Comfort, perceived air quality, and work performance in a low-power task–ambient conditioning system

Zhang, Hui; Arens, Edward; Kim, Dong-Eun; Buchberger, Elena; Bauman, Fred; Huizenga, Charlie

doi:10.1016/j.buildenv.2009.02.016

Cited by 260 publications

(146 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…This finding confirmed previous findings of Zhang et al [17], Arens et al [22][23] and Melikov et. al.…”

Section: 226supporting

confidence: 83%

“…Since air movement can offset warm temperatures and maintains occupants' thermal state close to neutral, it may maintain performance close to that at neutral temperatures. This is supported by study [17] and [35], in which isothermal airflow was found to maintain performance at temperatures up to 30ºC. It is worth to note that parameters other than temperature and air movement may also affect performance, such as humidity, air movement characteristics, ventilation rates, pollution levels, further studies should be done to address this.…”

Section: 226mentioning

confidence: 94%

“…Studies have also shown that air movement significantly improves people's PAQ in warm temperature and moderate humidity conditions up to 30°C [17] [22][23], and in humid environment up to 28°C [24][25][26], although the causal mechanism behind this is not well understood.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Comfort under personally controlled air movement in warm and humid environments

Zhai

Zhang

et al. 2013

Building and Environment

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186

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This study examined the effects of personally controlled air movement on human thermal comfort and perceived air quality (PAQ) in warm-humid environments. At temperatures 26, 28, and 30°C, and relative humidity (RH) 60% and 80%, sixteen human subjects were exposed to personally controlled air movement provided by floor fans in an environmental chamber. The subjects reported their thermal sensation, thermal comfort, and PAQ during the tests. Two breaks periods with elevated metabolic levels were used to simulate normal office activities. Results show that with personally controlled air movement, thermal comfort could be maintained up to 30°C and 60% RH, and acceptable PAQ could be maintained up to 30°C 80% RH, without discomfort from humidity, air movement or eye-dryness. Thermal comfort and PAQ were resumed within 5 minutes after the breaks. The 80% acceptable limit implicit in comfort standards could be extended to 30°C and 60% RH. The average energy consumed by the fans for maintaining comfort was lower than 10W per person, making air movement a very energy-efficient way to deliver comfort in warm-humid environments.

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“…This finding confirmed previous findings of Zhang et al [17], Arens et al [22][23] and Melikov et. al.…”

Section: 226supporting

confidence: 83%

Section: 226mentioning

confidence: 94%

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Comfort under personally controlled air movement in warm and humid environments

Zhai

Zhang

et al. 2013

Building and Environment

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186

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“…CBE's laboratory testing confirmed that comfort was well maintained over a wide range of room temperatures and that PAQ was significantly improved (Zhang et al, 2010). The experiments also addressed the impact on task performance by giving the test subjects three tasks (Sudoku, maths and typing) that were pre-scheduled into the computers on which the subjects worked.…”

Section: From Centralized To Personal Controlmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…CBE's first-generation PCS units, shown in Figure 4, include a desktop fan and under-desk radiant foot warmer. They are low cost, have personal controls, consume little energy (the fan and controls use 1-4 W and the foot warmer approximately 30 W), and can easily be used in retrofit applications (Zhang et al, 2010). Both units have integrated occupancy sensors -turning themselves off when not in use.…”

Section: From Centralized To Personal Controlmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evolving opportunities for providing thermal comfort

Brager

Zhang

Arens

2015

Building Research & Information

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139

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The building industry needs a fundamental paradigm shift in its notion of comfort, to find low-energy ways of creating more thermally dynamic and non-uniform environments that bring inhabitants pleasure. Strategies for providing enriched thermal environments must be conjoined with reducing energy; these are inseparable for any building striving for high performance. The objective of current comfort standards is to have no more than 20% of occupants dissatisfied, yet buildings are not reaching even that scant goal. A significant energy cost is incurred by the current practice of controlling buildings within a narrow range of temperatures (often over-cooling in the summer). If building designers and operators can find efficient ways to allow building temperatures to float over a wider range, while affording occupants individual control of comfort, the potential for energy savings is enormous. Five new ways of thinking, or paradigm shifts, are presented for designing or operating buildings to provide enhanced thermal experiences. They are supported by examples of research conducted by the Center for the Built Environment, and include shifts from centralized to personal control, from still to breezy air movement, from thermal neutrality to delight, from active to passive design, and from system disengagement to improved feedback loops.

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Use of Thermal Mass in Building Energy Storage

Yin

2015

Handbook of Clean Energy Systems

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Thermal mass in buildings can be used to protect the building against temperature fluctuations. As batteries store energy chemically, buildings store heat (or retain coolness) in their thermal mass. Use of thermal mass allows buildings to act as energy storage devices. In addition, the use of thermal mass has enormous potential to increase the effectiveness of building systems for load shifting and peak energy demand reduction. This article introduces the basic concept of thermal mass in buildings and presents several techniques for measuring and modeling thermal mass. The use of thermal mass in buildings is characterized into two groups based on its passive and active uses. With a focus on the modeling of precooling using thermal mass, this article discusses two modeling methods for simulating the precooling control in buildings: data‐driven (inverse) modeling and forward (physical) modeling, in terms of each approach's methodology and challenges. Finally, a case study of precooling a building in a warm climate is presented for demonstrating the effect of various precooling control strategies on the energy and demand savings and those impacts on thermal comfort.

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Comfort, perceived air quality, and work performance in a low-power task–ambient conditioning system

Cited by 260 publications

References 11 publications

Comfort under personally controlled air movement in warm and humid environments

Comfort under personally controlled air movement in warm and humid environments

Evolving opportunities for providing thermal comfort

Use of Thermal Mass in Building Energy Storage

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