Energy-Efficient Building Materials: Innovations, Enhancements, Testing Methods, and Predictive Modelling
A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073). This special issue belongs to the section "G: Energy and Buildings".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 February 2026 | Viewed by 45
Special Issue Editor
Interests: building materials; energy-efficient sustainable materials; functional materials; cement-based materials; foam concrete; cementitious composites with waste; phase-change thermal energy storage materials; early-age concrete behaviour; testing methods; prediction models
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The transition toward sustainable and energy-efficient construction requires building materials that not only deliver structural performance and durability but also actively contribute to reducing energy demand and environmental impact. Modern infrastructure increasingly relies on materials that combine traditional strength with enhanced thermal, mechanical, and functional properties. At the same time, the development of innovative low-carbon, waste-based, bio-based, and multifunctional energy-efficient composites offers new pathways for minimising the carbon footprint and advancing circular economy principles.
Progress in materials science and engineering—ranging from nanoscale modifications to advanced manufacturing, testing, and predictive modelling—enables the design of materials with improved energy efficiency, reliability, and adaptability. In this context, not only is knowledge about the properties of materials essential but also access to reliable testing methods and effective predictive techniques that allow for accurate assessment and modelling of their behaviour under real conditions. These approaches support performance optimisation, durability forecasting, and more informed material selection in both research and practice.
This Special Issue aims to gather recent advances in the field of future-oriented energy-efficient building materials, focusing both on the enhancement of the properties of existing materials and the development of new, sustainable solutions. Particular attention is given to innovative testing methods that are essential for reliable characterisation, as well as to predictive techniques that support accurate modelling of material behaviour. The Special Issue welcomes contributions that explore interdisciplinary approaches combining material properties, experimental techniques, and modelling strategies. The preferred types of articles are research articles, reviews, and communications. The main topics concern the performance, improvement, and predictive analysis of all energy-efficient building materials suitable for future construction challenges.
Topics of interest for publication include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Improvements in the thermal, mechanical, and durability properties of energy-efficient building materials;
- Development and properties of low-carbon, waste-based, and bio-based energy-efficient composites;
- Novel and multifunctional energy-efficient building materials for structural and non-structural applications;
- Smart materials for dynamic environmental response and self-sensing capabilities;
- Energy-efficient and energy storage materials for building envelopes and insulation;
- Lifecycle analysis, sustainability assessment, and circular economy integration in material design;
- Integration of material innovations into energy-efficient and low-emission building systems.
Prof. Dr. Barbara Klemczak
Guest Editor
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. Energies 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 2600 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
- energy-efficient building materials
- thermal insulation materials
- energy storage materials
- durability forecasting and lifecycle assessment
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