Gender differences in thermal comfort under coupled environmental factors

This paper aims to explore gender differences in thermal comfort under coupled environmental factors, as previous studies have primarily focused on air temperature alone. The experiment involved 27 subjects, 13 males and 14 females, who experienced 12 different combinations of air temperature and air velocity environmental conditions. The subjective responses and physiological parameters were collected and analyzed. In colder environments, especially when low air temperatures are coupled with elevated air velocity, significant gender differences are observed, as females feel colder, more uncomfortable, and perceive stronger drafts than males. In hotter environments, when high air temperatures are coupled with still air, males tend to feel more uncomfortable and prefer higher air velocity, compared to females. However, few gender differences are observed when high air temperatures are coupled with elevated air velocity. Under colder conditions, forearm temperatures show a stronger correlation with subjective responses, while under hotter conditions, facial skin temperatures demonstrate a stronger correlation, for both genders. Moreover, the Elevated Air Speed Model in ASHRAE 55-2020 is found to overestimates the cooling effect of elevated air velocity for both genders. The findings suggest that gender differences should be properly considered when designing indoor thermal environments, particularly under colder conditions.