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Energies
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Integrated Building Design: Balancing Comfort and Environmental Performance
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Integrated Building Design: Balancing Comfort and Environmental Performance

A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073). This special issue belongs to the section "G: Energy and Buildings".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (25 December 2025) | Viewed by 3292

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Emmanuel Simeu

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Guest Editor
Institute of Engineering, Université Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, Grenoble INP, TIMA, 38000 Grenoble, France
Interests: management and control of hybrid energy systems; fault detection and diagnosis; modeling; control and monitoring of heterogeneous systems
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Mohamed Tabaa

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
LPRI Laboratory, EMSI Casablanca, Casablanca 20330, Morocco
Interests: hybrid energy systems; embdedded systems; IoT; IA
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Badr Chegari

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Cool Roof Laboratory, Rue de Domblans, ZA de Quiella, 29590 Le Faou, France
Interests: energy efficiency; green buildings; building performance; positive energy buildings; thermal comfort; phase change materials; comfortable and near-zero energy buildings; alternative models; smart cities; resilience and sustainability

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue focuses on the innovative approaches in Integrated Building Design (IBD) to create structures that harmonize occupant comfort with high environmental performance. As urbanization accelerates and environmental challenges intensify, the need for buildings that are both sustainable and livable becomes paramount.

IBD represents a holistic approach that involves the collaborative efforts of architecture, engineering, interior design, and energy management to optimize building performance. Key areas of interest include the integration of advanced energy management systems, the use of sustainable materials, and the implementation of passive heating and cooling techniques. These strategies aim to reduce carbon footprints, lower energy consumption, and increase the use of renewable energy sources.

Additionally, the issue will explore bioclimatic design strategies that enhance indoor air quality, optimize natural lighting, and ensure thermal comfort. It will also focus on the importance of acoustics and spatial ergonomics in creating healthy and enjoyable indoor environments.

This Special Issue aims to gather cutting-edge research and case studies that showcase the best practices in IBD, emphasizing technological innovations, sustainability strategies, and their impacts on occupant well-being. The objective is to provide researchers, architects, and urban planners with practical, evidence-based insights to guide the creation of resilient, environmentally friendly, and comfortable buildings.

Prof. Dr. Emmanuel Simeu
Dr. Mohamed Tabaa
Dr. Badr Chegari
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 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

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

  • building design
  • sustainability
  • envelope
  • performance
  • carbon footprint
  • energy efficiency
  • thermal comfort
  • life cycle assessment

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

17 pages, 3878 KB  
Article
A Methodology for Deriving Conversion Coefficients of Natural Infiltration Using Airtightness Data
by Sujin Lim, Su-ji Choi, Jiajun Jing and Jae-hun Jo
Energies 2025, 18(23), 6301; https://doi.org/10.3390/en18236301 - 30 Nov 2025
Viewed by 281
Abstract
The commonly used conversion coefficient for natural infiltration rates (N) is derived from single-zone or low-rise building assumptions and therefore fails to account for the substantial pressure differences driven by building height and seasonal temperature variations. These induced pressure differences significantly [...] Read more.
The commonly used conversion coefficient for natural infiltration rates (N) is derived from single-zone or low-rise building assumptions and therefore fails to account for the substantial pressure differences driven by building height and seasonal temperature variations. These induced pressure differences significantly impact on the variations in infiltration rates within high-rise buildings, particularly during heating and cooling seasons. Therefore, this study develops a floor-resolved methodology for deriving N in high-rise buildings under various seasonal conditions, through extending the effective leakage area (ELA) model and incorporating normalization procedures that reflect seasonal and environmental conditions. Application of this method to high-rise buildings in South Korea shows that both infiltration rates and N values at upper and lower floors exceed those near the neutral pressure level (NPL) by more than a factor of two under winter conditions. Moreover, the derived N values deviate substantially from the commonly assumed reference value of 20 and vary systematically with floor height and season. These findings indicate that using a uniform N value can lead to considerable errors in estimating infiltration and associated energy loads, underscoring the necessity of height- and climate-specific conversion coefficients for accurate energy performance assessment. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Integrated Building Design: Balancing Comfort and Environmental Performance)
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27 pages, 4075 KB  
Article
Greenhouse Climate Control at the Food–Water–Energy Nexus: An Analytic Hierarchy Process–Model Predictive Control (AHP–MPC) Approach
by Hamza Benzzine, Hicham Labrim, Ibtissam El Aouni, Abderrahim Bajit, Aouatif Saad, Driss Zejli and Rachid El Bouayadi
Energies 2025, 18(23), 6219; https://doi.org/10.3390/en18236219 - 27 Nov 2025
Viewed by 440
Abstract
The authors frame greenhouse operation as a Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) challenge involving multiple interdependent targets: air temperature and humidity, CO2 enrichment, photoperiod-constrained lighting, and irrigation under dynamic and limited energy availability. We propose a knowledge-driven, multi-objective Model Predictive Controller whose cost [...] Read more.
The authors frame greenhouse operation as a Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) challenge involving multiple interdependent targets: air temperature and humidity, CO2 enrichment, photoperiod-constrained lighting, and irrigation under dynamic and limited energy availability. We propose a knowledge-driven, multi-objective Model Predictive Controller whose cost function integrates expert priorities elicited via an online Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) survey; these AHP-derived weights parameterize the controller’s objectives and are solved over two 72 h seasonal episodes, so the MPC can anticipate renewable availability and coordinate HVAC, (de)humidification, CO2 dosing, LED lighting, and irrigation alongside dispatch from photovoltaic and wind sources, battery storage, and the grid. By embedding the physical interdependence of climate variables directly into the decision layer, the controller schedules energy-intensive actions around renewable peaks and avoids counterproductive actuator conflicts. Seasonal case studies (summer/high solar and winter/low solar) demonstrate robust performance: temperature tracking errors of SMAPE 2.25%/3.05% and CO2 SMAPE 3.72–3.92%; humidity control with SMAPE 7.04–8.56%; lighting and irrigation following setpoints with low NRMSE (0.08–0.14). Summer energy was 59% renewable; winter was only 13%, increasing grid reliance to 77.5% (peaks: 4.57 kW/6.92 kW for 197.7/181.5 kWh). Under water or energy scarcity, the controller degrades gracefully, protecting high-priority agronomic variables while allowing bounded relaxation on lower-priority targets. This expert-informed, predictive, and resource-aware orchestration offers a scalable route to precision greenhouse control within the food–water–energy nexus. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Integrated Building Design: Balancing Comfort and Environmental Performance)
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15 pages, 4745 KB  
Article
Exploring Biomaterial-Based CoolRoofs: Empirical Insights into Energy Efficiency and CO2 Emissions Reduction
by Hasna Oukmi, Badr Chegari, Roland Soun, Ouadia Mouhat, Mohamed Rougui and Mohammed El Ganaoui
Energies 2024, 17(21), 5499; https://doi.org/10.3390/en17215499 - 3 Nov 2024
Viewed by 1844
Abstract
The Cool Roof concept, known for its efficiency in summer due to high temperatures during this period, employs a light coating that covers the roof to prevent the absorption of heat and maintain lower indoor temperatures. This study integrates a chemical component with [...] Read more.
The Cool Roof concept, known for its efficiency in summer due to high temperatures during this period, employs a light coating that covers the roof to prevent the absorption of heat and maintain lower indoor temperatures. This study integrates a chemical component with biomaterials to enhance performance and reduce CO2 emissions. The composition investigated in this research is recognized for its durability and ability to lower outside temperatures, thereby mitigating the urban heat island effect. This experimental study evaluates the sustainability of CoolRoofs in a cold room located in Signes, France. Temperature measurements are conducted from 25 September 2023 to 27 July 2024, both with and without the coating, to assess energy performance and CO2 emissions. The selection of the building type ensures optimal performance in both summer and winter. Results show that the maximum outside and inside surface temperatures for a Cool Roof are 48.7 °C and 25.6 °C, respectively, compared to 72.9 °C and 32.2 °C for an uncoated roof. Additionally, implementing a CoolRoof reduces thermal load through the cold room by 56%, while CO2 emissions can be reduced by up to 27.31 kg CO2/m2 over a 20-year period. This study presents a solution for enhancing energy and environmental performance year-round using a resilient composite. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Integrated Building Design: Balancing Comfort and Environmental Performance)
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