Charlie Shields
Charlie Shields is an MSc student in Building Science at the University of Alberta, supervised by Dr. Yuxiang Chen. His research applies machine learning and computational modelling to the energy performance of masonry building envelopes, including surrogate models that rapidly estimate thermal bridging (linear transmittance) in brick veneer walls.
Charlie previously completed the University of Alberta's Mechanical Engineering Co-op program, where a placement with Dr. Chen sparked his interest in building envelope design. He presented his work at the 15th Canadian Masonry Symposium (2025) and received a University of Alberta Sustainability Grant (2024).
Education
- MSc in Civil Engineering (Building Science), University of Alberta (in progress)
- BSc in Mechanical Engineering (Co-op), University of Alberta
Publications
Journal Articles
- Ismaiel, M., Shields, C., and Chen, Y. (2026). Adjustments of Existing Analytical Methods for Estimating the Effective Thermal Resistance of Clear Masonry Cavity Walls. Journal of Building Engineering, 118, 115103. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jobe.2025.115103
Conference Papers
- Shields, C., and Chen, Y. (2025). Machine Learning-Based Surrogate Modeling for Efficient Estimation of Linear Transmittance in Brick Veneer Building Envelopes. Proceedings of the 15th Canadian Masonry Symposium, Ottawa, ON, Canada, 2-5 June 2025. https://www.canadamasonrydesigncentre.com/wp-content/uploads/15th_symposium/184-Shields.pdf
- Yang, B., Chen, Y., Gül, M., Yu, H., and Shields, C. (2023). Ensemble Transfer Learning Strategy in Forecasting Power Consumption for Residential Buildings. Proceedings of Building Simulation 2023: 18th Conference of IBPSA, Shanghai, China, 1008-1014. https://doi.org/10.26868/25222708.2023.1400
Magazine Articles
- Chen, Y., Yang, B., Jordan, A., and Shields, C. (2023). What Can Performance Monitoring Tell You About Your Home? Building Science Perspective (Alberta Building Envelope Council North and South), Fall 2023, 30. https://heyzine.com/flip-book/f44384eaa7.html