Thermal Comfort Study in a Naturally Ventilated Residential Building in a Tropical Hot-Humid Climate Region

摘要

This paper presents a thermal comfort study in anaturally ventilated residential building located in atropical hot-humid climate region. The specificobjective of this study is to investigate whetherthermal comfort in this house can be achievedthrough a passive system only.The methods used in this study includedconducting hourly monitoring of the temperature andrelative humidity; measuring the air velocities; andassessing occupants' thermal sensations throughquestionnaires and interview. The data from thequestionnaires were matched to the monitored data toassess the acceptable range of comfortable condition.Then using an hourly simulation program, somecomponents of the building were also "modified" toinvestigate whether the building can be made "morecomfortable".This study shows that it is possible to provide athermally comfortable space in this region withoutusing mechanical air-conditioning systems. Theoccupants' acceptable range of comfortable conditionis different than that of people in the northernlatitudes. The occupants sensed "neutrality" whenthe operative temperature in the house was about 27degree Celsius (80?F). The occupants could alsotolerate slightly warm conditions, that is up to 29degree Celsius (84OF), and still never wanted toinstall any air-conditioning systems.The simulation showed that using light wallmaterials would result in cooler indoor temperature atnight but warmer during the day. If all windowswere opened (25% the total floor area) the housecould be more comfortable at night but lesscomfortable during the day. Findings of this studyare important for architects and engineers indesigning comfortable living spaces in these regions.