Evaluation of adaptive thermal comfort models in moderate climates and their impact on energy use in office buildings

Office workers use a variety of adaptive opportunities to regulate their indoor thermal environment. The behavioural adaptations such as window opening, clothing adjustments, and use of heating/cooling are important factors for adaptive thermal comfort. It is well-known that they are the most important contributors in the adaptive thermal comfort model. Thus, if we understand the behavioural adaptation properly, we can explain the mechanism of the adaptive model. The indoor thermal environment is often adjusted using the air conditioning in Japanese office buildings to improve thermal comfort and productivity. Thus, it is necessary to conduct research on the behavioural adaptation in the offices because the occupant behavior is different from behaviour in dwellings. In order to record the seasonal differences in behavioural adaptation and to develop an adaptive algorithm for Japanese offices, we measured temperatures in 11 office buildings and conducted the thermal comfort and occupant behaviour survey for over a year. We collected 4,660 samples from about 1,350 people. The proportion of ‘open window’ in the free running mode (neither heating nor cooling being used) is significantly higher than that of the air conditioned mode. The behavioural adaptation is related to the outdoor air temperature. The behavioural adaptations such as window-opening, heating and cooling use predicted by regression analysis are in good agreement with the measured data. These findings can be applied to building thermal simulation to predict the behavioural adaptation and energy use in office buildings.

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Study on Behavioural Adaptation for the Thermal Comfort and Energy Saving in Japanese Offices

Journal of the Institute of Engineering ◽

10.3126/jie.v15i3.32206 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 15 (3) ◽

pp. 292-299

Author(s):

Hom B Rijal ◽

Michael A Humphreys ◽

J Fergus Nicol

Keyword(s):

Thermal Comfort ◽

Energy Use ◽

Thermal Environment ◽

Office Buildings ◽

Behavioural Adaptation ◽

Indoor Thermal Environment ◽

Adaptive Thermal Comfort ◽

Window Opening ◽

Open Window ◽

Thermal Comfort Model

Office workers use a variety of adaptive opportunities to regulate their indoor thermal environment. The behavioural adaptations such as window opening, clothing adjustments, heating/cooling use are one of the important factors for the adaptive thermal comfort. It is well-known that they are the most important contributors in the adaptive thermal comfort model. Thus, if we understand the behavioural adaptation properly, we can explain the mechanism of the adaptive model. In addition, the indoor thermal environment is often adjusted using the air conditioning in Japanese office building to improve the thermal comfort and productivity. Thus, it is necessary to conduct research on the behavioural adaptation in the offices because the occupant behavior is different to the dwellings. In order to record the seasonal differences in behavioural adaptation and to develop an adaptive algorithm for Japanese offices, we measured temperatures in 11 office buildings and conducted the thermal comfort and occupant behaviour survey for over a year in Japanese offices. We collected 4,660 samples from about 1350 people. The proportion of ‘open window’ in the free running mode (neither heating or cooling being used) is significantly higher than that of the air-conditioned mode. The behavioural adaptation is related to the outdoor air temperature. The behavioural adaptation predicted by the regression analysis is in good agreement with the measured data. These findings can be applied to the building thermal simulation to predict the behavioural adaptation and energy use in office buildings.

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Assessing energy saving potentials of office buildings based on adaptive thermal comfort using a tracking-based method

Energy and Buildings ◽

10.1016/j.enbuild.2019.109611 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 208 ◽

pp. 109611 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Ru Ming ◽

Wei Yu ◽

Xuyuan Zhao ◽

Yuan Liu ◽

Baizhan Li ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Thermal Comfort ◽

Energy Saving ◽

Office Buildings ◽

Adaptive Thermal Comfort

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Impact of adaptive thermal comfort on climatic suitability of natural ventilation in office buildings

Energy and Buildings ◽

10.1016/j.enbuild.2011.04.016 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 43 (9) ◽

pp. 2101-2107 ◽

Cited By ~ 31

Author(s):

Steven J. Emmerich ◽

Brian Polidoro ◽

James W. Axley

Keyword(s):

Thermal Comfort ◽

Natural Ventilation ◽

Office Buildings ◽

Climatic Suitability ◽

Adaptive Thermal Comfort

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Field study of mixed-mode office buildings in Southern Brazil using an adaptive thermal comfort framework

Energy and Buildings ◽

10.1016/j.enbuild.2017.11.047 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 158 ◽

pp. 1475-1486 ◽

Cited By ~ 36

Author(s):

Ricardo Forgiarini Rupp ◽

Richard de Dear ◽

Enedir Ghisi

Keyword(s):

Thermal Comfort ◽

Field Study ◽

Mixed Mode ◽

Office Buildings ◽

Southern Brazil ◽

Adaptive Thermal Comfort

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Overcooling of offices reveals gender inequity in thermal comfort

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-021-03121-1 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Thomas Parkinson ◽

Stefano Schiavon ◽

Richard de Dear ◽

Gail Brager

Keyword(s):

Thermal Comfort ◽

Energy Demand ◽

Air Conditioning ◽

Energy Use ◽

Well Being ◽

Office Buildings ◽

Gender Inequity ◽

End Use ◽

And Performance ◽

Survey Responses

AbstractGrowth in energy use for indoor cooling tripled between 1990 and 2016 to outpace any other end use in buildings. Part of this energy demand is wasted on excessive cooling of offices, a practice known as overcooling. Overcooling has been attributed to poorly designed or managed air-conditioning systems with thermostats that are often set below recommended comfort temperatures. Prior research has reported lower thermal comfort for women in office buildings, but there is insufficient evidence to explain the reasons for this disparity. We use two large and independent datasets from US buildings to show that office temperatures are less comfortable for women largely due to overcooling. Survey responses show that uncomfortable temperatures are more likely to be cold than hot regardless of season. Crowdsourced data suggests that overcooling is a common problem in warm weather in offices across the US. The associated impacts of this pervasive overcooling on well-being and performance are borne predominantly by women. The problem is likely to increase in the future due to growing demand for cooling in increasingly extreme climates. There is a need to rethink the approach to air-conditioning office buildings in light of this gender inequity caused by overcooling.

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Improving the Weather

Examining the Environmental Impacts of Materials and Buildings - Practice, Progress, and Proficiency in Sustainability ◽

10.4018/978-1-7998-2426-8.ch009 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 251-281

Author(s):

Andrew Cruse

Keyword(s):

Thermal Comfort ◽

Energy Use ◽

Building Design ◽

Historical Background ◽

Current Status ◽

Design Strategies ◽

Adaptive Thermal Comfort ◽

Alternative Approach ◽

Building Design Decisions ◽

Thermal Comfort Model

This chapter proposes an approach to thermal comfort that increases occupant pleasure and reduces energy use by connecting architecture's material and environmental dimensions. Today's dominant thermal comfort model, the predicted mean vote (PMV), calls for steady-state temperatures that are largely unrelated to building design decisions. A more recent alternative approach, the adaptive thermal comfort (ATC) model, ties comfort to outdoor conditions and individual experience. Yet reliance on HVAC technology to provide building comfort hampers how such ideas are integrated into building design. This chapter outlines the historical background of the PMV and ACT models to understand the current status of thermal comfort research and practice. It then uses four recent buildings to outline how the insights of adaptive comfort research can be translated to bespoke comforts through spatial, material, formal, and other design strategies.

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Adaptive thermal comfort for resilient office buildings

Journal of Physics Conference Series ◽

10.1088/1742-6596/1343/1/012148 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 1343 ◽

pp. 012148

Author(s):

Maureen Trebilcock-Kelly ◽

Jaime Soto-Muñoz ◽

Laura Marín-Restrepo

Keyword(s):

Thermal Comfort ◽

Office Buildings ◽

Adaptive Thermal Comfort

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Assessing thermal comfort and energy efficiency in tropical African offices using the adaptive approach

Structural Survey ◽

10.1108/ss-03-2014-0015 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 32 (5) ◽

pp. 396-412 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Meshack O. Efeoma ◽

Ola Uduku

Keyword(s):

Thermal Comfort ◽

Relevant Literature ◽

Assessment Method ◽

West African ◽

Office Buildings ◽

Design Assessment ◽

Content Type ◽

Human Thermal Comfort ◽

Adaptive Thermal Comfort ◽

African Climate

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to adduce the most appropriate thermal comfort assessment method for determining human thermal comfort and energy efficient temperature control in office buildings in tropical West Africa. Design/methodology/approach – This paper examines the Adaptive Thermal Comfort Standard, from its research evolution to its contemporary use as an environmental design assessment Standard. It compares the adaptive component of ASHRAE Standard 55 and the European CEN/EN 15251. It begins by reviewing relevant literature and then produces a comparative analysis of the two standards, before suggesting the most appropriate Adaptive Thermal Comfort Standard for use in assessing conditions in tropical climate conditions. The suggested Standard was then used to analyse data collected from the author's pilot research into thermal conditions, in five office buildings situated in the city of Enugu, South Eastern Nigeria. Findings – The paper provides insight as to why the ASHRAE adaptive model is more suitable for thermal comfort assessment of office buildings in the tropical West African climate. This was demonstrated by using the ASHRAE Thermal Comfort Standard to assess comfort conditions from pilot research study data collected on Nigerian office buildings by the author. Originality/value – The paper compares the adaptive component of ASHRAE Standard 55 with CEN/EN 15251, and their different benefits for use in tropical climates. It suggested the need for further research studies and application of the ASHRAE Adaptive Thermal Comfort Standard in the tropical West African climate.

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