People tend to spend considerable amounts of time in buildings; thus the issue of providing proper indoor environmental quality is of significant importance. This paper experimentally analyses the subjective sensations of the occupants of intelligent and traditional buildings with the focus on possible differences between these two types of buildings. The study is based on a large database of 1302 questionnaires collected in 92 rooms where simultaneous measurements of the indoor environment physical parameters (air and globe temperature, relative humidity, carbon dioxide concentration, and illuminance) were carried out. Their impact on the subjective assessment of the indoor environment has been presented and analysed. The results show that the occupants seemed to be more favourable towards the indoor conditions in the intelligent building; however, the differences in comparison to the traditional buildings were not considerable. Similarly, self-reported productivity proved to be higher in the intelligent building, while the optimal range of air temperature, which ensured highest productivity, was 22–25 °C. Moreover, a strong correlation between the occupants’ overall comfort and their perception of the air quality has been found.

Nowadays, we spend most of our time inside buildings. Thus, ensuring adequate thermal comfort is an important issue. The paper discusses the issue of thermal comfort assessment in the intelligent low energy building “Energis” of Kielce University of Technology (Poland). The tests conducted in a selected lecture theater focused on collecting anonymous questionnaires containing thermal sensation and air quality votes of the respondents as well as performing measurements of indoor air parameters (air and globe temperatures, relative humidity, air velocity and CO₂ concentration). Based on the obtained data a comparison has been done between the actual sensation votes of the volunteers and the calculation results performed with the Fanger thermal comfort model. Two indices have been considered in the paper: PMV (Predicted Mean Vote) and PPD (Predicted Percentage Dissatisfied). A modification of the model has also been proposed, which considers the impact of the carbon dioxide concentration on thermal comfort.

The main aim of the research is to assess the light intensity and its impact on the productivity of research participants in educational buildings. The research was carried out in 18 rooms in teaching buildings in Poland and involved over two hundred volunteers. The tests were carried out with the following climate parameters: air temperature ranged from 20 to 25.1 °C, relative humidity from 18.16 to 50.9 %, and the concentration of carbon dioxide from 509 to 1634 ppm. The light intensity in the tested rooms ranged from 17.3 to 1095.1 lux. The parameters of the room temperature, carbon dioxide concentration, relative humidity and light intensity were recorded using a microclimate meter. The study participants were asked to answer questions about overall well-being, lighting quality, and productivity in each room. The results show that the air temperature has an effect on the productivity of the participants with the most preferable range of about 22 – 24 °C. It was also observed that productivity increased with improved well – being of the respondents. The analysed research also made it possible to check whether the users were satisfied with the light intensity. 74 % of respondents assessed that with the prevailing lighting, their productivity is normal, and they also felt best in rooms where the light intensity was 200 - 400 lux.

This paper experimentally analyses an indoor environment assessment of a large group of respondents regarding their subjective perception of overall comfort, indoor air quality and humidity. The questionnaire survey was applied as a testing method together with measurements of the physical parameters conducted with a microclimate meter. Two types of environment were analysed: educational rooms and the climate chamber. The comparative analysis of the sensations experienced within them indicates that they generate quite similar responses; however, some discrepancies have been identified. The overall comfort of the climate chamber was typically assessed as being higher than that of the educational rooms at the same air temperature. The most favourable air temperature in the climate chamber was ca. 20.7 °C, while in the educational rooms it was ca. 22.3 °C. The most preferable conditions in the climate chamber occurred at a thermal sensation vote of −0.4 (“pleasantly slightly cool”), while in the educational rooms it occurred at +0.2 (“neutral/pleasantly slightly warm”). Quite strong correlations between overall comfort and indoor air quality as well as between humidity assessment and humidity preference votes were observed, which did not seem to depend on the type of environment. These findings are important because results from the simulated conditions are often used in the analyses of actual living/working environments.

The indoor environment of buildings significantly affects the well-being and health of room users. Experiencing thermal discomfort reduces concentration and productivity during study or work, causing drowsiness, fatigue or deterioration in general well-being. The study focuses on presenting the results of the questionnaire study on the symptoms of sick building syndromes (SBS), namely: dizziness, nausea, eye pain and nasal mucosa, experienced by 69 students during a lecture in a large and modern auditorium of Kielce University of Technology. The results show that many students experienced SBS symptoms, which seem to have affected their concentration during the class. The article also discusses the thermal sensations of the students with a focus on comparing the obtained results with the Fanger model of thermal comfort. The discrepancy between the model calculation results and the experimental data has been observed and discussed.

The use of renewable energy sources in buildings is more and more common (both for heating and cooling purposes, as well as electricity generation). The paper focuses on the thermal comfort tests in two buildings: the traditional one (that uses non-renewable sources of energy) and the modern intelligent building “Energis” of Kielce University of Technology. The thermal sensations of students in these two buildings have been compared based on the questionnaire survey and conclusions have been drawn regarding the differences between the feelings of thermal comfort in those two buildings. Apart from subjective feelings of the volunteers, the measurements of indoor air parameters were conducted in both buildings and have been presented in the paper.