CAREER: Commercial Building Indoor Greenery Systems' Effects on Thermal Environment and Occupant Comfort under Climate Change

1944823（Wang）.这项研究将量化室内绿化系统对建筑节能的贡献。室内活墙系统在现代商业建筑中越来越受欢迎，本研究将创建一个模型来模拟室内绿化系统与当地环境之间的热相互作用，其中室内活植物的蒸散量起着重要作用。该研究将量化室内绿化系统对建筑能耗的影响，以及叶地比和蒸散量对居住者热舒适性的影响。为了实现研究目标，PI将首先建立室内绿化系统的热模型，预测蒸散量和与室内环境的热相互作用，并根据实验室实验测量结果验证模型。其次，PI将通过热舒适实验确定室内绿化系统空间的热舒适性与叶面积比和蒸散量之间的关系。第三，PI将通过结合建筑能耗模拟和室内绿化系统模型的耦合建模方法，量化室内绿化系统对建筑性能的影响。所获得的知识旨在为建筑师，室内设计师和工程师提供室内绿化系统设计指导的科学基础，并促进室内绿化与HVAC系统的整合，以提高未来建筑物的能源效率。室内绿化系统的热模型和综合建模方法可能有助于其他领域，如垂直农业和园艺。研究课题将通过实践活动、实验和设计竞赛纳入初中/高中和大学生的课程。PI将为本科生开发一个基于网络的设计工具，用于对具有室内绿化系统的建筑物进行综合能源模拟。通过为初中/高中学生和教师举办夏令营，该项目将对约1 000名学生的教育产生直接影响。通过热舒适实验、基于网络的设计工具和室内绿化系统设计竞赛开展的高等教育活动将吸引300名大学生。反过来，研究可以从这些教育活动和行业合作伙伴基于项目定期更新的反馈中受益。该项目产生的成果将通过期刊出版物、PI小组网站、国家和州会议、建筑科学教育工作者协会、该项目由CBET环境可持续发展计划和刺激竞争研究的既定计划（EPSCoR）共同资助。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

1944823 (Wang). This research will quantify the contribution of indoor greenery systems to building energy efficiency. Indoor living wall systems are becoming increasingly popular in modern commercial buildings, and this research will create a model to simulate the thermal interactions between indoor greenery systems and the local environment, where evapotranspiration from indoor living plants plays an important role. The research will quantify the effects of indoor greenery systems on building energy consumption and the effects of leaf-to-floor area ratio and evapotranspiration on occupant thermal comfort.To accomplish the research objectives, the PI will create first a thermal model for indoor greenery systems that predicts evapotranspiration rates and the thermal interactions with the indoor environment and validate the model based on measurements from lab experiments. Second, the PI will identify the relationship between thermal comfort and leaf-to-floor area ratio and evapotranspiration for spaces with indoor greenery systems through thermal comfort experiments. Third, the PI will quantify the influence of indoor greenery systems on building performance through a coupled modeling approach that combines building energy simulation and indoor greenery system models. The knowledge gained is targeted to form the scientific foundation of design guidance for architects, interior designers, and engineers on indoor greenery systems and promote the integration of indoor greenery with HVAC systems for energy efficiency in future buildings. The developed thermal model for indoor greenery systems and the integrated modeling approach may contribute to other domains, such as vertical farming and horticulture. The research topics will be incorporated into curricula for middle/high school and university students through hands-on activities, experiments, and design competitions. The PI will develop a web-based design tool for undergraduate students to perform integrated energy simulations for buildings with indoor greenery systems. By hosting summer camps for middle/high school students and teachers, the project will have a direct impact on education for approximately 1,000 students. The higher education activities through thermal comfort experiments, the web-based design tool, and design competitions for indoor greenery systems will engage 300 university students. In turn, research can benefit from these educational activities and industry partners’ feedback based on periodic updates of the project. The results generated from this project will be disseminated through journal publications, the PI’s group website, national and state conferences, the Society of Building Science Educators, and the American Institute of Architects.This project is jointly funded by the CBET Environmental Sustainability program and the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR).This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.