The influence of the Inlet angle of vehicle air diffuser on the thermal comfort of passengers

Abstract

Prediction of thermal conditions inside a vehicle cabin is still a challenge due to the transient behavior of this environment. A large number of research studies are addressing the subject of thermal comfort related to the in-cabin environment. This article is a part of a larger study, intended to deepen the knowledge on thermal comfort inside vehicles. The effect of different angles of airflow from an air vent of a Renault Megane care, over the human thermal sensation is investigated in this paper. The results show that the maximum values of the velocity magnitude are rather high compared to the limits of the standardized PMV-PPD models. Moreover, the locations of these maximum values are changing with the angle of the guiding vanes. However, given the high values of the air velocities, the non-suitability of the PMV-PPD model is obvious, giving as a qualitative method of comparison in this case.