Thermal Comfort

• Thermal Comfort is a complex Entity.

• Thermal comfort is defined as: “that condition of mind which

expresses satisfaction with the thermal environment.

Factors Affecting Thermal Comfort
 AIR TEMPERATURE

• This is the temperature of the air surrounding the body. It is

usually given in degrees Celsius (°C).

 Radiant temperature

• Thermal radiation is the heat that radiates from a warm object. Radiant heat may

be present if there are heat sources in an environment.

• Radiant temperature has a greater influence than air temperature on how we lose

or gain heat to the environment.

 Air velocity

• Air velocity is an important factor in thermal comfort for example:

 still or stagnant air in indoor environments that are artificially heated may cause people to feel stuffy. It may also
lead to a build-up in odour

 moving air in warm or humid conditions can increase heat loss through convection without any change in air
temperature

 physical activity also increases air movement, so air velocity may be corrected to account for a person's level of
physical activity

 small air movements in cool or cold environments may be perceived as a draught as people are particularly
sensitive to these movements
 Humidity

• Relative humidity is the ratio between the actual amount of water vapour in the air and

the maximum amount of water vapour that the air can hold at that air temperature.

• High humidity environments have a lot of vapour in the air, which prevents the

evaporation of sweat from the skin. In hot environments, humidity is important

because less sweat evaporates when humidity is high (80%+). The evaporation of

sweat is the main method of heat reduction.

 Clothing Insulation

• Wearing too much clothing or PPE may be a primary cause of heat stress even if

the environment is not considered warm or hot.

• If clothing does not provide enough insulation, the wearer may be at risk from

cold injuries such as frostbite or hypothermia in cold conditions.

 Metabolic heat

• The more physical work we do, the more heat we produce. The more

heat we produce, the more heat needs to be lost so we don't overheat.

The impact of metabolic rate on thermal comfort is critical.

 THE THERMAL INDICES

• Knowledge of the way different variables affect thermal comfort have been used to

formulate thermal indices or thermal scales that indicate the effects of combining the

different variables on comfort

• An ideal index should reasonably and accurately predict the consequences of any

combination of the six major factors affecting comfort. It should be applicable both

indoors and outdoors and it should be capable of indicating the degree of discomfort.
 THE EFFECTIVE TEMPERATURE

• The Effective Temperature (ET) is defined as the temperature of a still, saturated atmosphere which would,

in the absence of radiation, produce the same effect as the atmosphere in question. It indicates the combined

effects of relative humidity, air velocity, air temperature and clothing*.

•Effective temperature is the temperature in an environment with 100% humidity and no air movements

which will induce the same level of thermal comfort as in the present situation

• The major merit of the index is that it indicates the effects of most of the major factors on comfort. In

addition, the nomogram is simple and easy to use.

• It however has some limitations. It does not indicate the effect of radiation or show the degree of discomfort

directly.
 CORRECTED EFFECTIVE TEMPERATURE (CET)

•The Corrected Effective Temperature summates the separate environmental factors of air

temperature, humidity and air velocity and also an allowance is made for radiant heat. It refers to

standard conditions of still and saturated air and hence useful in the comparison of different

thermal environments.

 The effective temperature is adjusted by considering the loss or gain of heat by radiation to arrive

at a corrected effective temperature (CET)

 Thus CET is determined by 4 factors

 air temperature

 humidity

 air movements

 radiant heat

 Corrected effective temperature is measured using a combination of

 globe thermometer – to measure air temperature adjusted for radiant heat

 wet bulb thermometer – to measure humidity

 air speed measurement

 BioClimatic Chart

• Bioclimatic chart is a psychometric chart that present, analyzes, and simplifies climatic

data and characteristics of any certain location from the point of view of human comfort

• The chart has relative humidity as the abscissa and temperature as the ordinate. Comfort

ranges for still air conditions, for summer and for winter, are Plotted on the chart. The

temperatures below the lower limit of the comfort range are defined as "underheated"

conditions and above it as "overheated'' conditions.

 Psychrometry and Psychrometric Chart

• Psychrometry is the science of studying thermodynamic properties of moist air and the use of these to

analyze humid air conditions and processes.

• A psychrometric chart is a graphical representation of the psychrometric processes of air.

• Psychrometric processes include physical and thermodynamic properties such as dry bulb temperature,

wet bulb temperature, humidity, enthalpy, and air density.

• A psychrometric chart represents the psychrometric properties of air. With this chart, engineers can better

assess psychrometric processes and find practical solutions

• A psychrometric chart can be used in two different ways.

• The first is done by plotting multiple data points, that represent the air conditions at a

specific time, on the chart. Then, overlaying an area that identifies the “comfort zone.”

• The comfort zone is defined as the range within occupants are satisfied with the

surrounding thermal conditions. After plotting the air conditions and overlaying the

comfort zone, it becomes possible to see how passive design strategies can extend the

comfort zone.
• The chart is also often used by mechanical engineers to dynamically

plot points that represent the exterior air conditions and understand the

process the air must go through to reach comfortable conditions for

the occupants inside a building. When using the psychrometric chart

for this purpose the data points move around the chart
 WHAT ARE THE PARTS OF A PSYCHROMETRIC CHART

• Temperatures

• Specific Volume & Density • Moisture Content

• Enthalpy • Relative Humidity

• Sensible Heat Ratio • Vapor Pressure

• Standard Air Dot

 Temperatures

• Dry Bulb – This is the temperature reading found on a typical thermometer

o Wet Bulb – This is a typical thermometer’s standard reading if the sensing

bulb is covered with a wet wick or sock and exposed to air flow.

o Dew Point – At this temperature, moisture starts condensing from the air.
 Specific Volume & Density
• This refers to the amount of space air occupies per pound of weight
 Enthalpy
• This is the measurement of heat energy
 Sensible Heat Ratio

• This is the total sensible heat flow divided by the total heat flow
 Moisture Content

• Also known as the humidity ratio, this is the total weight of water

vapor per pound of dry air

 Relative Humidity

• This refers to the percentage of water vapor per pound of dry

air in relation to how much the air can hold at its current

temperature
 Vapor Pressure

• Vapor pressure is measured in inches of mercury and

represents the pressure exerted by water vapor in air

 Standard Air Dot

• This dot marks the measurement for standard air. Standard air is

typically 70 degrees Fahrenheit with a relative humidity of 54% and

60 gr/lb of specific humidity

 Sun Earth Relationship

• The earth receives almost all its energy from the Sun"s radiation. Sun also has the

most dominating influence on the changing climate of various locations on Earth

at different times of the year. The Earth rotates about on a fixed plane that is tilted

23.5° with respect to its vertical axis around the sun. The Earth needs 23hrs

56mins to complete one true rotation, or one sidereal period, around the sun.
• The solar day, on the other hand, is the time needed for a point on earth pointing

towards a particular point on the sun to complete one rotation and return to the

same point. It is defined as the time taken for the sun to move from the zenith on

one day to the zenith of the next day, or from noon today to noon tomorrow. The

length of a solar day varies, and thus on the average is calculated to be 24hrs
 Equinoxes & Solstices

• Equinoxes happen when the ecliptic (sun"s apparent motion across the celestial sphere) and celestial equator

intersect. When the sun is moving down from above the celestial equator, crosses it, then moves below it, that

point of intersection between the two planes is when the Autumnal Equinox occurs. This usually happens

around the 22nd of September. When the Sun moves up from below the celestial equator to above it, the point

of intersection between the sun and the celestial equator is when Spring (Vernal) Equinox occurs. It usually

happens around the 21st of March. During the equinoxes, all parts of the Earth experiences 12 hours of day

and night and that is how equinox gets it name as equinox means equal night.
• At winter solstice (Dec), the North Pole is inclined directly away from the sun. 3

months later, the earth will reach the date point of the March equinox and that the

sun"s declination will be 0°. 3 months later, the earth will reach the date point of

the summer solstice. At this point it will be at declination -23.5°. This cycle will

carry on, creating the seasons that we experience on earth

 Sun apparent movement

• From the heliocentric point of view, the Earth rotates and revolves around the sun in a counter

clockwise direction. However, when we look at the Sun on earth, it appears to be moving in a

clockwise direction. This phenomenon is known as the apparent motion of the sun. The apparent

motion of the sun, caused by the rotation of the Earth about its axis, changes the angle at which the

direct component of light will strike the Earth. From a fixed location on Earth, the sun appears to

move throughout the sky. The position of the sun depends on the location of a point on Earth, the

time of day and the time of year.

BASIC EARTH SUN ANGLES

• Celestial sphere: Considering the sky in the clear night, it appears that the stars, planets, moon etc. are all located at

the same distance away from the observer. The sky may conveniently be assumed to be a large sphere. This imaginary

sphere is called the celestial sphere

 Zenith: Zenith is a point on the celestial sphere directly over the observer’s head. The zenith would change with

respect to the location.

 Nadir: The point of the celestial sphere diametrically opposite to the zenith. Nadir would also change with respect

to the location. Unlike zenith nadir is not visible.

 Visible Horizon: It appears to be an observer that the celestial sphere meets the ground, the location of this apparent

meeting is called the visible horizon.

 Astronomical Horizon: Because visible horizon is uneven, so we cannot define a location in the sky

with reference to it. It is therefore necessary to define a horizon, the same distance away from the

zenity. It is an even circle which may be either below or above the horizon. This is shown as

astronomical horizon and can be obtained by manage in all directions from the zenity, an angular

distance of 90°.

 Poles of the earth: The ends of the axis of rotation of the earth mark two important points on the

earth’s surface. They are called the poles of the earth, one as North, while the other as South.

• Earth’s equator: It is an imaginary great circle normal to the earth’s axis dividing the distance

between the earth’s poles among its surface into two equal parts. The equator divides the earth into

two hemisphere called Northern and Southern hemispheres.

• Meridian: It is necessary to select some reference location on the earth for locating a particular

position. The location of the Royal Laboratory Greenwich, outside of London has been universally

accepted as a reference point. An imaginary great circle passing through this point and the two poles,

intersecting the equator at right angles, is called the prime (Greenwich) meridian.

 Longitude: It is the angular distance of the location, measured east or west from the prime

meridian.

• The position of point P on the earth’s surface with respect to the sun’s rays is known at any instant

if the latitude (Ø) and hour angle (ω) for the point, and the sun’s declination (δ) are known.
 The latitude (Ø) of a point on the surface of the earth is, it’s angular distance north

or south of the equator measured from the centre of the earth.

 The hour angle (ω) is the angle through which the earth must turn to bring the

meridian of a point directly in line with the sun’s rays.

• The sun’s declination (δ) is the angular distance of the sun’s rays north (or south) of

the equator. It is the angle between a line extending from the centre of the sun to the

centre of the earth, and the projection of this line upon the earth’s equatorial plane
 Altitude angle (a) : It is a vertical angle between the projection of the sun’s rays

on the horizontal plane and the direction of sun’s rays (passing through the point)

 Zenith angle (qZ) = It is complementary angle of sun’s altitude angle. It is the

vertical angle between the sun’s rays and line perpendicular to the horizontal

plane through the point i.e. the angle between the beam from the sun’s rays and a

line perpendicular to the horizontal plane through the point, i.e. the angle

between the beam from the sun and the vertical.

 Solar azimuth angle (gz): It is solar angle in degrees along the horizon east or west of north or it

is a horizontal angle measured from north to the horizontal projection of the sun’s rays this angle

is positive when measured westwise.

 Surface azimuth angle (g): It is the angle of deviation of the normal to the surface from the local

meridian, the zero point being south, east positive and west negative

 Incident angle (q): It is the angle being measured between the beam of rays and normal to the

plane.

 Slope (s): The angle between the horizontal and the plane
 Sun path diagrams
• Sun path diagrams can tell you a lot about how the sun will impact your site and building throughout the year.

Stereographic sun path diagrams can be used to read the solar azimuth and altitude for a given location.

 Azimuth Lines - Azimuth angles run around the edge of the diagram.

 Altitude Lines - Altitude angles are represented as concentric circular dotted lines that run from the center of the

diagram out.

 Date Lines - Date lines start on the eastern side of the graph and run to the western side and represent the path of the

sun on one particular day of the year.

 Hour Lines/ Analemma - Hour lines are shown as figure-eight-type lines that intersect the date lines and represent

the position of the sun at a specific hour of the day. The intersection points between date and hour lines give the