The Future Of Thermal Comfort In An Energy Constrained World

The dissertation investigates the scientific and business factors that have resulted in air-conditioning being a major contributor to climate-change. With his architectural background, the author demonstrates how a design methodology, not commonly adopted in scientific studies, may actually be a suitable way of dealing with a complex problem: the 'business as usual' scenario involving building science, sociological values and consumer behavior. Using his innovations as case studies, the author shows how good ideas cannot be evaluated on scientific merit alone and demonstrates why commercialization may have a pivotal role in deployment of research-based technology. He advances the theory of personalized thermal comfort which can potentially resolve the air-conditioning conundrum.

Human thermal comfort, namely in the areas of heating, ventilation and air conditioning (collectively known as 'HVAC'), is ubiquitous wherever human habitation may be found. Today, a large portion of the developed world's current energy demands are used to artificially keep the temperatures of our environments comfortable. It is therefore imperative for everyone, decision-makers and engineers alike, involved with the future of energy to be appropriately acquainted with HVAC.Lecture Notes on Engineering Human Thermal Comfort explains the quintessence of engineering human thermal comfort through straight-forward writing designed to help students better comprehend the materials presented. Illustrative figures, anecdotal banter, and ironical analogies interject the necessary technical humdrum to provide timeous stimuli in the midst of arduous technical details.This book is primarily for senior undergraduate engineering students interested in engineering human thermal comfort. It invokes some undergraduate knowledge of thermodynamics, heat transfer, and fluid mechanics as needed, to enable students to appreciate thermal comfort engineering without the need to seek out other textbooks.

This multidisciplinary book focuses on best practices in sustainability research in the Asia-Pacific Region. Drawing links between research, practice, education for sustainability and the needs of industry, it addresses the sustainable development goals (SDGs). The book also presents research undertaken by a wide range of universities on matters related to sustainable development, in order to promote research in this area across multiple disciplines. Four key themes are explored: (1) Education for Sustainability. (2) Sustainable Cities. (3) Sustainable Buildings. (4) Sustainable Infrastructure. This unique book documents and disseminates the wealth of know-how on sustainable development research in the Asia-Pacific Region today. It presents lessons learned and comparative case studies from various countries, including India, China, Indonesia, the Philippines, Bangladesh, New Zealand and Australia.

Architecture - Comfort and Energy addresses the architecture-energy combination and its relationship to human comfort and the environment. This important work examines thermal comfort, low energy architecture dealing with various criteria for comfort in different parts of the world. It also explores how previous generations lived in harsh climates and without abundant sources of energy, yet designed and built appropriate dwellings providing both comfort and harmony with the environment. Architecture - Comfort and Energy makes essential reading for architectural students, building technologists, solar energy scientists (especially solar energy architects), energy experts and urban town planners. Its environmental approach provides a well-rounded perspective on architecture, the environment and the use of appropriate technologies to reduce energy consumption and maximise human comfort.

Thermal comfort is a desirable state familiar to all people. Providing inspirational indoor and outdoor environments that provide thermal comfort, in the context of energy use and climate change, is a challenge for the 21st century. This book provides an up-to-date, comprehensive coverage of thermal comfort from principles and theory to practical application. The book begins with current knowledge and understanding of thermal comfort and its application to providing thermal conditions for indoor and outdoor environments. It integrates and presents new ideas to provide a comprehensive model of thermal comfort so that we can move on from the 20th and early 21st century and provide a focus for developments for future decades. This book will be of interest to practitioners and students and anyone involved with fields such as environmental design, physiology, ergonomics, human factors, industrial hygiene, architecture, health and safety and air conditioning. • Provides current thermal comfort standards and regulations • Describes the PMV, PPD, ET* and SET thermal comfort indices • Discusses adaptive thermal comfort, adaptive opportunity and explains why we have not moved towards a more dynamic and interactive approach to providing thermal comfort • Presents a new model relating thermal discomfort to performance • Shows how to construct a computer model of thermal comfort • Offers how to conduct a thermal comfort survey Human Thermal Comfort provides new ideas for achieving thermal comfort for offices, vehicles, atriums, and plazas of the future.

This book investigates three main characteristics of future urban energy system for buildings, including flexibility, resilience and optimization. It explores the energy flexibility by considering renewable energy integration with buildings, sector coupling, and energy trading in the local energy market. Energy resilience is addressed from aspects of future climate change, pandemic crisis, and operational uncertainties. Approaches for system design, dynamic pricing and advanced control are discussed for the optimization of urban energy system. Knowledge from this book contributes to the effective means in future urban energy paradigm to closely integrate multiple energy systems (i.e., distribution, mobility, production and storage) with different energy carriers (i.e., heat, electricity) in an optimal manner for energy use. It would facilitate the envision of next-generation urban energy systems, towards sustainability, resilience and prosperity. This book targets at a broad readership with specific experience and knowledge in energy system, transport, built environment and urban planning. As such, it will appeal to researchers, graduate students, engineers, consultants, urban scientists, investors and policymakers, with interests in energy flexibility, building/city resilience and climate neutrality.

Ô. . . was impressed by the scope of the contributions and their clarity. All appear to have been written specifically for this ÒHandbookÓ and all are readily comprehensible without a large amount of assumed previous knowledge. . . a very useful source document and many of the chapters represent a good starting point for student research projects.Õ Ð Tony Owen, Economics of Energy and Environmental Policy ÔIn todayÕs modern world where energy resources are increasingly scarce, climate change is a hot-button issue, and population growth continues to push the need to promote sustainable living, Handbook of Sustainable Energy is highly recommended as an absolutely invaluable contribution to graduate school libraries and the pool of literature available to professionals in the field.Õ Ð The Midwest Book Review Major contemporary issues and debates relating to the sustainable use of energy are addressed in this far-reaching Handbook. The contributing authors discuss the ongoing debates about sustainability and energy use, energy economics, renewable energy, efficiency and climate policy. New and original chapters from leading academics cover the full spectrum of relevant research including: definitions of sustainability in energy use; consumer behaviour and energy markets; the impacts of innovation and new technologies; energy economics and climate modelling; low carbon economies and renewable energies. The authors critically engage with perspectives from developed and developing countries from both global and regional standpoints. This Handbook will make a timely and important contribution to the study of energy, climate change and climate economics, and will prove essential reading for international researchers in the fields of natural resources, climate change and energy. Students in environmental science faculties, economics departments, business schools and engineering schools will also find this important and enriching compendium insightful. Similarly, policy-makers in energy and environment ministries and international organizations will find much topical debate to engage them.

Thermal comfort is a desirable state familiar to all people. Providing inspirational indoor and outdoor environments that provide thermal comfort, in the context of energy use and climate change, is a challenge for the 21st century. This book provides an up-to-date, comprehensive coverage of thermal comfort from principles and theory to practical application. The book begins with current knowledge and understanding of thermal comfort and its application to providing thermal conditions for indoor and outdoor environments. It integrates and presents new ideas to provide a comprehensive model of thermal comfort so that we can move on from the 20th and early 21st century and provide a focus for developments for future decades. This book will be of interest to practitioners and students and anyone involved with fields such as environmental design, physiology, ergonomics, human factors, industrial hygiene, architecture, health and safety and air conditioning. * Provides current thermal comfort standards and regulations * Describes the PMV, PPD, ET* and SET thermal comfort indices * Discusses adaptive thermal comfort, adaptive opportunity and explains why we have not moved towards a more dynamic and interactive approach to providing thermal comfort * Presents a new model relating thermal discomfort to performance * Shows how to construct a computer model of thermal comfort * Offers how to conduct a thermal comfort survey Human Thermal Comfort provides new ideas for achieving thermal comfort for offices, vehicles, atriums and plazas of the future.