Adaptive Fanger’s Model for Optimum Thermal Comfort Setting for Lecture Halls in Malaysia

Unnecessary air conditioning for thermal comfort causeds energy over consumption. As air conditioning has become irreversible, one of the solutions is to run air conditioners at minimal energy without sacrificing the comfort of occupants in air conditioned space. The approach to thermal comfort is the key to successful thermal comfort research. Fanger’s model has been adopted by ASHRAE and ISO standards but its universal applications have been debated. In recent decades, adaptive model that regards humans as adaptive beings has been accepted. The static and deterministic nature of Fanger’s model has limited its application in hot, humid countries, such as Malaysia. This research aims to integrate the theories of Fanger and adaptive model into a new model which is applicable in Malaysia by taking the case in lecture halls. The new Fanger’s Adaptive Model is established through normalization of the thermal sensation distribution obtained in thermal chamber by Fanger. The PMV range of 80% satisfaction has been widened to -1.3 to +1.3 which adopted the theories of adaptive model, where humans have the ability to adapt to environment. The research also includes field observations on Malaysian students clothing and activity levels in lecture halls. Previous field study results which proposed 25.3°C comfort temperature for lecture halls in Malaysia together with the field observation results were used to verify the new model. About 95% of PMV falls within the new range at this comfort temperature. It is proven that Fanger’s model is semi-adaptive and probabilistic and the integration of Fanger’s Adaptive Model is more accurate in predicting thermal comfort in hot and humid climate.