With the global rise in the prevalence of diabetes, diabetic patients need innovative footwear designs to reduce the risk of foot ulcers. This study examined the mechanical properties of diabetic shoe midsoles featuring auxetic lattice structures. Through the construction of finite element models and simulation, this research compared the biomechanical parameter differences in the plantar regions of the metatarsal head, midfoot, and hindfoot when wearing two types of auxetic midsoles with internal angles of 60° and 75° and a non-auxetic midsole with an internal angle of 90° under both walking and running conditions. Compared to the non-auxetic midsole, the auxetic midsoles significantly reduced the peak plantar pressure and optimized the pressure distribution across various plantar regions. Notably, the auxetic 60° midsole reduced the peak plantar pressure by 19.68–55.25% and 16.19–54.39% compared to the non-auxetic 90° midsole during walking and running, respectively. This study also verified that the auxetic midsoles exhibited greater adaptability and compliance to the plantar foot shape, contributing to reductions in plantar pressure in comparisons of deformation values and plantar contact areas across the different midsoles. Auxetic midsoles manufactured using 3D printing technology have significant potential to prevent diabetic foot ulcers and maintain human foot health. This research integrates insights and techniques from materials science and ergonomics, offering a new direction for footwear design.

Historic timber structures face substantial fire loads and complex fire risks. Subsequent renovations and utilization may influence their fire safety performance. Therefore, accurately predicting indoor fire development in historic buildings and assessing their fire safety performance is crucial. Numerical fire simulation is currently at the forefront of analyzing and assessing fire risks in historic buildings. However, there is a shortage of globally accessible historic building fire data. This paper proposes a method to determine fire scenarios, peak heat release rates, and development curves of indoor fires in wooden historic buildings through a fire load investigation. Using the Guangzhou ancestral hall as an example, PyroSim fire dynamics simulation software is employed to calculate fire development and assess the available safe evacuation time. The simulation results are subsequently input into the Pathfinder evacuation simulation software to ascertain the required safe evacuation time for indoor occupants. A comparative assessment is conducted to evaluate the fire safety performance before and after the renovation of historic buildings. The research findings indicate that installing closed glass curtain walls in the courtyards of ancestral hall buildings in Guangzhou accelerates the infiltration of smoke during fires, leading to rapid fire spread and long-distance ignition, significantly reducing the time available for safe evacuation. Therefore, when renovating and utilizing the ancestral hall buildings in Guangzhou, the installation of ventilation and smoke extraction systems should be prioritized to slow down fire development. Additionally, controlling the number of indoor occupants is an effective management measure to mitigate fire damage in historic buildings.

Strong winds or typhoon disasters pose significant risks to historical buildings in many countries and regions. Although numerous researchers have discussed the damage caused by natural wind disasters, little attention has been paid to the potential impact of renovation and adaptive reuse strategies on the wind resistance performance of historical buildings—an avoidable human-induced factor. This study selected the representative ancestral hall building in Guangzhou, namely Lujiang Academy, for on-site investigation and Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulation analysis. It examined two renovation approaches: installing glass curtain walls around the courtyard and enclosing the top of the courtyard with a glass canopy. This study also assessed the roof wind pressure distribution in its unaltered state to evaluate the impact of different renovation strategies on roof wind load distribution. The results showed that installing glass curtain walls can effectively reduce the upward suction effect on the main hall roof, thereby improving its wind resistance performance. Conversely, enclosing the courtyard with a glass canopy may increase negative pressure on areas such as the eaves and corridor roofs, raising the risk of roof damage. This study systematically evaluated the renovation strategies for historical buildings, detailing the specific impacts of different retrofit measures on the wind resistance performance of building roofs. The methods and findings are significant not only for the renovation of ancestral hall heritage buildings in Guangzhou but also for providing practical scientific methods and technical strategies for the conservation and renovation of similar historical structures. This research demonstrates an effective approach to enhancing wind resistance and preventive protection for historical buildings.