Using ASHRAE Standard 55 Adaptive Comfort Method for Practical Applications

Abstract

The question of comfort under a natural conditioning scheme when governed by ASHRAE Standard 55, which describes the use of the adaptive comfort standard, including the elevated speed option, and compares this model to other comfort indices. The analysis requires a combined dynamic heat transfer and bulk airflow analysis method that delivers simultaneous output of expected indoor temperatures and indoor ventilation rates.
To determine if the space is compliant, the designer must demonstrate that the indoor operative temperature conditions stay within the prescribed range during occupied hours. Typically, dynamic thermal simulation software capable of modelling natural ventilation schemes is used to simulate the cooling effects of the natural ventilation airflows and the radiant impacts of the room surface temperatures.
This paper shows a Standard 55 compliance analysis and how the results are presented in an understandable manner.