Jiangtao Du

• PhD in Architecture (Building Science)
• Professor (Associate) at University of Liverpool

This review focuses on the indoor air quality (IAQ) in social housing across developing nations to identify the key factors that influence IAQ, research gaps, and opportunities for future interventions. A total of 43 studies from 2000 to 2024 were identified and categorized into the following five themes: Health and Comfort, Direct Measurements, Re...

Outdoor public spaces in university campuses can play a critical role in affecting students’ mental performance and wellbeing. This systematic scoping review provides a synthesis of recent studies on the effects of perceived environmental factors on psychological restoration, students’ mental health and satisfaction in university outdoor public spa...

Kazakhstan is in Central Asia and is the ninth-largest country in the world. Some socially vulnerable segments of the Kazakh population residing in subsidised social housing have experienced a range of problems due to the low quality of housing construction and its planning. Poor indoor environmental conditions in social housing contribute to occup...

China lacks design strategies to improve home-based care environments for its older adults. This study investigated the perception of indoor environmental quality in housing environments and analyzed its impact on health and satisfaction among home-living older adults. A cross-sectional survey in Northern China was conducted during the COVID-19 pan...

As office workers spend a substantial amount of time on working indoors, the indoor environmental quality can significantly affect their mental and work performances. This systematic review provides a synthesis of current studies on the relationship between perceived indoor environmental characteristics (PIEC) and occupants’ mental wellbeing, cogni...

This study conducted a psychological experiment to test if there are differences of visual preference between 18 Chinese vernacular windows, and which biophilic factors can substantially affect the preference. The experiment recruited 95 Chinese adults to rate images of these windows on three biophilic qualities (perceived shape complexity, biomorp...

Prefabricated timber houses have received growing attention in China recently as being one possible approach to mitigating climate change impacts. This article presents the results from a dynamic thermal simulation parametric analysis of building characteristics and primary energy consumption, embodied and operational carbon of newly built prefabri...

White LEDs, which have been widely used in the urban street lighting, are increasingly applied to replace traditional HPS lamps with a lower CCT (correlated color temperature). Generally, studies on the CCT of street lighting focus on providing safe functional lighting for vehicle drivers. However, it is still unknown how the street light color can...

This systematic review summarized findings from 36 articles on physical environmental qualities in Chinese elderly care facilities, including five topics: 1) assessment methods, 2) physical environmental factors, 3) safety, 4) overall satisfaction and 5) health. There was a lack of effective methods to support both design decision-making and enviro...

This article presented an online survey of how perceived environmental qualities affect Chinese students’ satisfaction in urban high schools. Key findings were as follows: 1) There was an association between students’ satisfaction and classroom environmental qualities including perceived qualities of facilities, furniture and wall decoration, indoo...

This study presented a comparative analysis of design/assessment methods of elderly care facility between UK and China, including eleven British instruments and three Chinese instruments, which were achieved using a systematic review. Two typical assessment methods were chosen to conduct a cross-country comparison, such as EVOLVE (UK) and CASCO (Ch...

Photosynthetically Active Radiation (PAR) is critically required for sustaining plant and vegetable growth. This study investigated PAR availabilities in two typical large-scale greenhouses using an advanced method of climate-based solar modelling in China. Seven Chinese locations in terms of daylight (solar) climate zones and latitudes were studie...

To analyze the extent of fire risk in historic Chinese wooden structure buildings, the fire load characteristics of a historic temple in Beijing were studied. In this paper, thermogravimetric and cone calorimeter experiments were conducted on raw wood collected from historic Chinese buildings. Based on the experiment results, temple fire experiment...

The deposition of air pollutants on glazing can significantly affect the daylight transmittance of building fenestration systems in urban areas. This study presents a simulation analysis of the impact of air pollution and glazing visual transmittance on indoor daylight availability in an open-plan office in London. First, the direct links between g...

Biophilic design aims to bring natural elements into the built environment. In urban buildings, an atrium can be adopted not only as an important passive solution to achieve natural light and ventilation, but also to provide significant biophilic opportunities by nurturing plant growth on floors and façades. Access to Photosynthetically Active Radi...

Daylight utilization in cites is receiving increasing attention from urban planners and developers, architects, and engineers, especially in China. This article aims to study the daylight availability in highly dense residential areas across China with respect to current planning regulations. Using a method of climate-based analysis, frequencies of...

This study presents an investigation of circadian lighting potential for a fibre optics daylighting system (FODS) in a single office in Beijing, China. Research methods included the monitoring of FODS daylighting performance during a 11-month period, the indoor lighting simulations at the horizontal workplane and vertical planes using a single offi...

This study presents a psychological survey of the preferences for Chinese vernacular windows among young adults. The experiment participants were young Chinese students who were studying the programmes of architecture, urban planning, interior design and engineering in a public university in Beijing. Eighteen window shapes combined with three types...

This paper reports an assessment of a school building design using the newly published Building Bulletin 101 2018. The requirements on thermal comfort and CO2 based indoor air quality from this new guidance document are very different from its earlier version published in 2006. Existing research reported that the new requirements are much tougher t...

The development of the Passive House (PH) Standard has provided an important opportunity to minimize the energy consumption of buildings in accordance with global targets for climate change and energy savings. This article presents a 3-year monitoring study (operation and optimization) of energy performance and CO2 emissions in a newly built Passiv...

This article presents a pilot study of effects of glazing on participants’ satisfaction and performance in a full-scale office in Beijing, China. Five glazing systems were tested during a heating season (17 November 2016 to 11 January 2017). Research methods include lighting measurements, subjective assessments, and reaction time test (GO/NOGO). Ke...

This study presents a human experiment of effects of glazing types (colour and transmittance) on participants’ alertness and mood, working performance, and self-reported satisfaction in a full-scale office in Beijing, China. Seven glazing systems were tested in a winter period (17th Nov 2017 ~ 15th Jan 2018). Research methods included lighting meas...

This study examined the design and daylight performance of a new louvre screen for office buildings. The screen was evaluated for three different material finishes: specular aluminium as a traditional material commonly used in louvres, and two types of ceramic finishes, with the intention to reduce the systems’ environmental impact. The new system...

Daylight utilization in urban areas is receiving increasing attention from urban planners and developers, architects and engineers. This study investigated the daylighting availability within buildings of a highly dense residential urban area under a cold climate in north-east China. Based on innovative simulations using climate-based daylight mode...

Urban air pollution is currently one of the top 10 worst pollution problems in China. It can not only worsen indoor air quality but also substantially reduce daylight availabilities in buildings, both of which are directly linked to occupants' health and well-being. This article presents results of a winter experiment focusing on testing human perf...

Light pollution has been recognised as a major environmental problem in urban areas at night. This study presents an investigation into the impact of seven various shading solutions on the risk of light pollution caused by indoor artificial lighting in a fully glazed office building. Radiance, a ray-tracing package, was adopted to calculate externa...

Due to climate change, global energy crisis, and high-quality life requirement for people, decreasing building energy consumption and enhancing indoor environment quality through control of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems tend to be increasingly important. Therefore, favorable control methods for heating and ventilation systems a...

The newly built Passive House school buildings have broadly employed a novel distributed renewable energy system for heating energy supply in Germany. This article proposed a distributed renewable energy system and investigated its performances (energy and thermal comfort) through numerical simulations in a school building. A new energy performance...

Abstract: The research of the integration of solar energy and buildings in China has been well developed. However, the utilization of solar energy on the urban scale has just started. This study presents the research methods and tools of European solar cities based on the solar city design framework, including urban analysis and modeling, solar pot...

The deposition of air pollutants on glazing can significantly affect the daylight transmittance of building fenestration systems in urban areas. This study presents a simulation analysis of the impact of air pollution and glazing visual transmittance on indoor daylight availability in an open-plan office in London. First, the direct links between g...

In urban areas the daylight available to a building directly from the sky may be compromised, and the contribution from reflected daylight can become more significant. The influence of external obstructions and façade configurations has received some attention, but the impact of daylight reflected from the external ground surrounding an urban build...

Daylighting can significantly affect human health & well-being in buildings. This article presents an experiment of the impact of several coloured/neutral glazing systems on visual performance, alertness, mood and wellbeing of occupants in a daylit office in Beijing, China. From 10:00 to 16:50 in four days of spring 2016, a total of 15 participants...

Traditional Chinese window is one of the typical elements of vernacular buildings in China. It has been increasingly applied in the area of contemporary architecture as a cultural symbol. The study of environmental performance of traditional windows will provide a quantitative basis for their design and applications, and therefore enhance the under...

This article first presents a full-scale survey of the impact of colored/neutral glazing systems on occupants’ visual and non-visual performances, and working performance in a daylit office in Beijing, China. Five glazing systems were investigated during a heating season from 17 November 2016 to 11 January 2017. The lighting measurements and subjec...

BIPV facades (integrated with opaque or transparent PV panels) have been accepted as an innovative strategy to provide electricity, reduce peak electrical and cooling demands, improve daylighting utilization, and achieve energy efficiency in buildings. This study presents a preliminary simulation study of impact of BIPV facades on visual and non-vi...

Light trespass has been regarded as one major type of light pollution in urban areas. This study presents an investigation of the impact of six various shading devices on the light trespass risk in a fully glazed office building. Radiance, a ray-tracing package, was adopted to calculate external illuminance levels produced by indoor artificia...

Light pollution is an environmental problem occurring with the improper application of artificial lighting systems. Light trespass, one significant type of light pollution, is difficult to be measured and evaluated in urban areas. In Beijing, a fully glazed office building could become a possible source of obtrusive light except for the street ligh...

Light pollution, a new environmental problem, significantly influences the sustainability of an urban area on basis of ecological stability, human well-beings and energy conservation. This study analysed the impact of ground surface reflectances and three outdoor lighting fixtures on the potential of lighting pollutions in the landscape lighting de...

This report presents a study of the impact of windows on overall energy performance of single family, detached houses in two European climates: the middle of Sweden (cold climate) and Southern France (warm climate). The parameters studied include climate and house characteristics, window properties (sizes, thermal, solar and visual transmittances,...

This study presents an integrated assessment on the relationship of windows and energy performance in two houses located at northern and southern Europe. The lighting, heating and cooling were considered as the components of energy consumptions. Depending on dynamic simulations by DesignBuilder, the impact of house orientations, window positions an...

This study presents a complicated assessment on the relationship of light shelves and lighting perfromance in a typical deep open-plan office in Sweden (high latitudes; north European climates). The external and internal light shelves were considered separately. Depending on climate-based dynamic simulations by Daysim, the impact of installation po...

This paper presents a preliminary study on the impact of windows on energy performance in a detached house in Sweden. The parameters studied include window sizes, thermal and visual transmittances, solar gains, as well as one shading device. The energy consumption of electrical lighting system was the main factor to be first investigated. Furthermo...

This study investigated the impact of building orientations, typical layouts and positions at facades on daylight and sunlight availability in high-density residential areas in North-east China. Vertical daylight factor (including sky component and reflected component) and sunlight hours along the centre building facades in three typical models wer...

This study investigated the impact of well geometry and surface reflectance on the vertical daylight factors of walls in atria with square plan forms under a CIE standard overcast sky. Artificial sky scale model measurements were used to validate predicted values of vertical daylight factors using the software package Radiance. More simulated verti...

This study investigated the impact of well geometry and surface reflectance on vertical daylight factors on the walls of rectangular atria under a CIE standard overcast sky. The vertical daylight factors predicted using the modelling software Radiance were validated by artificial sky scale model measurements. More simulated data of vertical dayligh...

Urbanization has substantially increased the populations of some giant cities in north-east China. More and more high-density residential areas were developed. The new situations have actually brought negative impacts on urban environmental quality. Daylighting is regarded as one of the most crucial indicators for the qualities of a living environm...

Daylight has been regarded as a significant environmental advantage of atrium buildings because the natural light can illuminate potentially dark core areas and decrease energy consumption. This study has investigated the average daylight factors (overcast sky conditions) and annual lighting energy load (real weather conditions of Sheffield, UK) in...

The performances of light shelf systems are evaluated in the context of various interior configurations typical of multistory office buildings by using CBDM (climate-based daylight modeling). A physical scale model of one of the light shelf systems is tested in the first phase under real sky conditions in Raleigh, North Carolina, USA. The data coll...

Daylight use in an atrium is particularly beneficial as the natural light can illuminate potentially dark core areas and decrease energy consumption from electric lighting. This study has investigated, for overcast sky conditions, the horizontal daylight levels in spaces adjoining atria and the vertical daylight levels on atrium well walls in atria...

Daylight plays a major role in making atrium spaces appealing to building users. This appeal is also evident in the spaces adjoining the atrium. A key component of atrium daylighting, especially in tall atria, is the daylight reflected on to the atrium walls. This study examines the impacts of well geometries and different diffuse reflectance distr...

This study investigated the impact of well geometry on vertical sky components in atria with square and rectangular forms under a CIE standard overcast sky. By comparing scale model measurements and analytical theory the vertical sky components, calculated using Radiance, were validated. More simulated data of vertical sky components for a very wid...

This study investigated the impacts of different diffuse reflectance distributions and well geometries on vertical daylight factors and vertical internally reflected components in atria. Two forms of reflectance distribution patterns of wall surface were examined: horizontal and vertical reflectance band variation. The square atrium models studied...

This paper investigates the relationship between vertical daylight levels on well walls and daylight levels on the working plane in adjoining spaces in atria with different geometric shapes and reflectances under a CIE standard overcast sky. By the comparisons with theoretical analysis, the daylight factors of wall and rooms calculated using Radian...

This paper studies the impact of well geometry and surface reflectance (including the wall reflectance, the floor reflectance and the reflectance distribution of wall) on the distribution of vertical daylight level across the atrium well walls under a CIE standard overcast sky. By the comparisons with scale model measurement, the vertical daylight...

This paper investigates the impact of well geometry and surface reflectance on vertical daylight levels in atria with square forms under a CIE standard overcast sky. By reviewing some previous investigations and comparing with scale model measurements the vertical daylight factor calculated using Radiance are validated. More simulated vertical dayl...

This paper investigates the impact of well geometry on vertical sky components in atria with square and rectangular forms under a CIE standard overcast sky. By comparing with scale model measurements and analytical theory the vertical sky components calculated using Radiance are validated. More simulated data of vertical sky components for a very w...