Optimization of the indoor environmental quality of buildings

As Men spend about 90% of their time inside enclosed spaces, a healthy and comfortable indoor climate is a basic premise in all buildings. Taking into consideration that in the EU, buildings account for about 40% of the total energy consumption (35% in Portugal), it is mandatory to control the energy consumption in the building sector, while maintaining, or even improving, the indoor environmental quality. As the buildings are complex systems, where all aspects are interconnected and influence each other, it is necessary an integrated and comprehensive approach to the building in order to enhance indoor health and comfort besides only energy savings concerns. An environmentally sustainable approach should then be followed. Heating, cooling, daylight, indoor air quality (IAQ), acoustic behaviour and energy strategies should be meshed at an early stage with the other buildings requirements to ensure their overall comfort conditions. To accomplish this goal, it is necessary to predict the thermal, acoustic, daylight conditions and IAQ behaviour of the buildings, on the design phase, in order to be able to do the right choices, regarding, for instance the geometry, space organization, fenestration strategies, construction solutions and materials, to improve the occupants overall comfort and, at the same time, reducing the energy costs. In this work, it is presented a multi-criteria analysis, suitable for the design phase that balances all these aspects, with the potential of becoming a valuable tool to assist the designer in the most appropriate selection of design alternatives, construction solutions and materials.