Quantitative analysis of the influence of air temperature variability on thermal perception of Brazilian university students.

Abstract

The scientific literature has already identified the influence of thermal conditions on health and performance of students. However, users' opinions are often overwhelmed by normative evaluations, not receiving the necessary attention. To quantitatively compare the influence of air temperature variability on the thermal perception of students from six air-conditioned teaching environments located in four regions of Brazil. Three-day experiments were carried out in six environments. A thermal condition was proposed for each day. From that, the environmental parameters were measured and a questionnaire about the thermal perception was applied. Then, Generalized Linear Models were applied to obtain a measure of effect and hypothesis test and confidence interval were used to find comfort zones and compare environments. The results showed that students from environments A, B, C and E felt less the effects of the increase in air temperature compared to students from environments D and F. In addition, students from environments A, B, C and E showed less perceptual variability compared to students from environments D and F. Students acclimated to higher thermal conditions felt less the effects of the increase in air temperature, showed less perceptual variability and a higher degree of thermal adaptability.