| 11.11.04 Slide: 1

1
Effects of Friendly Heating system on human
thermal comfort in the church

• Sirkka Rissanen
• Friendly Heating Research Group
• Oulu Regional Institute of Occupational Health,
• Oulu, Finland
• EU Contract no. EVK4-CT-2001-00067

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Introduction

• Target church Parrochia S. Maria Magdalene,
  Rocca Pietore
• Hot air heating was replaced by Friendly Heating
  System
• Heat generated is concentrated on the pew area
  where people stay
• minimal impact on artworks
• 1st prototype installed in 2002
• 2nd prototype in 2003/2004

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General thermal comfort

• may be influenced by
• air temperature
• mean radiant temperature
• air velocity
• humidity
• metabolic rate
• clothing

4
Local thermal discomfort

• may be caused by
• draught
• high vertical air temperature difference between
  head and ankles
• too high radiant temperature asymmetry
• too warm or cold surface temperature of the floor

5
Individual differences

• gender
• age
• body size and shape
• physical fitness
• health
• adaptation

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Purpose

• to assess thermal comfort of people in the church
• to define where cold or warm discomfort is
  focused in the body
• to quantify the heat needed for humans to feel
  thermal comfort in a church by the use of
  physiological methods

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Specific goals

• the body is neutral slightly cool
• vigilance better
• mean and local skin temperatures do not reach
  discomfort limits
• absence of local thermal discomfort
• no or minimal draught

Tsk gt 31C
gt20C
gt 17C
8
Questionnaire

• four services
• thermal sensation and comfort during the services
• 57 responses
• 51 women, 49 men
• over 50 years old 63
• tourists 18

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Questionnaire, results
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Physiological measurements, volunteers
Old heating system 1st prototype 2nd prototype
Number 9 2 locals 12 5 locals 16 (18) 3 locals
Age, years 36 11 (25 62) 42 20 (13 78) 44 13 (25 68)
Clothing, clo 1.5 0.2 (1.2 1.8) 1.5 0.1 (1.3 1.8) 1.4 0.2 (0.7 2.0)
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Methods

• Skin temperature measurements
• 11 sensors
• mean skin temperature (Tsk) was calculated
• area weighted average of the local skin
  temperatures

forehead
chest
back
forearm
hand
finger
thigh f/b
calf
foot
toe
Smart Reader
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Methods

• Subjective ratings
• thermal sensation
• cool slightly cool neutral slightly warm
  -warm
• thermal comfort
• comfortable slightly uncomfortable -
  uncomfortable
• air movement intensity
• not at all very slightly slightly
  definitely a lot

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Thermal sensation
14
Thermal comfort
15
Draught, head
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Mean skin temperature

• Comfort 32 33 C
• Discomfort lt 31 C

neutral
lt neutral
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Finger temperature

• Comfort 27 34 C
• Discomfort lt 20 C

sl. cool neutral
sl. cool
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Toe temperature

• Discomfort lt 17 C

lt neutral
slightly cool
cool
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Summary graph
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Conclusions

• progress in human thermal comfort has been
  achieved by the new FHS in the church
• whole body thermal sensation of the people is
  neutral or slightly cool
• mean skin temperature varies between 31 and 32 C

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Conclusions

• feet, unclothed hands and head are still felt
  slightly uncomfortable
• forced vertical convection due to the radiative
  heating resulted in draught sensation especially
  in the head
• some convective air movements might be
  unavoidable when radiant heating is used in
  churches
• work for reducing disadvantage of the air
  movements is going on.

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Partners

• Dario Camuffo
• Emanuela Pagan
• Henk Schellen
• Dionne Limpens-Neilen
• Thank you for your attention!