الملخص الإنجليزي
Indoor environmental quality (IEQ) is a holistic term for the combination of factors,
namely thermal conditions (TC), visual conditions (VC), acoustical conditions (AcC),
and indoor air quality (IAQ). It is considered an important indicator of the occupants'
health, well-being, and productivity, especially in educational buildings where
students spend most of their time indoors. Although Oman is located in a region with
extreme climatic conditions, no published research, up to the knowledge of the
researcher, addresses the evaluation of indoor environmental quality in educational
institutions. In an attempt to fill this gap of knowledge, this thesis aims at evaluating
IEQ in selected classrooms at Sultan Qaboos University (SQU), Oman, exploring the
occupants' perception of IEQ and investigating the current IEQ conditions in the
classrooms. A mixed-method approach was followed to carry out the research
involving subjective and objective assessments. The former were a self-reported
questionnaire of students' sensation, satisfaction, and preference. The latter involved
measuring environmental variables using specialized instruments. The survey was
carried out in nine classrooms with the participation of 475 students.
The IEQ results revealed that the thermal sensations were clustered between neutral to
cool, which differs slightly from the comfort range specified by ASHRAE database.
The visual sensations were clustered between slightly dim and slightly bright, which
is considered within the comfort range. Regarding the acoustic condition, the
sensations clustered between slightly noisy and quiet, and this range is the comfort
range. Considering the students' perceptions of indoor air quality, the sensations' votes
clustered between slightly bad to good. Most of the students perceived air quality as
good. Thus, the classrooms are comfortable based on the students' point of view.
Based on the objective measurements, the measured variables were incompliant with
comfort ranges specified by the international standards. This indicating that the
investigated classrooms are uncomfortable.
With the increasing interest in IEQ and its influence on occupants' satisfaction and
comfort inside buildings, a great focus was invested in allocating a weighting scheme
for IEQ by identifying the relative importance of each individual factor. This study
proposed an original IEQ weighting scheme based on the opinion of the faculty
members of the College of Engineering and the students. Considering the resulting
IEQ weights from faculty members of the College of Engineering and the students, it
observed similar ranking order for the four factors. The results of this study are useful
in enhancing the student's educational experience in SQU. Further, they can be used
as a reference for further investigations of IEQ for educational buildings, especially in
hot climates. Moreover, the appropriate use of the IEQ weighting scheme can guide
architects and engineers to design comfortable and energy-efficient buildings.
