Analysis of the indoor thermal environment and livability of traditional residences in summer in Northeast Sichuan, China

Abstract

With the rapid development of the national economy, increasing attention has been given to the living environment in rural areas, especially indoor thermal and wind environments. This study conducted onsite measurements and questionnaire surveys during summer in the indoor environment of five villages in northeastern Sichuan. A total of 89 traditional residences were selected to investigate their fundamental characteristics, indoor thermal environment, humidity conditions and comfort levels. The results showed that when expressed as neutral temperature and humidity, the temperature difference was 1.35°C and the humidity difference was 8.14%. Local residents exhibited higher tolerance toward the local thermal and humidity environment compared to nonlocal volunteers, who displayed greater sensitivity toward it. In addition, local residents had a thermal comfort value of 0.03 and a thermal acceptance value of 1.16, whereas nonlocal volunteers had a thermal comfort value of 1.42 and a thermal acceptance value of −0.45.