Thermal Comfort and Indoor Air Quality

Abstract

General thermal comfort is related to the general conditions of an environment. However, in this environment, we usually find parameters out of the thermal comfort range. Hence, it is necessary to study the localised effect of the thermal comfort variables over human thermoregulation to evaluate thermal comfort. On the other hand, it is possible to improve indoor ambience with building structural modifications, such as thermal inertia or permeable coverings and behaviour of people. In this chapter, a review of the main research works about thermal comfort is presented. It is oriented to show the main advantages of different thermal comfort models to be employed in Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning Systems. These models let us regulate the working period of the air conditioning system and how they affect energy consumption. Thermal comfort can be classified as general and local. General thermal comfort is based on the heat and mass transfer of the body with the surrounding environment, in accordance with Fanger’s research. On the other hand, local thermal comfort uses models for each type of thermal discomfort. If local discomfort is related to the effect of air over a naked body, it is called draft. If thermal discomfort is related to eyes and nose dryness and, at the same time, to the perception of indoor air, it can be quantified by two indices called percentage of dissatisfied persons and indoor air acceptability. These indices are presented in this section.