Facial skin temperature and overall thermal sensation of sub-tropically acclimated Chinese subjects in summer

Abstract

This study explored the facial skin temperature and thermal sensation of sub-tropically acclimated subjects in summer. We conducted a summer experiment that simulated the common indoor temperatures in Changsha, China. Twenty healthy subjects experienced five exposure conditions: 24, 26, 28, 30 and 32 °C with a relative humidity of 60%. During exposure (140min), the sitting participants documented their thermal sensation, comfort and acceptability of the environment. Their facial skin temperatures were continuously and automatically recorded by using iButtons. These facial parts include the forehead, nose, left and right ears, left and right cheeks and chin. The results found that the maximum facial skin temperature difference increased with air temperature reduction. The forehead skin temperature was the highest. Nose skin temperature is lowest when air temperature is not higher than 26 °C during summer. Correlation analysis confirmed that the nose is the potential facial part that is most suitable to evaluate thermal sensation. Based on the published winter experiment, we further explored their seasonal effects. The seasonal analysis showed that, compared with winter, thermal sensation is more sensitive to indoor temperature changes and facial skin temperatures were less susceptible to thermal sensation changes in summer. Facial skin temperatures were higher in summer under the same thermal conditions. It suggests that seasonal effects should be considered when facial skin temperature can be used as an important parameter for indoor environment control in the future through monitoring thermal sensation.