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

1944823(王)。本研究将量化室内绿化系统对建筑节能的贡献。室内生活墙系统在现代商业建筑中正变得越来越普遍，本研究将建立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。这项研究将量化室内绿地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。为了完成研究目标，PI将首先建立室内绿地系统的热模型，预测蒸散率以及与室内环境的热相互作用，并基于实验室实验的测量结果对模型进行验证。其次，PI将通过热舒适性实验来确定具有室内绿化系统的空间的热舒适性与叶/地面积比和蒸散量的关系。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来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，并促进室内绿化与暖通空调系统的集成，以提高未来建筑的能效。所开发的室内绿地系统热力模型和集成建模方法可用于垂直农业和园艺等其他领域。研究主题将通过动手活动、实验和设计竞赛纳入初中/高中和大学生的课程。PI将开发一个基于网络的设计工具，供本科生对带有室内绿化系统的建筑进行综合能源模拟。通过为初中生和教师举办夏令营，该项目将对大约1 000名学生的教育产生直接影响。通过基于网络的设计工具热舒适实验和室内绿化系统设计比赛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基于项目定期更新的行业合作伙伴的反馈中受益。该项目的成果将通过期刊出版物、PI的小组网站、国家和州会议、建筑科学教育工作者协会和美国建筑学会进行传播。该项目由CBET环境可持续发展计划和既定的激励竞争研究计划(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智力优势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.