels as evident in the simulation results, where these savings could not be realised. This paper further discusses the methods, scenarios, and results of ensuring good IEQ, comfort and energy efficiency are not been seen as mutually exclusive. This study forms part of ongoing research into the impact of educational buildings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ASHRAE Global Thermal Comfort Database has been extensively used for analyzing specific thermal comfort parameters or models, evaluating subjective metrics, and integrating with machine learning algorithms. Outlier detection is regarded as an essential step in data preprocessing, but current publications related to this database paid less attention to the influence of outliers in raw datasets. This study aims to investigate the filter performance of different outlier detection methods. Three stochastic-based approaches have been performed and analyzed based on the example of predicting thermal preference using the Support Vector Machine (SVM) algorithm as a case study to compare the predictions before and after outlier removal. Results show that all three rules can filter some obvious outliers, and the Boxplot rule produces the most moderate filer results, whereas the 3-Sigma rule sometimes fails to detect outliers and the Hampel rule may provide an aggressive solution that causes a false alarm. It has also been discovered that a small reduction in establishing machine learning models can result in less complicated and smoother decision boundaries, which has the potential to provide more energy-efficient and conflict-free solutions. [Display omitted] • Three stochastic-based outlier removal rules were applied to the ASHRAE database. • The filtering performance was validated using simulation and ASHRAE database data. • The data distribution influences the selection of outlier removal rules. • SVM was chosen to demonstrate the effects of outlier removal predictive outcomes. • This work selects the optimal outlier removal rule for data distribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

People pay close attention to prevent and control the airborne transmission of respiratory diseases, and effective ventilation can reduce the cross-infection risk. Nevertheless, in winter, poor indoor ventilation is common, and the survival rate of the virus is also high. The issue of cross infection in enclosed spaces should be worthy of more attention especially during winter. This study was to comprehensively compare the dispersion of exhaled particles with different diameters under different air distributions for heating. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) method validated by experiments was utilized to model the exhaled particle dispersion in a two-person typical office under five air distributions (i.e., Mixing Ventilation (MV), Stratum Ventilation (SV), Deflection Ventilation (DeV), Impinging Jet Ventilation (IJV), and Wall Attachment Jet ventilation (WAJ)) having potentials for heating. Results showed that different air distributions had significant impacts on the characteristics of exhaled particle dispersion in heating mode. The difference of average normalized particle concentration at the breathing zone can be up to 8 times. Additionally, the particle dispersion in winter can be distinct from that in summer due to effect of positive thermal buoyancy, especially for fine particles (d ≤ 10 μm). With the specified conditions of this study, according to the proportions of removed exhaled particles, DeV performed best with a removal efficiency of more than 60% for fine particles, followed by SV, WAJ, and IJV. The removal efficiency for fine particles of DeV, SV, WAJ, and IJV were 61.86%, 52.43%, 38.95%, and 36.40% respectively. MV with a typical layout of high-side supply and ceiling exhaust exhibited the worst performance, with a removal efficiency of only 27.61%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the performance, yield and characteristics of a 16 year old photovoltaic (PV) system installation have been investigated. The technology, BP Saturn modules which were steel-blue polycrystalline silicon cells are no longer in production. A bespoke monitoring system has been designed to monitor the characteristics of 6 refurbished strings, of 18 modules connected in series. The total output of the system is configured to 6.5 kWp (series to parallel configuration). In addition to experimental results, the performance ratio (PR) of known values was simulated using PVSyst, a simulation software package. From calculations using experimental values, the PV system showed approximately 10% inferior power outputs to what would have been expected as standard test conditions. However, efficiency values in comparison to standard test conditions and the performance ratio (∼75% from PVSyst simulations) over the past decade have remained practically the same. This output though very relevant to the possible performance and stability of aging cells, requires additional parametric studies to develop a more robust argument. The result presented in this paper is part of an on-going investigation into PV system aging effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Indoor plant appearance impacts people's responses. • Interest and beauty of indoor plants benefits well-being. • Perceptions of indoor air quality are influenced by healthiness and appearance of plants. • Shape ranked as the most important characteristic affecting plant attractiveness. • People prefer indoor plants with rounded canopy contours. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Increase in energy demand requires a corresponding increase in supply. [•] Botswana does not meet all its electricity demand requirements hence the constant load shedding. [•] Access to electricity is estimated to be 38–39%. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Vertical greening solutions such as direct greening are gaining popularity due to their relatively low cost and minimal ground footprint. However, concerns about increases in relative humidity (RH) can reduce implementation. The impact of several widely-used plant species (Hedera helix, Parthenocissus tricuspidata and Pileostegia viburnoides) on the internal/external temperature and RH on the south-facing wall of replicated experimental model 'buildings' was studied during summer and winter. All plant species reduced the air temperature internally/externally during the summer daytimes by at least 1 °C compared to bare 'buildings'. Hedera produced the greatest cooling effect internally and externally, by 7.2 °C and 5.7 °C respectively. All plant species reduced daily variation in external RH and external/internal temperature during summer; Hedera reduced variation most and Pileostegia least. During night-time in both seasons, the temperature behind Hedera foliage typically remained higher, which could reduce the risk of freeze-thaw damage in winter. The RH was not significantly elevated by vegetation except during warm afternoons in summer and winter. During warm afternoons, the external RH was significantly higher only behind the Hedera foliage compared to the bare 'buildings', 11% and 3.7%, summer and winter respectively. However, inside all vegetated 'buildings' the RH was at least 11% higher compared to the bare 'buildings' during summer. Yet, in winter the internal RH was 5.7% lower in the Hedera -covered compared to the bare 'buildings'. Current building standards would prevent the transfer of external RH in this range internally, as the walls include protective layers such as damp-proof membranes. • Best summer cooling provided by ivy (Hedera sp.) • Greatest summer reduction in daily variation of RH and temperature behind ivy. • Difference in internal/external RH behind foliage only found during warm afternoons. • During warm winter afternoons, RH was 5.7% RH lower inside ivy-covered compared to bare 'buildings'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Retrofit of urban residential buildings (RURB) has great potential for improving energy conservation and sustainability, but it encounters challenges due to the lack of incentive policy and the unwillingness of residents. The RURB retrofitting process is a complex system involving anthropic factors such as proper definition, components, and unclear problems. This study aims to clarify its complex nature concerning the cognition and interactions of the RURB system so to develop a theoretical framework by applying the system thinking approach of System Player Analysis (SPA) with realistic qualitative data collected from four defined main players in the RURB system. Semi-structured interviews and questionnaire surveys were conducted to collect information from RURB policymakers, designers and engineers, scholars, and residents. The Hot Summer and Cold Winter climate zone (HSCW) in China was selected as the case study area. Roles, outputs, issues, demands, and features of individual RURB system players are revealed with unique local retrofit preferences whilst system cognition is clearly defined to create Causal Loop Diagrams (CLD) for RURB to help understand the interactions between system variables. The discussion based on SPA and CLD results provides valuable suggestions for addressing the identified systemic problems of RURB and an extensive theoretical basis for future retrofitting of residential buildings. • An adapted system thinking method is developed for urban residential building retrofitting. • Qualitative information from different system players is used to analyze the retrofitting of urban residential buildings. • The causal layer analysis method is used for the process of retrofitting urban residential buildings. • A qualitative framework is synthesized using system player analysis. • Causal loop diagrams reveal complex system interactions and hidden systemic problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a holistic approach to assess the energy performance of a naturally ventilated PV façade system. A rigorous combined experimental and numerical approach is established. The real energy performance of the system has been evaluated through a long-term high resolution monitoring of a typical ventilated PV façade system. A numerical model based on TRaNsient SYstem Simulation (TRNSYS) package was developed to assess the thermal and energy performance of the system, which has been verified by a series of statistical analysis using the data collected from the experiment. The validated model was then used to assess the energy and thermal performance of a 7.4 kW p prototype ventilated PV façade system in Izmir, Turkey. The results of this study demonstrated that ventilation in the air cavity of the PV façade system could significantly improve energy performance of the system even in a southeast facing façades. The quantitative analysis provides useful guidance to the system designers for the improvement of energy efficiency of the PV facade system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Building Integrated Photovoltaic (BIPV) systems have been increasingly used as a means to generate electricity on-site, and their diffusion will increase in the near future. The objective of this article is to carry out a sustainability assessment of a BIPV system installed in Turkey regarding the three pillars: environmental, economic and social potential impact, in order to develop different indicators. For the socioeconomic analysis, a Multiregional Input-Output (MRIO) method was used to estimate production of goods and services, value added creation and employment opportunities. For the environmental evaluation, an Environmental Footprint (EF) analysis was performed. The levelized electricity costs and the greenhouse gas emissions abatement costs were also calculated. Results showed that the socioeconomic effects are relevant, although only a 23% of these effects remain in Turkey. The environmental profile is also good in terms of climate change impacts, showing substantial reductions in greenhouse gas emissions compared to fossil fuel alternatives for electricity generation. Regarding the life cycle stages of the technology, the highest environmental impacts are produced in the PV manufacturing processes. The electricity produced is still more costly than fossil-based technologies and in the highest range of PV technologies, but greenhouse gases abatement costs are not so high when compared to other references. • The socioeconomic effects of the deployment of a BIPV system are relevant: a high multiplier effect (23% remain in Turkey). • Substantial reductions in GHG emissions compared to fossil fuel alternatives for electricity generation can be obtained. • The highest environmental impacts are due to the PV manufacturing processes. • The electricity produced is still more costly than fossil-based technologies and in the highest range of PV technologies. • GHG abatement costs are not so high when compared to other references. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A three-step framework of tracking method are proposed with - data collection, time division and data analysis. • Seasonal time boundaries are identified for energy system feasibility. • Building occupants' thermal comfort and adaptive behavior changed seasonally. • New dynamic comfort temperature zones were formed and modelled. • The new approach could save up to 34.33% in energy use over standard set comfort zones. Occupants' thermal comfort and their adaptation behaviors are essential aspects of building design and energy operation. There is a growing need to better understand the impact of seasonal variation on occupants' dynamic thermal comfort which provides evidence for building energy flexible design and management. The aim of this study is to investigate the interaction between occupants' thermal sensation and adaptive behavior in office buildings. Such understanding can provide detailed adaptation rules of human behavior in dynamic office buildings and quantify energy demands. In this study, a framework of a tracking method is proposed, which combines data collection (continuous monitoring of environmental parameters and daily questionnaire surveys), time boundary division and data analysis. Using the tracking method, field surveys were carried out in three mixed-mode office buildings in Chongqing, China. The time-series data was analyzed based on the indoor operative temperature under free-running conditions and five seasonal periods are classified i.e. Latter Spring (LS), Early Cooling period (EC), Middle Cooling period (MC), Latter Cooling period (LC) and Early Autumn (EA). Results show that for the same outdoor temperatures in different seasons, occupants' clothing insulation varied, indicating that the occupants were more sensitive to environmental changes in EA than in LS, as well as in EC than in LC. The study that flexible energy operation based on the thermal comfort demand can achieve energy savings compared with fixed temperature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]