BUILDING CLIMATOLOGY
CLIMATE AND HUMAN COMFORT Module 1
Prepared by Ar Arsha Gitty George
Human body heat balance
Human comfort
Our daily life cycle comprises states of activity,
fatigue and recovery. It is essential that the mind
and body recovers through recreation, rest and
sleep to counterbalance the mental and physical
fatigue resulting from activities of the day.
This can be affected by unfavourable climatic
conditions and the resulting stress on body and
mind causes discomfort, loss of efficiency and
breakdown of health.
Criteria of total comfort depend upon each of the
human senses.
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Thermal comfort
While mentioning the subjective-emotional relationships with our environment, the main
emphasis is placed upon human thermal comfort, which is the dominant problem in tropical
climates.
Back in Europe about 150 years, to the beginning of the nineteenth century, when it started
with the movement for the reform of conditions in industry and housing.
Basic warmth criteria were first established in the mining, metal and textile industries, as
accidents and illness due to heat and humidity stresses were formerly quite common.
Thermal comfort
Thermal comfort is the condition of mind that expresses satisfaction with the thermal
environment and is assessed by subjective evaluation (ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 55).
Factors affecting thermal comfort:
1. Air temperature
2. Humidity
3. Radiation
4. Air movement
To appreciate the effect of these climatic factors, it is necessary to examine briefly the basic
thermal processes of the human body.
Heat gain
Heat is continuously produced by the body.
Most of the biochemical processes involved in tissue building, energy conversion and muscular work
are exotherm, i. e. heat producing.
All energy supplied is from consumption and digestion of food. The processes involved in converting
foodstuff into living matter and useful form of energy are known as metabolism .
The total metabolic heat production can be divided into
1. Basal metabolism, i.e. the heat production of vegetative, automatic processes which are
continuous
2. Muscular metabolism, i.e. the heat production of muscles whilst carrying out consciously
controlled work.
Of all the energy produced in the body, only about 20% is utilized, the remaining 80% is 'surplus‘ heat
and must be dissipated to the environment.
(rate of excess heat
output of the body)
Human body thermal balance
Body temperature must remain balanced and
constant around 37°C. The state of having an
even internal temperature is called
homeostasis.
The body can release heat to its environment
by convection, radiation and evaporation – and
toa lesser extent by conduction.
Heat loss
Convection is due to heat transmission from the body to the air in contact with the skin or clothing
which then rises and is replaced by cooler air. The rate of convective heat loss is increased by a faster
rate of air movement, by a lower air temperature and a higher skin temperature.
Conduction depends on the temperature difference between the body surface and the object the
body is in direct contact with.
Thermal radiation, is the transfer of electromagnetic radiation which describes the heat exchange of
energy by photons. Radiant heat is a mechanism for heat transfer which does not require a medium
in which it propagates (unlike convection and conduction). Radiant heat loss depends on the
temperature of the body surface and the temperature of opposing surfaces.
Evaporation heat loss is governed by the rate of evaporation, which in turn depends on the humidity
of air (the dryer the air, the faster the evaporation) and on the amount of moisture available for
evaporation. Evaporation takes place in the lungs through breathing, and on the skin as imperceptible
perspiration and sweat.
Regulatory mechanism
Gain: Met = metabolism (basal and muscular)
◦ Cnd = conduction (contact with warm bodies)
◦ Cnv = convection (if the air is warmer than the skin)
◦ Rad = radiation (from the sun, the sky and hot bodies)
Loss: Cnd = conduction (contact with cold bodies)
◦ Cnv = convection (if the air is cooler than the skin)
◦ Rad = radiation (to night sky and cold surfaces)
◦ Evp = evaporation (of moisture and sweat)
then thermal balance exists when
Met – Evp ± Cnd ± Cnv ± Rad = 0
Body regulatory mechanism
If sum is more than zero : blood circulation to the skin surface is increased, more heat is
transported to the surface and the skin temperature is elevated – all forms of heat loss
processes are accelerated.
If the sum of the above equation is less than zero: the blood circulation to the skin is reduced,
skin temperature is lowered and the heat loss processes are slowed down.
Long-term, endocrine adjustments constitute the acclimatisation process.
Reference Books
Koenisberger, O. H., TG Ingersoll, Alan Mayhew, SV Szokolay, Manual of Tropical Housing and
Building – Climatic Design, Orient Longman Pvt Ltd, Chennai, 2003.
Bansal N.K. and Minke G., Climatic zones and rural housing in India, Kernforschungsanlage,
Juelich,Germany, 1988.
Energy conservation building code (ECBC) user guide