Dynamic Harmony: Balancing Energy Efficiency and Thermal Comfort
A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073). This special issue belongs to the section "B: Energy and Environment".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 August 2025 | Viewed by 390
Special Issue Editors
Interests: dynamic thermal comfort; personal comfort systems; building energy; adaptive behaviour; thermal control
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: adaptive thermal comfort; occupant behaviour; thermal environment; energy saving; traditional vernacular building
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
We are delighted to invite submissions for the special issue of the Energies journal titled "Dynamic Harmony: Balancing Energy Efficiency and Thermal Comfort”. This special issue aims to explore the intricate balance between optimizing energy efficiency and maintaining thermal comfort in various environments. As a high-ranking, open-access journal, Energies provides a prestigious platform for researchers to disseminate their findings to a global audience.
In the face of escalating energy demands and the urgent need to mitigate climate change, achieving energy efficiency without compromising thermal comfort has become a critical challenge. Buildings are generally designed to be either energy efficient or comfortable. The aim of this special issue is to demonstrate how to balance the two is possible by achieving thermal comfort or even thermal delight, while considering the energy footprint of the building. This special issue seeks to address this challenge by bringing together innovative research that explores new technologies, methodologies, and strategies for harmonising energy use and thermal comfort. By contributing to this special issue, researchers can play a pivotal role in advancing sustainable practices that benefit both the environment and society.
We encourage submissions that cover a wide range of topics related to energy efficiency and thermal comfort, including but not limited to:
- Adaptive thermal comfort: Investigating thermal comfort adaptation and related energy use.
- Behavioral Studies: Investigating how occupant behavior and preferences impact energy use and thermal comfort, and developing interventions to promote energy-saving behaviors.
- Extreme conditions: Passive or active strategies to cope with the extreme thermal conditions as well as adaptive behaviours of the users
- Personal Comfort Systems: Innovative technologies that provide thermal comfort or delight, while use limited energy
- Policy and Regulation: Analysis of policies and regulations that influence energy efficiency and thermal comfort standards, and recommendations for future improvements.
- Building Design and Retrofitting: Passive or active strategies for designing new buildings or retrofitting existing structures to achieve optimal energy performance and occupant comfort.
- Smart Technologies: Integration of smart sensors, IoT devices, and AI algorithms to monitor and control indoor environments for improved energy management and comfort.
- Renewable Energy Integration: Exploring the role of renewable energy sources in maintaining thermal comfort while reducing reliance on non-renewable energy.
Dr. Sally Shahzad
Prof. Dr. Hom Bahadur Rijal
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 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
- adaptive thermal comfort
- behavioral studies
- extreme conditions
- personal comfort systems
- policy and regulation
- building design
- retrofitting
- smart technologies
- renewable energy integration
- innovative HVAC systems
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