Comparative study of indoor thermal environment and human thermal comfort in residential buildings among cities, towns, and rural areas in arid regions of China

Abstract

Most thermal comfort studies classify towns as rural areas and compare them with cities, dismissing the unique thermal characteristics of towns. A comparative study on thermal comfort in cities, rural areas, and towns based on their original definitions is required. This study aims to determine the differences between indoor thermal environment and human thermal comfort in residential buildings in cities, towns, and rural areas. This four-month investigation was conducted in Bayannur City using a survey with 141 participants. The survey responses were combined with environmental measurements, and the data analysis showed that the participants’ clothing insulation was distributed over a wider range for towns (0.3–0.9 clo) and rural areas (0.9–1.5 clo) than for cities (0.3–0.6 clo). The acceptable operative temperature ranges of city, town, and rural area residents were 20.9–28.0, 17.7–23.3, and 15.1–21.6 ℃, respectively. Although the operative temperature of residential buildings in those areas differed by 5–10 °C, all participants expected a warmer indoor thermal environment. City residents who can adapt to varying conditions can restore thermal comfort more easily than town and rural area residents.