Abstract
To study the impact of air conditioners (AC) on occupants’ behaviours and comfort, two comparison surveys were conducted during hot summer weather before and after air conditioners were installed in student dormitories at Chongqing University in 2008 and 2016, respectively. The results showed that after the ACs were installed, occupants’ environmental satisfaction vote was notably higher irrespective of whether the equipment was used. The proportion of ACs used (PAU) in 2016 and the proportion of fans used (PFU) in 2008 were logistically fit with the outside temperatures, and these data displayed very similar trends. However, less variety in adaptive behaviours was evident after the ACs were installed. When ACs were used, lower proportions of windows were opened (13%) and higher proportions of occupants felt stuffy (54%), experienced draughts (38%), and reported sick building syndrome (SBS). This study provides scientific insight into the advances and problems caused by the popularization of ACs.
Highlights
Before the air conditioner (AC) was invented, human beings worldwide suffered from changing weather conditions and developed adaptive skills involving behavioural, physiological, and psychological traits [1]
Field studies [9] have demonstrated that the human body has a higher acceptance of the thermal environment in free-running (FR) buildings than in AC buildings, which is related to the concept of thermal adaption [10, 11]
This study focused on the behavioural and psychological responses of occupants before and after ACs became available in summer
Summary
Before the air conditioner (AC) was invented, human beings worldwide suffered from changing weather conditions and developed adaptive skills involving behavioural, physiological, and psychological traits [1]. With the popularization of the AC, indoor thermal conditions and quality of life dramatically improved, especially on hot summer days. Several problems such as sick building syndrome (SBS) [2], the energy crisis [3], and global warming have been drawing increasing attention from the public and researchers [4, 5], and related concerns pertaining to the impact of ACs on human wellbeing, health, and work efficiency have become hot topics. Thermal adaption to the environment is good for health [12], and contributes to energy conservation because of the wider range of accepted air temperatures [13]
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