Study on the Indoor Thermal Environment of Prefabricated Railway Buildings in High-Altitude Cold Regions

Prefabricated buildings offer high industrialization and construction efficiency, making them well-suited for adverse construction conditions. As railway networks expand into western China’s high-altitude regions, prefabricated structures have been increasingly adopted for living quarters along railway lines in cold, high-altitude areas. This study investigated the energy consumption characteristics of such buildings by simulating the thermal performance of prefabricated exterior walls, using the average heat-transfer coefficient with particular attention to thermal-bridge effects at wall junctions. Indoor thermal-environment analysis was conducted using DeST software, and the methodology was validated against field-measurement data. Furthermore, taking a railway living-quarters building as a case study, this study analyzed the key factors and their influence patterns on the indoor thermal environment under high-altitude cold conditions. Results show that local average temperature distributions vary significantly with room orientation; building orientation, south-facing window-to-wall ratio, and exterior-wall heat-transfer coefficient markedly affect overall average indoor temperature and energy consumption. Adjusting these design parameters can effectively improve indoor comfort and reduce energy use. Finally, through simulation of buildings in typical high-altitude cold locations (Litang, Batang, Qamdo, Nyingchi, and Lhasa), specific measures are proposed to enhance the indoor thermal environment of buildings in the western Sichuan plateau.