There are about 47,000 hotels in the United States that spend an average of $2200 per room on energy annually. Studies found that hotel guests’ energy consumption behavior is one of the key reasons that affects hotel buildings’ energy consumption. However, there has been little research study that provides efficient energy-use reduction interventions based on guests’ energy-related behavior in hotel buildings. To address this research gap, this research study aims to develop an integrated energy-use framework in four steps: (1) integrating four energy-related behavior models (i.e., Motivation-Opportunity-Ability, Norm Activation Model, Theory of Planned Behavior, and Pro-environmental Behavior); (2) developing a set of hypotheses and their relevant measures to examine the relationship between the energy-related behavior models and hotel guests’ energy-use behavior; (3) conducting an energy-use survey to analyze the effect of each determined measure on hotel guests’ energy-use behavior; (4) analyzing the energy behavior data to identify energy-use behavior of hotel guests in hotel buildings; (5) analyzing the energy behavior data to identify energy-use profiles (i.e., Prone, Indifferent, or Resistant to Change) of hotel guests in hotel buildings. In this study, Prone to Change refers to good energy consumption behavior, Indifferent to Change refers to moderate energy consumption behavior, and Resistant to Change refers to bad or dark energy consumption behavior. From the energy-use survey, 370 responses were collected. Then, the 370 responses were analyzed to identify the energy-use profiles of hotel guests. The results from the analysis indicated that 168 out of 370 (45%) respondents have Resistant to Change energy-use profile, 146 out of 370 (40%) respondents have Indifferent to Change energy-use profile, and 56 out of 370 (15%) respondents have Prone to Change energy-use profile. The findings can provide decision-makers in hospitality industry with a better understanding of their guests’ energy-related behavior; and accordingly develop effective interventions to reduce energy consumption in hotel buildings.

The testing of multi-layer building envelopes was performed using an environmental chamber following the ASTM C1363 and ISO 8990 standards. However, performing such tests in accordance with the standards by an accredited laboratory can be extremely costly, and many laboratories have waiting lists of several months. This is a significant cost for researchers and building material testing companies in the construction industry. Therefore, the goal of this study was to design, construct, and test a portable environmental chamber for building envelopes to validate the accuracy and the efficiency of the built environmental chamber to measure the thermal performance (i.e., R-value) of wall panels at extreme climate conditions (i.e., −20 °C and 80 °C). The results indicated that the built environmental chamber is capable of maintaining the steady state temperature inside the chamber during the hot climate condition test of 65 °C (150 °F) within ±0.5 °C and during the cold climate condition test of −16 °C (3 °F) within ±1 °C, meeting the requirement of the ASTM C1363-19 standard. The results also indicated that the built environmental chamber is capable of measuring the R-value of building envelopes under hot climate conditions with an accuracy of ±0.73 ft²·°F h/BTU (±0.129 m² °C/W) and under cold climate conditions with an accuracy of ±1.02 ft² °C·h/BTU (±0.180 m² °C/W). This university-based testing program allows companies to test several building envelopes at a relatively low cost and minimum wait duration. Additionally, such an environmental chamber can be used for the accurate evaluation of innovative designs to determine promising designs and to refine wall specimen prototypes for manufactured materials.

Buildings located in extreme cold climates encounter challenges (e.g., heat loss, condensation, and frozen utilities), especially within their wall envelopes. These challenges also play a pivotal role in occupant health, comfort, and the structural integrity of the building. While the existing literature has primarily focused on thermal performance, this study underscores the importance of evaluating hygrothermal performance within wall envelopes, given the existence of mold growth even in cases of high thermal resistance. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the hygrothermal performance of an adaptable house wall (AHW) panel that incorporates composite infill panels paired with vacuum-insulated panels to endure harsh cold conditions in Alaska. Therefore, three steps were proposed to: (1) collect the material and thermal properties of the AHW; (2) model the hygrothermal performance of the AHW in WUFI^® PRO v6.7 software; and (3) analyze the results. The results revealed a moderate risk of mold growth in the inner plywood layer of the AHW, whereas the outer plywood layer showed zero risk, indicating an acceptable condition. The findings aid decisionmakers in recognizing potential mold-related issues in building walls before advancing to the construction phase.