Field study on human thermal comfort and indoor air quality in university dormitory buildings

Abstract

Field studies on the environmental conditions and occupant thermal comfort were carried in air-conditioned buildings and no air-conditioned building in Xi'an, China. The present study aimed to explore the effect of indoor thermal history on the thermal adaptation and indoor air quality of occupants. Based on a field study, 550 and 580 data sets were obtained in naturally ventilated (NV) and spilled air-conditioned dormitory buildings (SAC), respectively. The physical environment parameters and subjective responses were explored. Most of the environment in NV mode were warmer than the current standard upper limit (28 ℃). The neutral temperature of the NV group was 26.7 ℃, 1.5 higher than that of the SAC group (24.6 ℃). The upper limit of 80% acceptable temperature range was 29.2 ℃ for the NV group, 1.7 ℃ higher than that of the SAC group (27.5 ℃). Compared to the SAC group, a warm indoor thermal history of the NV group produced a shift to higher neutral temperature and higher acceptable temperature. Differences were found in the indoor environment quality and in the occupant's subjective satisfaction between the two groups. Compared to PMV model, the adaptive model was more applicable to spilt air-conditioned building.