TY - JOUR
T1 - Outdoor thermal comfort in various microentrepreneurial settings in hot humid tropical Kolkata
T2 - Human biometeorological assessment of objective and subjective parameters
AU - Banerjee, Shreya
AU - Middel, Ariane
AU - Chattopadhyay, Subrata
N1 - Funding Information:
This research is funded by Building Energy Efficiency Higher and Advanced Network (BHAVAN) Fellowship from Indo-US Science and Technology Forum (IUSSTF), an autonomous bilateral organization, jointly funded by Department of Science and Technology, Government of India and US Department of State. This work is also part of an ongoing Ph.D. research funded by Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), Government of India. We would like to thank the anonymous reviewers for their feedback which helped significantly in improving the quality of the article.
Funding Information:
This research is funded by Building Energy Efficiency Higher and Advanced Network (BHAVAN) Fellowship from Indo-US Science and Technology Forum (IUSSTF), an autonomous bilateral organization, jointly funded by Department of Science and Technology, Government of India and US Department of State. This work is also part of an ongoing Ph.D. research funded by Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), Government of India. We would like to thank the anonymous reviewers for their feedback which helped significantly in improving the quality of the article.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 Elsevier B.V.
Copyright:
Copyright 2020 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2020/6/15
Y1 - 2020/6/15
N2 - Extreme heat and associated health risks increasingly become threats to urban populations, especially in developing countries of the tropics. Although human thermal exposure in cities has been studied across the globe, current narratives insufficiently discuss mixed-used spaces, informal economic activity settings, and informal settlements. This study assessed outdoor human thermal comfort in the tropical city of Kolkata, India where uncomfortable hot and humid climatic conditions prevail year-round. Thermal Comfort Perception Surveys (TCPS) and biometeorological observations were conducted during summer and winter in three microentrepreneurial neighborhoods (Kumartuli, Boipara, and Mallickghat). A one-way ANOVA was performed to investigate the variance in Physiologically Equivalent Temperature (PET) values of 318 survey samples across neighborhoods. Through multiple linear regression and ANCOVA, significant relationships were established between various climatic and non-climatic parameters. No respondent reported a neutral thermal sensation during the summer. Annual neutral PET across neighborhoods was 23.6 °C with a neutral PET range of 19.5 °C to 27.6 °C. Annual neutral PET was 22.7 °C and 26.5 °C in Mallickghat and Boipara, respectively. Respondents in Boipara were more sensitive towards warmer sensation than in Mallickghat. Even in the winter, people reported warmer sensation votes. PET was a better predictor of the mean Thermal Sensation Vote (mTSV) compared to air temperature. In a few cases, acclimatization and expectations improved thermal comfort. Results can be useful in formulating strategies towards improving outdoor microclimate and heat health in tropical cities.
AB - Extreme heat and associated health risks increasingly become threats to urban populations, especially in developing countries of the tropics. Although human thermal exposure in cities has been studied across the globe, current narratives insufficiently discuss mixed-used spaces, informal economic activity settings, and informal settlements. This study assessed outdoor human thermal comfort in the tropical city of Kolkata, India where uncomfortable hot and humid climatic conditions prevail year-round. Thermal Comfort Perception Surveys (TCPS) and biometeorological observations were conducted during summer and winter in three microentrepreneurial neighborhoods (Kumartuli, Boipara, and Mallickghat). A one-way ANOVA was performed to investigate the variance in Physiologically Equivalent Temperature (PET) values of 318 survey samples across neighborhoods. Through multiple linear regression and ANCOVA, significant relationships were established between various climatic and non-climatic parameters. No respondent reported a neutral thermal sensation during the summer. Annual neutral PET across neighborhoods was 23.6 °C with a neutral PET range of 19.5 °C to 27.6 °C. Annual neutral PET was 22.7 °C and 26.5 °C in Mallickghat and Boipara, respectively. Respondents in Boipara were more sensitive towards warmer sensation than in Mallickghat. Even in the winter, people reported warmer sensation votes. PET was a better predictor of the mean Thermal Sensation Vote (mTSV) compared to air temperature. In a few cases, acclimatization and expectations improved thermal comfort. Results can be useful in formulating strategies towards improving outdoor microclimate and heat health in tropical cities.
KW - Informal outdoor microenterprises
KW - Outdoor thermal comfort
KW - Overall Sensation Vote (OSV)
KW - Physiological equivalent temperature
KW - Thermal neutrality
KW - Thermal perception
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U2 - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.137741
DO - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.137741
M3 - Article
C2 - 32179347
AN - SCOPUS:85081115922
SN - 0048-9697
VL - 721
JO - Science of the Total Environment
JF - Science of the Total Environment
M1 - 137741
ER -