Thermal comfort and climate-adaptive designs have always been very closely related. The ancient builders knew what the requirements for comfort were and how to adapt their designs to meet these conditions (Saberi, Saneei, & Javanbakht, 2002). One of the most significant goals of architecture has always been to provide a comfortable space to live. The term “comfort,” as defined in the Oxford Dictionary, is “a state of physical ease and freedom from pain or constraint; things that contribute to physical ease and well-being.” In Webster’s Concise Dictionary, comfort is defined as “a state of ease and satisfaction of bodily wants” (Dahl, 2010). These definitions are very close to today’s use and concept of this term.
Although the geographical location of the buildings plays an important role in people’s perception of comfort, other factors have a direct impact on their definition of comfort level. Comfort temperature is not only the air temperature but more correctly refers to the operative temperature.
The operative temperature is a combination of the air temperature, the weighted average of all surface temperatures of a space (defined by the mean radiant temperature, MRT), and air velocity. At low air velocity, the operative temperature is the simple average of the MRT and air temperature (Straube, 2009).
The human body has a core temperature of 37° C: if this temperature rises or falls more than 1 degree, serious health impacts begin. Under most conditions, heat must be lost to the environment regulate the body temperature.
Generally, heat transfer can occur by three different methods: thermal convection, thermal conduction and thermal radiation. With the same interior room temperature, even in the comfort zone, one person can be comfortable in one condition and another person uncomfortable in a slightly different condition.
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To measure comfort accurately, environmental factors—such as air velocity, air temperature, mean radiant temperature (MRT), humidity—and personal factors, such as metabolic rate and clothing, should be taken into consideration. The relevance of these factors to the comfort level of the human body is expressed as follows:
Air Temperature is defined as the air surrounding the body and is in °C or °F.
Mean Radiant Temperature (MRT) is an equivalent temperature due to radiation from or to surfaces in their surrounding environment. As humans give off and absorb heat by radiation, a lower MRT will result in more heat loss from a person, and a higher MRT (or direct solar radiation) will result in heat gain or less heat loss by a person.
Air Velocity is defined as the speed of air which is measured by m/s and km/h. Since people are sensitive to air speed, it plays an important role in thermal comfort. If air flows over a person, heat loss by convection and evaporation cools them down.
Relative Humidity (RH) is “the ratio (expressed as a percentage) of the amount of moisture within the air to the maximum amount of moisture that the air could possibly contain at a specific temperature”
(Building Science Corporation). Low RH air allows for faster evaporation from the human body (resulting in cooling) whereas high RH shows evaporation.
Clothing is very closely related to thermal comfort or discomfort as the addition or removal of layers of clothes changes the insulation level around the body. The insulation level provided by clothing is measured in units of Clo. Higher levels of insulation slows heat loss from the body, lower levels of clothing allows for increased heat loss.
Metabolic Rate is the heat rate which is produced inside the human body as a result of physical activity.
Higher activity generates more heat, which may require more cooling.
The widely accepted definition of thermal comfort by ASHRAE, American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-conditioning Engineers, ASHRAE Standard 55 is:
“Thermal Comfort is that condition of mind that expresses satisfaction with the thermal environment”, it is acceptable when it “ensures the absence of damaging effects on health and ensures the satisfaction of at least 80% of the users of the building” (Dahl, 2010). It is commonly quoted that an acceptable
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comfortable interior temperature for occupants is approximately 22°C ± 2°C (68 °F – 75 °F) and 20-60%
relative humidity. This range of temperature and RH assumes a specific set of clothing, MRT equal to air temperature, sedentary office worker metabolic rate, and no air flow.
A more complete picture of comfort will include all of the important factors. To this end, a comfort chart was developed by combining information from Design with Climate by Victor Olgyay (Olgyay, 1963), (Quara, 2013) and (Bioclimatic Design, 2006) provide more information to better understand the comfort zone and comfortable condition [Figure 6]. In this chart, when the temperature is over 24°C, wind is needed to keep the comfort condition in balance; whereas when the temperature is lower than 20°C, more solar radiation is necessary to maintain the comfort level. When the temperature is 25°C or higher, faster air flow as well as shading are required. When the relative humidity (RH) is lower than 20%
or more than 60%, conditions become uncomfortable. Thus, according to the local climate conditions, passive thermal design strategies (natural ventilation, high mass, high mass with night ventilation and evaporative cooling) can be considered to meet comfort desires.
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Figure 6. Developed Bioclimatic Chart based on Olgyay’s Bioclimatic Chart (and two other charts)
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Although Figure 8 shows the impact of air speed, RH and sun within a building or specific room, different air temperatures may result in different comfort levels depending on solar radiation to and from the room’s surfaces, and to and from the occupants. Radiation through windows, radiation to cold walls or air flow caused by ceiling fans can modify the comfort zone.
To clarify, some examples explain these conditions of comfort based on simple physics laws and principles [Figure 7].
In Figure 7A, although the room air temperature in both conditions is 28°C, beyond the comfort zone, there is a significant difference in the overall feeling of comfort for these two occupants. The air movement (caused by ceiling fans) in addition to shading (due to overhangs) plays a major role in decreasing the ‘feels like temperature’, whereas the solar radiation through windows has a direct impact on increasing the overall discomfort.
In Figure 7B, even though the room air temperatures for both occupants are 24°C (in the comfort zone), shading decreased the direct impact of sun radiation on the overall feeling of comfort; one room feels like 24°C (still in comfort zone), whereas, the other feels like 28°C.
In Figure 7C, the heat is transferred from the inside to the outside through the window, and the occupant is not comfortable since he radiates the heat to the cold windows and walls (low MRT), hence the ‘feels like temperature’ has dropped from 22°C (in the comfort zone) to 19°C, whereas the other occupant is happy since the correct mass and insulation have been used.
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Figure 7. Examples of radiation, air temperature (MRT) and airflow on comfort, drawn by author
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