Thermal comfort zone of SEMI-outdoor public spaces

Adaptive comfort zone and acceptability zone were determined for semi-outdoor public spaces based on seasonal field surveys. Analysis was based on 2284 valid questionnaire responses of actual visitors and corresponding sets of environmental variables measured around each respondent. Thermal preference vote was paired with overall discomfort and unacceptability vote. Occupants tended to feel greater degree of dissatisfaction on warmer SET^∗ in HVAC spaces and on cooler SET^∗ in non-HVAC spaces. Comfort zone was found to be 18.5 - 30 °C SET^∗ in HVAC spaces and 14.5 - 32 °C SET^∗ in non-HVAC spaces. Occupants were thermally comfortable in twice the wider range in HVAC spaces and thrice the wider range in non-HVAC spaces than the PPD prediction. Derivation of SET^∗ for each occupants accounts for behavioural adaptation, and the difference observed for HVAC spaces and Non-HVAC spaces resulted from the difference in psychological adaptation.