TY - CHAP
T1 - Characteristics of Thermal Comfort in Outdoor Environments
AU - Lau, Kevin Ka Lun
AU - Tan, Zheng
AU - Morakinyo, Tobi Eniolu
AU - Ren, Chao
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
PY - 2021/9
Y1 - 2021/9
N2 - The living quality of urban inhabitants is important to urban liveability and receives increasing concern in urban living. Thermal comfort is widely regarded as one of the important issues to urban living, particularly the health and well-being of urban inhabitants. In outdoor environments where urban dwellers spend their time for commuting, leisure, and recreational activities, the thermal environment is more complex due to the constantly changing environmental conditions and the interplay between human body and the ambient environment. Meteorological factors such as air temperature and humidity, solar radiation, and air movement are fundamental parameters of the immediate environment that one is experiencing while metabolic heat generated by human activity and clothing worn by an individual are the two personal attributes that define the human thermal environment. In outdoor environments, peoples’ subjective assessment of thermal comfort is also influenced by psychological expectancy and their thermal history. The major issues associated with outdoor thermal comfort in cities include low urban wind speeds, high temperatures due to urban heat island effects, and limited solar access. In high-density cities, where complex and high-rise urban geometries are common, enhancing urban design is essential for improving outdoor thermal comfort and hence enhancing the usage of outdoor spaces.
AB - The living quality of urban inhabitants is important to urban liveability and receives increasing concern in urban living. Thermal comfort is widely regarded as one of the important issues to urban living, particularly the health and well-being of urban inhabitants. In outdoor environments where urban dwellers spend their time for commuting, leisure, and recreational activities, the thermal environment is more complex due to the constantly changing environmental conditions and the interplay between human body and the ambient environment. Meteorological factors such as air temperature and humidity, solar radiation, and air movement are fundamental parameters of the immediate environment that one is experiencing while metabolic heat generated by human activity and clothing worn by an individual are the two personal attributes that define the human thermal environment. In outdoor environments, peoples’ subjective assessment of thermal comfort is also influenced by psychological expectancy and their thermal history. The major issues associated with outdoor thermal comfort in cities include low urban wind speeds, high temperatures due to urban heat island effects, and limited solar access. In high-density cities, where complex and high-rise urban geometries are common, enhancing urban design is essential for improving outdoor thermal comfort and hence enhancing the usage of outdoor spaces.
KW - High-density cities
KW - Human thermal comfort
KW - Outdoor environment
KW - Psychological
KW - Thermophysiological
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85115645421&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/978-981-16-5245-5_1
DO - 10.1007/978-981-16-5245-5_1
M3 - Chapter in an edited book (as author)
AN - SCOPUS:85115645421
T3 - SpringerBriefs in Architectural Design and Technology
SP - 1
EP - 9
BT - SpringerBriefs in Architectural Design and Technology
PB - Springer
ER -