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The aim of the paper is to assemble a simulator for evaluation of thermal comfort in car cabins in order to give a feedback to the HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) system. The HW (hardware) part of simulator is formed by thermal manikin Newton and RH (relative humidity), velocity and temperature probes. The SW (software) part consists of the Thermal Comfort Analyser (using ISO 14505-2) and Virtual Testing Stand of Car Cabin defining the heat loads of car cabin. Simulator can provide recommendation for the climate control how to improve thermal comfort in cabin by distribution and directing of air flow, and also by amount of ventilation power to keep optimal temperature inside a cabin. The methods of evaluation of thermal comfort were verified by tests with 10 test subjects for summer (summer clothing, ambient air temperature 30 °C, HVAC setup: +24 °C auto) and winter conditions (winter clothing, ambient air temperature -5 °C, HVAC setup: +18 °C auto). The tests confirmed the validity of the thermal comfort evaluation using the thermal manikin and ISO 14505-2.

Considerable amount of heat produced during composting of organic matter is usually lost to the surrounding environment. In order to utilize this potential heat source, biomass is composted in mounds or vessels and excess thermal energy is captured via heat exchangers and transported to the site for space heating, preparation of utility water and other applications. The aim of this experimental research is to measure the temperature profiles in a pilot-scale composting bioreactor and assess its performance.

Cabin HVAC (Heating Ventilation and Air-conditioning) systems have become an essential part of personal vehicles as demands for comfortable transport are still rising. In fact, 85 % of the car trips in Europe are shorter than 18 km and last only up to 30 minutes. Under such conditions, the HVAC unit cannot often ensure desired cabin environment and passengers are prone to experience thermal stress. For this reason, additional comfort systems, such as heated or ventilated seats, are available on the market. However, there is no straightforward method to evaluate thermal comfort at the contact surfaces nowadays. The aim of this work is to summarise information about heated and ventilated seats. These technologies use electrical heating and fan driven air to contact area in order to achieve enhanced comfort. It is also expected, that such measures may contribute to lower energy consumption. Yet, in real conditions it is almost impossible to measure the airflow through the ventilated seat directly. Therefore, there is a need for an approach that would correlate measurable physical phenomena with thermal comfort. For this reason, a method that exploits a measurement of temperatures and humidity at the contact area is proposed. Preliminary results that correlate comfort with measurable physical phenomena are demonstrated.

Thermal environment in a vehicular cabin significantly influence drivers’ fatigue and passengers’ thermal comfort. This environment is traditionally managed by HVAC cabin system that distributes air and modifies its properties. In order to simulate cabin thermal behaviour, amount of the air led through car vents must be determined. The aim of this study was to develop methodology to measure airflow from the vents, and consequently calculate corresponding air distribution coefficients. Three climatic cases were selected to match European winter, summer, and spring / fall conditions. Experiments were conducted on a test vehicle in a climatic chamber. The car HVAC system was set to automatic control mode, and the measurements were executed after the system stabilisation—each case was independently measured three times. To be able to evaluate precision of the method, the airflow was determined at the system inlet (HVAC suction) and outlet (each vent), and the total airflow values were compared. The airflow was calculated by determining a mean value of the air velocity multiplied by an area of inlet / outlet cross-section. Hot-wire anemometry was involved to measure the air velocity. Regarding the summer case, total airflow entering the cabin was around 57 l s-1 with 60 % of the air entering the cabin through dashboard vents; no air was supplied to the feet compartment. The remaining cases had the same total airflow of around 42 l s-1, and the air distribution was focused mainly on feet and windows. The inlet and outlet airflow values show a good match with a maximum mass differential of 8.3 %.

The aim of this study was to identify a set of operating points of a fan built in ventilation system of our test car. These operating points are given by the fan pressure characteristics and are defined by a pressure drop of the HVAC system (air ducts and vents) and volumetric flow rate of ventilation air. To cover a wide range of pressure drops situations, four cases of vent flaps setup were examined: (1) all vents opened, (2) only central vents closed (3) only central vents opened and (4) all vents closed. To cover a different volumetric flows, the each case was measured at least for four different speeds of fan defined by the fan voltage. It was observed that the pressure difference of the fan is proportional to the fan voltage and strongly depends on the throttling of the air distribution system by the settings of the vents flaps. In case of our test car we identified correlations between volumetric flow rate of ventilation air, fan pressure difference and fan voltage. These correlations will facilitate and reduce time costs of the following experiments with this test car.

The amount of air supplied by ventilation system (HVAC system) of a car into a cabin is one of the main parameters for the correct simulation and prediction of a car cabin heat load. This amount is not based only on the current setting of the HVAC system, but also on the actual operating conditions and speed of the car. The authors therefore carried out experiments in the cabin of a passenger car in real traffic, while observing the amount of air on the speed of the car and setting of flap in mixing chamber. In a subsequent analysis the authors defined dependence of the airflow rate supplied by HVAC system on the speed of the car. Obtained empirical formulas were then used as a part of the code which calculates the data for the HVAC boundary conditions in the simulation of the car cabin environment.

This study presents methods for measuring thermal insulation of military clothing assemblies used in various climatic regions of the world, with the exception of polar regions. With the use of FOX 314 and thermal manikin, the thermal insulation of the fabrics (military materials) was ascertained at simulating real climatic conditions of cold, arid, temperate and tropical zones according to European standard EN 60721-2-1: 2014. The aim of this study was to compare the values of thermal insulation of the duty of military clothing ascertained by two methods and to evaluate the reliability of methods and instruments used. The measured results show that the measurement methods used are different in terms of method and measurement conditions, the results of the thermal insulation and the resulting choice of military clothing in the type of climate. The functionality and suitability of the use of military clothing sets were verified in real climatic conditions, provided that the optimal thermal comfort of the wearer was achieved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the paper, the authors refer to development a heat balance model to predict car climate and power heat load. Model is developed in Modelica language using Dymola as interpreter. It is a dynamical system, which describes a heat exchange between car cabin and ambient. Inside a car cabin, there is considered heat exchange between air zone, interior and air-conditioning system. It is considered 1D heat transfer with a heat accumulation and a relative movement Sun respect to the car cabin, whilst car is moving. Measurements of the real operating conditions of gave us data for model calibration. The model was calibrated for Škoda Felicia parking-summer scenarios.

The article deals with experimental research and numerical simulations of specific phenomena in fluid flows called Coanda effect (CE), which has numerous important engineering applications. Although many researchers have concerned with wall jets, the physics of this flow still remains not well understood. This study is focused on analysis of behaviour of jet flow close to the wall and influence of its inclination. The flow has been visualized using smoke and velocity was measured by means of Hot Wire Anemometry (HWA). CFD simulations have been performed on the same geometry and compared with experiments in order to find a tool for correct prediction of the CE.

Heat transfer from the human body, especially through the evaporation of sweat from the skin, is often restricted when protective clothing is used, which may result in overheating. For this reason, it is important to consider the parameters of protective clothing as input data in physiological models, such as predicted heat strain. The two most important parameters are thermal insulation and evaporative resistance with clothing area factor strongly influencing both. These parameters were determined for two clothing ensembles using a (dry) non-sweating thermal manikin. First, the clothing area factor was determined using the photographic method. Second, thermal insulation was measured in both static and dynamic conditions, and multiple equations for predicting dynamic thermal insulation from static ones were evaluated. Third, methodology for measuring evaporative resistance based on pre-wetted skin was adopted and multiple corrections were assessed. Finally, sensitivity analyses were completed using PHS to determine the impact of different equations on the duration limited exposure. For the thermal insulation measurements, we found that predictive equation (32) from ISO 9920 was the most accurate, but choosing the correct equation for protective clothing proved challenging. Although a manikin's surface temperature is widely used for calculating evaporative resistance, the skin temperature should be used instead, since it is correct from a physical point of view and there is a difference of up to 15% in the results. Because these measures are used in thermal risk analyses conditions, a high degree of accuracy and a knowledge of the inputs must be guaranteed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]