FACTORS INFLUENCING COMFORT

Individual
Environment Others
Factors
Air Temperature Acclimatization
Activity (met) Gender
Air Velocity
Age

Mean Radiant Body built

Temperature
Clothing (clo) Health conditions
Relative humidity Food intake
Activity & Metabolic Rate
Universal Thermal
Climate Index
 ESTABLISHING THERMAL COMFORT
• Heat transmittance through the building fabric:
– Conduction of heat through building fabric
– Convection via air movement
– Radiant transmission, typically through glass
• Good insulation reduces the flow of heat into a building when there are differences of
outside and inside air temperature
• Factors to be considered when determining the appropriate insulation solution:
1. Effect on building design- impact of external wall thickness on layouts, net
1.4 Sources of heat gain in buildings floor area and light penetration through window
2. Balance between heavyweight and lightweight construction, including
considerations related to exposed thermal mass.
3. Performance in use and longevity.
4. Buildability and the risk of on-site work not meeting the required design
standards.
5. Sustainability implications of the production process including sourcing of
raw materials, ozone depletion, embodied energy and eventual disposal.
 Insulation
Insulation is applied to new
and existing buildings to
reduce heat losses in winter.

The commonly used areas

where insulation is installed
are:

1. External walls
2. Roof or roof space (attic)
3. Floor
ESTABLISHING THERMAL COMFORT
ESTABLISHING THERMAL COMFORT
ESTABLISHING THERMAL COMFORT
Thermal Conductivity (λ value or k value) and Resistivity (r)
• the measure of the rate at which heat is conducted through a
particular material under specified conditions
• property of a material that indicates its ability to conduct heat.
• Measured as the heat flow in watts across a thickness of 1 m of
material for a temperature difference of 1 degree K and a surface
area of 1 m²
• Unit : W/m K
λ= thermal conductivity (W/moC, Btu in/hr ft2 oF)
Thermal resistivity (r)= 1/λ m.K/W
r = thermal resistivity (moC/W, hr ft2 oF/Btu)
ESTABLISHING THERMAL COMFORT
 Fourier’s Law stated that CHT as:

q  kAdT / d
q - Heat transferred per unit time
(W, Btu/hr)
k or- Thermal conductivity of the
material (W/m.K or W/m °C,
Btu/(hr °F ft2/ft))
A - Heat transfer area (m2/ ft2)
dT - Temperature difference across
the material (K or °C / °F)
d - Material thickness (m/ft)
 ESTABLISHING THERMAL COMFORT
• Thermal conductivity for a material calculated
using: d

H A(1   2 ) insulation Measured

 Heat supply
Sample
material
heat flow

2
t d 1
insulation
A
 - Coefficient of thermal conductivity from the sample
material (W/m K)
H - rate of heat flow between the faces (J/s=W)
t
A - Cross sectional area of the sample (m2)

(1   2 ) - Temperature difference between the faces (°C or °K)

d - Distance between the faces (m)
ESTABLISHING THERMAL COMFORT
• Example;
A plane wall constructed of solid with thermal conductivity 70
W/m °C, thickness 50mm and with surface area 1m by 1m,
temperature 150 °C on one side and 80 °C on the other.

Conductive heat transfer can be calculated as:

q = (70 W/m°C)(1m)(1m)((150°C)- (80°C))/(0.05)
= 98,000 W
= 98 kW
ESTABLISHING THERMAL COMFORT
• 
or e is the relative Surface coefficients for building materials
power of material surface
to emit heat by radiation. Surface Emissivity Absorptivity
• Rough black surfaces
absorb most heat and emit Aluminum 0.05 0.2
least heat. Asphalt 0.95 0.9
• Color of most building Brick-dark 0.9 0.6
materials has an important
effect on the heat Brick-black 0.9 0.9
absorbed by the building Paint 0.9 0.3
from the sun.
Slate 0.9 0.0
ESTABLISHING THERMAL COMFORT
• Thermal transmittance Material Resistance (R-value)
(U-value) and thermal resistance  Thermal resistance of each layer of
material depends on the rate at
(R-value) indicate the design which the material conduct heat and
thermal performance of a thickness of the material;
building material or assembly.
d
• R-value; resistance of heat flow R

through a building material (m 2

K/W) Alternatively;
• bigger the value, better R  rd
insulation (greater resistance).
R -thermal resistance of that component (mK/W)
d -thickness of the material (m)
 -thermal conductivity of the material (W/mK)

r -resistivity of material = 1/λ (mK/W)

 R-Value
• the R-value is the measurement of a
material's capacity to resist heat flow from
one side to the other.
• In simple terms, R-values measure the
effectiveness of insulation and a higher
number represents more effective insulation.
ESTABLISHING THERMAL COMFORT
ESTABLISHING THERMAL COMFORT
• Example
Find the thermal resistance of a 100mm thickness of
lightweight concrete block.
Solution:
value for  given = 0.19W/m K

d for the block = 100mm @ 0.1m

0.1 2
Therefore; R m K /W
0.19
 0.526m 2 K / W
ESTABLISHING THERMAL COMFORT

Example of brickwall resistances;

Total thermal
Resistance (RT) is
the sum of thermal
resistances of all
the components of
the structure
elements RT
RT= Rsi +R1+R2+Rso
 U-Value
What is a U value?
• A U value is a measure of heat loss in a building
element such as a wall, floor or roof. It can also be
referred to as an ‘overall heat transfer co-efficient’
and measures how well parts of a building transfer
heat.
• The higher the U value the worse the thermal
performance of the building envelope. A low U value
usually indicates high levels of insulation.
 ESTABLISHING THERMAL COMFORT

• U-value of a construction is defined as the

quantity of heat that flows through a unit area
of a building section under steady-state
conditions.
• Unit: W/m2 K
1
U
RT
RT -Total thermal resistance.
Example 2

If heat transfer coefficient for outside (ho) and inside (hi)

is known. The formula for RT =
Example 3

RCC =Reinforced Cement Concrete

 ESTABLISHING THERMAL COMFORT

• Average U-Values
• When a wall is composed of different
construction materials with different U-value.
• Overall insulation of the wall depends upon the
relative areas of constructions;

A1U1  A2U 2  ..  .. AnU n

U (average) 
A1  A2  .. An
Exercise

A portion of wall which is facing west in direction. Composition of the wall

includes 20 mm glass window (R=1.1 m2 oC/W) and 150 mm of brick wall
(λ=0.77 W/m oC) covered with 15mm thick cement plaster (λ = 0.18 W/ m
oC) finishes on both sides. Determine the average U-value for the wall.

3.0 m
1.5 m

2.5 m

4.0 m

Plaster
λ=0.18 W/ m oC
d=15mm

Window glass
Brickwall R= 1.1 m2oC/W
λ= 0.77 W/m oC d=20 mm
d=150 mm
ESTABLISHING THERMAL COMFORT
Surface Resistances Airspace Resistances
• Depends on conduction, 1. Depends on the nature of any
convection and radiation of conduction, convection and radiation
the surface. within the cavity.
2. Factors affect airspace resistances:
• Factors affect surface
• Thickness or airspace
resistance are:
• Flow of air in airspace;
– Direction of heat flow; ventilated or unventilated
upward and downward • Lining of airspace; normal
– Climatic affects; sheltered surfaces of reflective surfaces of
low emmissivity.
or exposed
– Surface properties; high
or low emmissivity
 ESTABLISHING
Thermal Mass
THERMAL COMFORT
• Materials that have the capacity to storage
thermal energy for extended periods.
• Absorb daytime heat gains (reducing
cooling load) and release heat during night
(reduce heat load).
• Lower initial temperature than the
surrounding air (act as heat sink).
• Beneficial for country which had a big
different between day and night outdoor
temperature. (e.g. UAE).
 MECHANISM REGULATING THERMAL
COMFORT
• Energy efficient building/Green Building
 MECHANISM OF REGULATING
THERMAL COMFORT
Roof ;
Insulation serves to limit the conduction of heat through the building shell.
Infiltration ;
When outside air enters a building, it has to be cooled or heated to
maintain comfort. The more unconditioned air entering the building, the
greater the load on the heating and cooling system and the greater the
cost.
Windows ;
Low-E windows provide excellent thermal insulation against weather
extremes and can effectively reduce solar heat gain as well. Window tints
and reflective films are efficient at reducing solar gain but can also reduce
the visual connection with the outdoors. External window screens are
excellent solar control devices for single- or two-story facilities, and
architectural features such as awnings and overhangs allow year-round
solar control without minimizing visual quality.
 MECHANISM OF REGULATING
THERMAL COMFORT
Orientation ;
long, narrow buildings facing south with their long axis running east/west will have
lower peak cooling loads and electricity demand costs, and may be able to utilize
smaller cooling equipment.
Landscaping ;
Well designed landscaping can reduce cooling costs from summer heat gains in
building. Trees planted on the east, west and south sides of a one-or two-story
building can effectively reduce summer solar heat gains through windows which is
one of the major contributors to the cooling load on an air conditioning system.
Trees also produce a natural cooling effect in the areas surrounding a building by
evaporating water though their leaves.
Daylighting ;
Daylighting with skylights and other types of architectural glazing features can provide
natural lighting creating a pleasant working atmosphere. Daylighting strategies may
by particularly effective using skylights in large open areas such as warehouses and
manufacturing plants, and in office spaces where the electrical lighting system
output can be efficiently varied over a wide range of light levels. It is important to
balance daylighting strategies with good solar heat control in order to keep cooling
loads down.
Art School, Nanyang
Technological University,
Singapore

The glass facade provides a high performance

building envelope that reduces solar gain and heat
load while allowing the benefits of natural views
and daylight into creative spaces. The glass walls
provide a visual exchange between indoors and the
surrounding landscape or interior plaza as fluid
spaces. The diffused natural daylight is abundant
throughout studios and classrooms, thus making
them productive spaces for young creators.
The curving green roofs distinguish the building from among the other structures on campus but the line
between landscape and building is blurred. The roofs serve as informal gathering spaces. Besides that
purpose, the roofs serve as open space, insulate the building, cool the surrounding air and harvest
rainwater for the landscape irrigation.
This amazing design is surely going to be used more widely because it provides better and healthier
surrounding. In this particular example it offers a brand new experience in many perspectives, fulfilling the
intent that a school for art should inspire creativity, while solving the green surface deficiency.
END OF CHAPTER 2
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