Thermal Environment

AP Dr. Shamsul Bahari Shamsudin

Universiti Malaysia Sabah

Summary

health effects
heat balance equation
thermal indices
a historical perspective
international standards

Health effects
Body has a narrow optimal range for
temperature: Core 36.1 - 37.1 oC
Control mechanisms
change in blood flow
sweating
shivering

Heat induced disorders

Burns
Prickly heat (skin reaction/ruptured
sweat ducts)
Heat syncope (fainting)
Heat exhaustion (core temp 37-39C)
Heat stroke (core temp >39C)

Workers at risk of heat

disorders

Foundry workers
Glass manufacture
Ceramic workers
Coke/gas ovens
Firemen
Miners
Asbestos removal

Cold induced disorders

Accidents (slips, trips, muscular strains)
Local vascular effects (chapping and
chillblains)
Local freezing of tissues (frostnip,
frostbite)
Hypothermia

Workers at risk of cold

disorders

Offshore industry (oil/gas exploration)

Construction
Food/warehousing industry
Fishing
Agriculture

Heat balance equation...

M - W = K + C + R + E +S
M = metabolic heat
K = conduction
E = evaporation
R = radiation

W = work
C = convection
S = storage

Thermal indices
Thermal Comfort Indices
Predicted Mean Vote (PMV)
Predicted Percentage Dissatisfied (PPD)

Heat Stress Indices

Wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT) index
(ACGIH TLV)
Predicted Four Hour Sweat Rate (P4SR)
Heat Stress Index (HIS)
Effective and Corrected Effective Temperature (ET
and CET)

WBGT
Wet bulb globe temperature
developed in the 1950s by Yaglou and
Minard for the US Navy
simple and easy to calculate...
WBGT = 0.7 Twb + 0.3 Tg
indoors
WBGT = 0.7 Twb + 0.2 Tg + 0.1 Ta
outdoors

WBGT continued...
incorporated into ACGIH TLV and ISO
7243
note it is the natural wet bulb which is
required in this index
limited range of application (i.e. not high
air velocity with high radiant heat or
high air temperature)
but it is conservative

Clothing and WBGT

C lo th in g

C lo
v a lu e
0 .6

W BGT
c o rre c tio n
0

c o tto n o v e ra lls

-2

ja c k e t+ tro u s e rs

1 .4

-4

-6

>2

-1 0

S u m m e r c lo th e s

p e rm e a b le v a p o u r
b a rrie r s u it
c h e m ic a l p ro te c tiv e
s u it

Clothing
Clothing insulation is measured in Clo units (Icl)
1 clo = 0.155 m2 C/W
clo value ranges from 0 (naked body) to 4
Summer clothing ~ 0.6 clo
Winter clothing ~ 1 clo
Icl ~ 0.15 x weight of clothes in lbs.
1 clo maintains sedentary person indefinitely
comfortable at 21C, 50% RH, 0.01 m/sec.

Effective Temperature

Assessing thermal environment

What do we measure?
Air temperature
Radiant temperature
Relative humidity
Air velocity

Air temperature
Dry bulb thermometers
simple liquid thermometer
resistance thermometer
thermistors
thermocouple
differential expansion effect

Mean radiant temperature

Measured indirectly using nomogram
Generated from
globe temperature
air temperature
air velocity

Globe temperature: dependent on radiant

heat and convection

Relative humidity
Quantity

of moisture in the air

compared with the amount of
moisture in air at saturation
Calculated using wet and dry bulb
temperatures
wet bulb - thermometer with wet wick
(i.e. air saturated to 100% humidity)

Air velocity
High speeds use anemometers
resistance anemometer
thermistor anemometer

Low speeds use Kata thermometer

how long does heated fluid take to cool
air movement calculated from air temperature,
kata factor and cooling time of fluid

Tracer methods also used to identify

draughts and flow patterns

Heat stress
Our temperatures are influenced by the
interaction of:
Environment
Workrate
Clothing

Control of thermal environment

Environment
modify air movement
modify air temperature
shielding from hot surfaces

Work criteria

physical workload
frequency of work breaks
acclimitisation
education
surveillance during exposure

Control of thermal environment

Individual

fitness for work

screening for health problems
body size
fluid balance

Suitable PPE

permeability
reflectivity
insulation
absorbtion

Control
work planning to avoid or minimise stress
engineering controls at source
engineering control using ventilation or air
conditioning
engineering control using radiation barriers
managerial controls
use of personal protective clothing

Engineering controls at source

reduce the temperature of the surface
provide insulation for the surface
reduce the radiant heat emission

Ventilation
general ventilation
local ventilation
increases heat loss from convection and
evaporation

Radiation barriers
choice of materials
should we use steel, aluminium or something
else?
a good barrier has low emissivity and good
insulation

barriers can also incorporate water cooling

Managerial controls
improved education and training
better supervision
restriction on the amount of time spent in
hot environments
self-pacing of work
drinking rules
medical surveillance

Personal Protection
The criteria for good protective clothing are:
sufficient permeability to water vapour and / or
sufficient ventilation
acceptability to those wearing it
comfort
dexterity/mobility

sufficient insulation to keep the body thermally

comfortable

Active cooling
dry ice
air refrigerated
water cooled

Cold environments
clothing, windbreak and waterproof
environmental modifications
shelters

work-rest regime
education, supervision etc..

Signs of Hypothermia
Core temperature
37.6 oC

Signs
normal core temperature

36 oC

shivering

32 oC

conscious clouded, low blood

pressure
loss of consciousness, muscular
rigidity, decreased respiration
risk of heart problems

30 oC
28 oC

Special Recommendations
for hands...
fine work with bare hands below 16oC for
more than 10 -20 minutes should have
warm air jets or radiant heaters
Gloves needed...

Special provisions below

o
-12 C

constant supervision
workrate controlled to avoid sweating
acclimatisation period for new workers
consider the bulk of clothing when working
out workrate
minimise sitting and standing
instruction and training

Summary
Measurement of the thermal environment involves
4 key parameters
Air temperature, Radiant temperature, Relative
humidity and Air velocity

The general approach to control follows a

hierarchy
source, transmission and ppe

Clothing is not an important control for moderate

heat stress situations
Clothing is most important for cold stress