Thermal sensation and percentage of dissatisfied in thermal environments with positive and negative vertical air temperature differences

Considering the percentage of dissatisfied due to local thermal sensation(PD LTSV),a vertical air temperature difference(ΔT_(d))threshold of about 3°C was recommended in standards.However,some novel air distribution methods might create large positive(which means the head warmer than the feet,vice versa)or negativeΔT_(d),with no suitable proved criteria to be used.In this study,sixteen subjects were seated in a climatic box placed in a climate chamber to evaluate thermal sensation and percentage of dissatisfied with negative and positiveΔT_(d) in different whole-body thermal conditions.Air temperatures were controlled independently at the upper and lower body parts,with 13 different air temperature sets combined with 22°C,25°C,28°C,and 31°C(i.e.-9°C≤ΔT_(d)≤9°C).Results showed that subjects were more thermally sensitive at the upper body and with positiveΔT_(d) than at the lower body or with negativeΔT_(d).The 80%acceptableΔT_(d) range is about-8 to 7°C in overall neutral(TSV=0),-7°C to 6°C in slightly cool(TSV=-0.5)conditions,which is wider than-3 to 3°C in slightly warm conditions(TSV=+0.5).By considering the factors of both TSV andΔT_(d),a new overall percentage of dissatisfied index(OPD P)was proposed.Case studies show that the new OPD P index is more precise and suitable for the evaluations of different air distributions to predict overall percentage of dissatisfied in thermal environments with vertical air temperature difference.

Numerical simulation study on the thermal environment in heading face

Based on κ-ε turbulence model, the distributions of the velocity field, tempera- ture field, thermal comfort index, PMV-PPD （Predicted Mean Vote-Predicted Percentage Dissatisfied）, and air quality index, mean age of air were obtained of Zhouyuanshan Coal Mine in -650 m level of a heading face by CFD（Computational Fluid Dynamics）software, Airpak 2.0. Moreover, the human thermal comfort and the air quality of the heading face were analyzed with PMV-PPD and mean age of air indices, which received an intuitive visualization and accurate evaluation results. In order to create a safe, comfortable, and economical underground operating environment, a scientific, rational, and comprehensive prediction and evaluation needed to provide a theoretical and technical basis for coal mine ventilation, cooling, heat harm treatment, and prevention. Meanwhile, from the human thermal comfort and air quality to research the underground environment, it embodied the concept of being human oriented.

Thermal performance of domed roof in air-conditioned spaces

Due to their thermal performance,domed roofs are one of the passive solutions that affect energy consumption in buildings.The thermal performance of domed roofs has been investigated in many naturally ventilated spaces.However,few studies have discussed their performance in conditioned spaces.Therefore,this study introduces a computational comparison between domed and flat roofs to investigate their impact on thermal comfort inside a conditioned mosque.At an earlier stage,field measurements were carried out inside a Bahraini mosque to acquire its indoor air conditions during the summer period of 2021,in addition to validating the computational model.The findings of this study confirm that,under mechanical cooling conditions,the flat roof offers a lower indoor temperature than the domed roof by 0.4℃and 0.1℃for open and closed doors,respectively.Similarly,the air velocity is lower by approximately 0.01 m/s for both door modes.The overall PMV values of the flat roof are also lower by 0.07 and 0.01,while the PPD values are lower by 0.20,and 0.34 for open and closed doors,respectively.Based on these small differences,it can be concluded that the thermal performance of both roofing systems behaves equally in conditioned spaces.However,the air patterns are substantially different,the overall thermal performance is similar.This similarity drives building designers to rethink the thermal performance of the domed roofs in air-conditioned spaces with such a hot climate,regardless of their aesthetic and acoustical behaviour.