A study on thermal parameters in residential buildings associated with hot humid environments

Multi-storeyed buildings are being constructed in increasing numbers in different climatic conditions in the Indian region. There is a great demand for various comfort aspects, security and other related issues of these buildings by the user group. It is in this context that certain thermal comfort characteristics, which happen to have a significant impact on occupants, are studied in this work. The effects of different construction materials, orientation, geometrical features of the buildings such as height, and exposure of the roof to solar radiation are studied. Subjective surveys of occupants in these buildings are conducted with a questionnaire, which includes factors such as thermal sensation, thermal comfort, perception of humidity, air movement and noise levels. To relate the experimental findings, the thermal sensation vote (TSV) is measured on a 7-point ASHRAE scale. With respect to the thermal perception of residents, although the measured Fanger's predicted mean vote (PMV) and TSV correlate we...