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The 2024 Sino-German Academic Symposium Reveals Novel Approaches to Understanding Heat and Humidity in Our Built Environment

On October 14, 2024, the Sino-German Academic Symposium on "Addressing Climate Challenges - Digital Analysis of Urban Building Environment Heat and Humidity" was successfully held at the Design Building of Shanghai Jiao Tong University. The symposium was supported by the Shanghai Municipal Science and Technology Commission, Shanghai Housing Authority, Shanghai Municipal Administration of Cultural Heritage, Jiangsu Taicang High-tech Industrial Development Zone, and the People's Government of Changshu City. It was jointly organized by Shanghai Jiao Tong University and the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft of Germany, with the School of Design at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Fraunhofer IBP Institute for Building Physics, and the Sino-German Joint Research Center at Shanghai Jiao Tong University (in Cooperation with Fraunhofer) serving as co-organizers.

The symposium aimed to explore digital analysis techniques for thermal and humidity conditions in the urban built environment in the context of climate change. It also strove to promote technical cooperation between China and Germany in areas such as climate change, urban renewal, urban health, and safety management. Additionally, Fraunhofer Allianz BAU, the Modern Architecture Special Committee of the China Cultural Relics Protection Technology Association, the Historic Building Preservation Branch of the Shanghai Survey and Design Industry Association, the Architectural Heritage Protection Center of the School of Design at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, and the Shanghai International Joint Laboratory for Climate Change and Adaptive Governance in Rural Areas along the Belt and Road Initiative also provided significant assistance to the event. The symposium was hosted by Professor Che Shengquan, a tenured professor at the School of Design at Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

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​Experts in attendance included Hartwig Kuenzel, former head of the Thermal and Humidity Department at Fraunhofer Institute for Building Physics; Simon Schmidt, current head of the Thermal and Humidity Department at Fraunhofer Institute for Building Physics; Li Hong, Senior Researcher for Ecology and Smart Cities at Fraunhofer Institute for Building Physics and German Executive Director of the Shanghai Jiao Tong University-Fraunhofer Joint Research Center; as well as Professors Che Shengquan and Zhang Huibo, and Associate Professor Xie Changkun from the School of Design at Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

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​Hartwig Kuenzel discussed the degradation mechanisms of common building materials based on WUFI software. He emphasized the challenges posed by climate change to the urban built environment and pointed out that understanding such degradation is crucial for enhancing building durability. Through WUFI simulations, he analyzed the way materials such as stone, clay, brick, gypsum, and wood break down, and clarified the impact of water, salt, temperature, weathering, oxidation, and biological factors on this process. These findings provide a basis for optimizing building design and material selection, aiming to explore new materials and technologies, strengthen material research and development, and thus address the challenges of climate change and promote sustainable development in the urban built environment.

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​Zhang Huibo profoundly revealed two core challenges in simulating building thermal and humidity environments. She pointed out that the thermal and humidity properties of building materials are difficult to accurately measure and model due to their wide variety and diverse performance, as well as their susceptibility to various environmental factors in practice. This poses the primary obstacle to simulation accuracy. At the same time, the setting of indoor and outdoor boundary conditions is also complex and variable, including indoor and outdoor temperature and humidity fluctuations, solar radiation intensity, wind speed and direction, precipitation conditions, and more. The precise capture and assessment of these factors are difficult to realize in practical operations, further increasing the difficulty in creating simulations. Zhang Huibo emphasized that to overcome these challenges, it is not only necessary to deepen the understanding of the thermal and humidity transfer mechanisms in building materials, but also to strengthen the monitoring and prediction technologies for dynamic changes in indoor and outdoor environments. She called for enhanced interdisciplinary cooperation between academia and the engineering community to jointly promote technological innovation, aiming to improve the accuracy and practicality of building humidity environment simulations, to provide a more solid scientific basis for building design, operation and maintenance, to improve energy efficiency.

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​Simon Schmidt introduced in detail the latest research findings of the Thermal and Humidity Department at Fraunhofer Institute for Building Physics in the field of mold growth risk assessment. He elaborated on the impact of mold growth on building envelopes and indoor air quality, emphasizing the importance of accurately predicting and controlling mold growth. He pointed out that mold growth not only affects the durability of building materials and the comfort of indoor environments but also poses potential health risks to occupants. He introduced the use of advanced thermal and humidity simulation software WUFI, combined with contour models and bio-thermal and humidity models, to comprehensively assess mold growth risks under different envelope design schemes. This presentation demonstrated the professional expertise and cutting-edge achievements of the Fraunhofer Institute for Building Physics in the field of mold growth model research, providing important references for optimizing the design of building envelopes and ensuring healthy and comfortable indoor environments.

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Sun Rui, a student under the guidance of Lai Dayi, conducted a comprehensive and in-depth presentation on the research of urban thermal environments in the context of climate change, with a particular emphasis on the importance of people-oriented core concepts in urban planning and architectural design. The presentation focused on the pressing issue of how climate change exacerbates the urban heat island effect, thereby having a profound impact on quality of life and on the health of urban residents. The student first revealed, through detailed field monitoring and big data analysis, how various factors such as urban spatial forms, green space distribution, building materials, and human activities collectively influence the urban thermal environment, forming a complex heat island effect mechanism. Building on this foundation, she further explored how these environmental factors impact the daily lives of urban residents, including decreased outdoor activity time, increased energy consumption, and rising incidences of heat-related illness. In response to these issues, the presentation proposed people-oriented design strategies for urban thermal environments. These strategies aim to effectively mitigate the urban heat island effect and enhance residents' living comfort and health levels by increasing urban green space, optimizing building layouts to reduce heat accumulation, adopting high-reflectance building materials to reduce solar radiation absorption, and designing adaptable public spaces.

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​Li Hong focused on the deep integration of digital modeling and simulation technology with the urban environment's microclimate. He delved into how advanced digital methods can be utilized to construct high-precision and highly realistic models of urban environments, and employed simulation technology to mimic the dynamic changes in the urban microclimate. During his presentation, he demonstrated how digital modeling precisely captures key elements such as urban terrain, building layout, and vegetation distribution, as well as how these elements influence local climatic characteristics, including temperature, humidity, and wind speed. He also shared application cases of simulation technology in predicting urban heat island effects, optimizing ventilation conditions, and improving residents' comfort levels, emphasizing the crucial role of technology in enhancing the scientificity and sustainability of urban planning. Through this presentation, the audience gained a deeper understanding of digital modeling’s potential, and simulation technology’s ability to  address challenges posed by the urban environment's microclimate.

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Xie Changkun conducted a comprehensive discussion on risk assessment and adaptive design for community thermal environments in the context of climate change. He pointed out that issues related to community thermal environments have seriously impacted residents' health, making scientific risk assessment and adaptive design strategies crucial. By comprehensively considering various factors and constructing a comprehensive assessment system, high-risk areas can be accurately identified. He proposed strategies such as optimizing building orientations, increasing green spaces, and improving ventilation, aiming to mitigate the urban heat island effect and enhance comfort levels. Meanwhile, reasonable calibration and regulation of boundary conditions are vital for creating comfortable and healthy environments, which contribute to improved quality of life, reduced energy consumption, and sustainable development. His insights proved insight into how to practically improve community thermal environments.

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Finally, both parties engaged in discussions on their next steps in collaboration, focusing on joint research and talent cultivation centered around topics such as climate change risks, the impact of climate change on building materials, modification of thermal-humidity models under climate change, and assessment and design of climate-adaptive communities.