Change in Thermal Comfort Over Time In Short Exposures to Mist Fan Evaporative Cooling

摘要

Mist sprays with fans are a low-energy cooling method that greatly improve thermal comfort in hot environments. However, the temperature change and air speed applied through standard comfort models predict a much smaller improvement. The transient effect of sudden thermal environment changes can cause an over-estimation of perceived coolness. This research shows how the perception of comfort and skin temperature changes in mist at elapsed times of 30s, 180s, and 300s, which is longer than the 3-minute time constant of skin thermal response. Comfort and skin responses quickly improve at 30s, but continue to slightly improve up to 300s.