Dear Colleagues,

Radiative sky cooling is a promising technology that can provide sustainable and energy-efficient cooling solutions for buildings. Recent advances in radiative sky cooling have led to the development of innovative materials, coatings, and designs that significantly enhance its performance and broaden its potential applications. Radiative sky cooling has been applied in buildings in various forms, including building envelopes, hybrid cooling systems, and combined systems with other renewable energy sources. However, it is crucial to recognize that applying radiative sky cooling in buildings will introduce significant differences in the indoor thermal environment, thermal performance, and dynamic response characteristics when compared to traditional buildings. These aspects should be thoroughly studied with reduced-scale experiments and building simulation methods to establish quantitative design standards before practical implementation.

To promote the development of radiative sky cooling in building applications, this special issue aims to provide a platform for researchers to address the outlined challenges and explore innovative solutions. We invite high-quality research and review articles that shed light on various aspects of radiative sky cooling, fostering a comprehensive understanding and facilitating its widespread adoption in the building sector. The scope of this special issue includes, but is not limited to, the following topics:

Novel integrated system based on radiative sky cooling in buildings;
Dynamic response characteristics of buildings incorporating radiative sky cooling;
Operation strategies of radiative sky cooling-assisted air conditioning systems;
Variation in energy use behavior and thermal comfort evaluation of buildings with radiative sky cooling;
Enhancement of radiative sky cooling-integrated buildings with thermal storage;
Combination of radiative sky cooling with other renewable energy systems for building energy savings;
The role of radiative sky cooling in low-carbon buildings and cities;
Low- and zero-carbon buildings benefiting from advanced building envelope with radiative sky cooling.

Please note that all submissions must highlight the novelty of radiative cooling in building applications. Papers only focused on the preparation and performance measurement of new radiative cooling materials fall outside the scope of this special issue.

Papers submitted for this special issue are subject to a rigorous peer review procedure before being rapidly and widely disseminated. Upon its acceptance, the paper will go into production immediately. It will be published in the latest regular issue, while be presented on the specific Topical Collection webpage simultaneously. In regular issues, Topical Collection articles will be clearly marked.

We sincerely invite you to submit your original work to this special issue and are looking forward to sharing your outstanding research outcomes with peers around the world.

Paper submissions: When preparing your manuscript, please follow the Instructions for Authors of Building Simulation.

Submit your paper online at https://www.editorialmanager.com/buil and mark “Special issue on Advances of Radiative Sky Cooling in Building Applications” in your manuscript.

Submission deadline: March 31, 2024

Guest Editors

Fei Li, Nanjing Tech University, China

Kai Zhang, Nanjing Tech University, China

Mingke Hu, National University of Singapore, Singapore

Jingyu Cao, Hunan University, China