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This paper aims to investigate the implication of present and future bioclimatic potential of passive heating and cooling design strategies for climate change scenarios of five locations covering all climate zones of India. Weather data for future climate change were developed for A2 (medium-high) scenario of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) for four time slices, namely TMY (Typical Meteorological Year), 2020, 2050 and 2080. A case study residential building was used for calibration and validation of the bioclimatic potential using EnergyPlus simulation. Results show a strong correlation between the annual bioclimatic summer and winter discomfort hours and the corresponding annual cooling and heating energy load for the changing climate scenarios. Results also show an overall increase in annual cooling energy load, over and above the base case, ranging from 18% to 89% among the five cities in 2020; 32% to 132% in 2050 and 58% to 184% in 2080 if residential buildings continue to be operated in the same manner as it is done today without passive strategies. The use of passive strategies may reduce the annual cooling load by about 50%– 60% in residential buildings in future.

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This paper reports the findings from a thermal comfort field study conducted in institutional studio classrooms in the warm-to-moderate climate of Tumkur in Karnataka, India. A total of 506 datasets were obtained in the questionnaire survey consisting of students of architecture. The survey was carried out during the hot-dry months of March, April and May 2019 using subjective questionnaires during which indoor environment variables were measured simultaneously in accordance with ASHRAE Standard 55 Class II protocols. A comfort temperature of 30.4°C was obtained using Griffith’s method, and the comfort band was found to be between 25.0°C to 32.5°C on the central sensation scale for 80% acceptability for the summer (hot-dry) season. Subjects showed greater tolerance and adaptation to warmer conditions with the main means of adaptation by opening windows, wearing lighter clothing, use of ceiling fans, drinking of cold water and use of curtain blinds. Comparison of the field study results with international standards shows that the standards failed to capture the comfort limits and adaptations of subjects in tropical climates of India. Findings of the present study bear significance in developing guidelines for thermal comfort for institutional buildings in the warm-to-moderate climate of India.