Urban Climate: Carolina M. Rodriguez, Marta D'Alessandro T

Urban Climate 29 (2019) 100488
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
Urban Climate
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/uclim
Indoor thermal comfort review: The tropics as the next frontier

T
Carolina M. Rodrigueza, , Marta D'Alessandrob
⁎
a
Architecture Programme, Universidad Piloto de Colombia, Carrera 9 No. 45A - 44, Bogotá, Colombia
b
Architecture, Built Environment and Construction Engineering Department (ABC), Polytechnic University of Milan, Campus Leonardo, via Bonardi 9,
20133 Milan, Italy
ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT
Keywords: With the current dynamics on demographic growth, by 2050 it is likely that nearly 50% of the
Thermal comfort world's population will reside in tropical countries. As the tropics become increasingly urbanised,
Tropical climates energy demands for air conditioning are dramatically rising. Paradoxically, there is a generalised
Air conditioning lack of research on indoor thermal comfort in the tropics, compared to other regions. However, it
Buildings
is here where advancement in this area could have a greater effect. This review examines the
Energy efficiency
Sustainable development
volume, origin, emphasis, and impact of available studies on indoor thermal comfort in tropical
regions, through a systematic analysis of available data and peer-reviewed documentation. Six
different samples of information were studied, including 54 general reviews, 61 field studies from
ASHRAE databases, 75 selected documents on thermal comfort in the tropics, as well as, records
from 111 tropical countries, 33 M and large cities and 43 of the fastest-growing cities. The
findings show new insights into the advancement on this area, such as the most and least studied
countries, cities and climates, the preferred models and tools of assessment and the central focus
of the research produced to date. The review also highlights gaps in research, as well as potential
areas for further development.
1. Introduction
It is well documented that the rapid global population growth combined with the progressive urbanisation of the landscape has
had a significant impact on energy consumption, depletion of resources and the production of pollution and waste. It is estimated that
more than 50% of humanity is now living in urban areas, with this figure likely to ascent to 60% by 2030 (G.A. United Nations, 2015).
Most of the current largest and fastest-growing cities in the world are located in developing countries within the tropics, referring to
those territories located between the tropic of Cancer (23.5° N) and Capricorn (23.5° S) (Fig. 1A). According to the State of the Tropics
report, before 2050 half of the world's population will reside in these regions (James Cook University, S. of the T. Leadership Group,
2014).
As the tropics become gradually urbanised, energy demands for indoor thermal comfort (ITC) are dramatically rising due to the
proliferation of citizens (Waite et al., 2017; Yang et al., 2014) and also the creation of microclimatic zones. The latter is the result of
urban transformations, such as the increase of building density and paved surfaces and the reduction of vegetation. These trans-
formations contribute towards higher urban outdoor and radiant temperatures and consequently to further indoor cooling needs
(Perini and Magliocco, 2014). In this context, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems have become rapidly
Abbreviations: ITC, Indoor thermal comfort; MLC, Mega and large cities; FGC, Fastest-growing cities; AC, Air-condition; CDD, Cooling degree days;
HDD, Heating degree days; DPM, Documents per million people
⁎
Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: [email protected] (C.M. Rodriguez), [email protected] (M. D'Alessandro).
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.uclim.2019.100488
Received 5 March 2019; Received in revised form 23 April 2019; Accepted 7 June 2019
2212-0955/ © 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
C.M. Rodriguez and M. D'Alessandro
2
Fig. 1. (A) Fastest-growing cities, based on information from (G.C. Institute, 2017). (B) Air conditioning consumption in million units, based on (J.R. and A.C.I.A. JRAIA, 2017). (C) Vulnerability to
climate change, based on (Samson et al., 2011). (D) Distribution of human health and energy on the basis of climate, based on image by Ellsworth Huntington 1924 (Chang, 2016; Huntington, 1924).
C.M. Rodriguez and M. D'Alessandro Urban Climate 29 (2019) 100488
popular, highly desirable and progressively unavoidable (Pérez-Lombard et al., 2008). Therefore, global demand for air conditioning
(AC) multiplies every year, particularly in middle-income and low-income countries with warm climates (J.R. and A.C.I.A. JRAIA,
2017) (Fig. 1B). China, the United States, India, Brazil, and Indonesia are currently at the top of the list of AC consumption, with
Malaysia, Singapore, Nigeria, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and the Philippines steadily catching up (Sivak, 2009; Davis and Gertler, 2015).
Such a trend has been linked to negative impacts on climate change, carbon emissions and environmental damage (Yang et al., 2014;
Yau and Hasbi, 2013; Zhao and Magoulès, 2012). Paradoxically, many of the countries where the use of AC is rising are also
geographically located in territories of high vulnerability to climate change (Fig. 1C).
The dependency on HVAC systems has been partly attributed to the inappropriate use of thermal comfort standards, initially
developed in and for the United States and Europe (Olesen, 2004). It has been argued that generalisations and misjudgements of these
standards led to underlying assumptions of a constant thermal discomfort in tropical buildings (Chang, 2016; Roaf et al., 2010). For
example, early studies claimed that the climate was hindering health, happiness, socio-economic development, and productivity in
the tropics, as workers were under perpetual thermal stress (Fig. 1D) (Anderson, 2006; Atkinson, 1950). This reductive understanding
of thermal comfort ignored local traditions and cultural practices on climate adaptation. There is compiling evidence of overcooling
of buildings in hot and humid climates, as a consequence of inappropriate AC system design and operation, rather than as a result of
occupant preference (Sekhar, 2016).
From the end of the last century, the study of thermal comfort has received significant academic attention (Al horr et al., 2016a;
Forgiarini Rupp et al., 2015). Most consideration has been given to office buildings, compared to residential, educational or other
types of building uses, as initial thermal comfort studies were closely related to productivity in the workplace (Djamila, 2017a; Van
Hoof, 2008). Additionally, there seems to be a general lack of research on ITC in the tropics, compared to other regions in the world.
General bibliometric searches can be roughly evidenced this. For example, a Scopus search with the terms “thermal comfort” carried
out on the 16th of February 2018 displayed 17,688 documents (including 905 open access). 84.8% of this information was published
after 2000, with a 34% increase from 2016 to 2017. 60% of all these documents were published in journals from five leading
countries: China, the United States, the United Kingdom, Italy, and Japan. An additional Scopus search on the same date with the
words “thermal comfort tropical climates” resulted in only 408 documents (including 20 open access). According to these searches,
only 2.3% of the scientific documentation available on thermal comfort is related to tropical climates.
Numerous publications have mentioned the shortage of information from the tropics (Pérez-Lombard et al., 2008; Yau and Hasbi,
2013; Chang, 2016; Olesen, 2004; Sekhar, 2016; Yau and Chew, 2014a; Taleghani et al., 2013; Kwong et al., 2014; Karyono, 1996),
but no previous literature review has comprehensively studied ITC research in this region. This is potentially a very significant gap
considering that the tropics are highly populated and count for approximately 40% of the Earth's surface area. This area is the driving
force for this article, which seeks to contribute to existing knowledge on ITC through a systematic literature review targeting the
following research questions:
1. How much is scientific documentation on ITC in tropical regions available? (volume)

2. Where, when and in which context has this information been produced? (origin)
3. What is the focus and influence of this documentation? (emphasis and impact)
4. What aspects of thermal comfort in tropical regions have been studied? (findings)
5. What areas require attention? (research gaps)
This work focused primarily on scientific literature related to indoor thermal comfort in buildings, other aspects regarding the
outdoors or urban spaces were outside the scope, as well as, the detailed analysis of specific technologies or case studies. A systematic
comparison between comfort models' algorithms or theoretical basis also falls beyond the scope.
2. Methodology
The above questions were addressed for this work through the analysis of six different samples, which examined the volume,
origin, impact, focus, and content of available documentation on ITC in the tropics. The analysis was carried out in two stages: a
broad review and a focused review (Fig. 2). The first stage compiled evidence from multiple review papers on ITC (sample 1) and
available information on the ASHRAE RP-884 database and the ASHRAE Global Thermal Comfort Database II (sample 2). The
purpose here was to identify general tendencies, emphasis, findings and prospects in this area that could help to contextualise studies
related to the tropics. The second stage (samples 3–6) focused on finding, recording and interpreting selected information on ITC in
the tropics, as well as related data.
Both stages were based on a search, appraisal, synthesis and analysis framework, mostly limited to peer-review documents in
scientific journals, databases from recognised organisations and established standards. A multiple-reviewers' system was set in place
to minimise bias; however, due to human error, it is possible that some representative papers were missed. The tools used for the
bibliometric search were Scopus, Web of Science, Engineering Village and Google Scholar. Mendeley reference manager was the
chosen tool for classifying and coding documents and Excel pivot tables were used for statistical analysis.
3
Fig. 2. Methodology map.
4
Table 1
Sample 1 comprising 54 general reviews on ITC according to the number of citations and FWCI.
Reference Title Year FWCI Citations Scopus Citations Google Scholar
Conceptual
Forgiarini Rupp et al. (2015) A review of human thermal comfort in the built environment 2015 14.61 66 133
Al horr et al. (2016a) Impact of indoor environmental quality on occupant well-being and comfort: A review of the literature 2016 6.06 9 25
De Dear et al. (2013) Progress in thermal comfort research over the last 20 years 2013 4.97 91 174
Al Horr et al. (2016b) Occupant productivity and office indoor environment quality: A review of the literature 2016 3.83 13 27
Djongyang et al. (2010) Thermal comfort: A review paper 2010 3.48 130 276
Chang (2016) Thermal comfort and climatic design in the tropics: An historical critique 2016 3.25 1 3
van Hoof (2010) Thermal comfort: research and practice 2010 1.12 35 63
Taleghani et al. (2013) A review into thermal comfort in buildings 2013 1.02 50 105
Djamila (2017a) Indoor thermal comfort predictions: Selected issues and trends 2017 0 3 7
Methodological
Van Hoof (2008) Forty years of Fanger's model of thermal comfort: Comfort for all? 2008 8.45 175 288
Mishra and Ramgopal (2013) Field studies on human thermal comfort – An overview 2013 6.87 71 122
Cheng et al. (2012) Thermal comfort models: A review and numerical investigation 2012 6.61 65 131
Olesen (2004) International standards for the indoor environment. 2004 5.28 68 157
de Dear (2004) Thermal comfort in practice 2004 5.26 75 174
Brager and De Dear (1998) Thermal adaptation in the built environment: a literature review 1998 3.63 496 983
Humphreys et al. (2007) Field studies of indoor thermal comfort and the progress of the adaptive approach 2007 3.4 70 108
Halawa and Van Hoof (2012) The adaptive approach to thermal comfort: A critical overview 2012 2.99 67 131
Kwong et al. (2014) Thermal comfort assessment and potential for energy efficiency enhancement in modern tropical buildings: A review 2014 2.85 34 75
Carlucci and Pagliano (2012) A review of indices for the long-term evaluation of the general thermal comfort conditions in buildings 2012 2.23 59 97
5
Yau and Chew (2014a) A review on predicted mean vote and adaptive thermal comfort models 2014 0.89 7 18
Van Craenendonck et al. (2018) A review of human thermal comfort experiments in controlled and semi-controlled environments 2017 0 0 2
Enescu (2017) A review of thermal comfort models and indicators for indoor environments 2017 0 1 3
d'Ambrosio Alfano et al. (2017) Povl Ole Fanger's impact 10 years later 2017 0 0 5
Gossauer and Wagner (2007) Post-occupancy evaluation and thermal comfort: State of the art and new approaches 2007 0 18 28
Roaf et al. (2010) Twentieth century standards for thermal comfort: promoting high energy buildings 2010 0 33 54
Heinzerling et al. (2013) Indoor environmental quality assessment models: A literature review and a proposed weighting and classification 2013 2.93 32 57
scheme
Procedural
Pérez-Lombard et al. (2008) A review on buildings energy consumption information 2008 25.54 1844 2946
Frontczak and Wargocki (2011) Literature survey on how different factors influence human comfort in indoor environments 2011 15.71 182 371
Rhee and Kim (2015) A 50-year review of basic and applied research in radiant heating and cooling systems for the built environment 2015 13.47 52 76
Yang et al. (2014) Thermal comfort and building energy consumption implications – A review 2014 12.3 150 234
Zhang et al. (2015) A review of the corrective power of personal comfort systems in non-neutral ambient environments 2015 9.77 40 65
Martínez-Molina et al. (2016) Energy efficiency and thermal comfort in historic buildings: A review 2016 6.78 32 54
(continued on next page)
Table 1 (continued)
Reference Title Year FWCI Citations Scopus Citations Google Scholar
Latha et al. (2015) Role of building material in thermal comfort in tropical climates – A review 2015 6.06 11 14
Karmann et al. (2017) Thermal comfort in buildings using radiant vs. all-air systems: A critical literature review 2017 4.83 3 8
Peeters et al. (2009) Thermal comfort in residential buildings: Comfort values and scales for building energy simulation 2009 3.78 48 259
Sekhar (2016) Thermal comfort in air-conditioned buildings in hot and humid climates – why are we not getting it right? 2016 3.38 8 24
Dounis and Caraiscos (2009) Advanced control systems engineering for energy and comfort management in a building environment-A review 2009 2.89 361 587
Karjalainen (2012) Thermal comfort and gender: A literature review 2012 2.76 69 125
Chun et al. (2004) Thermal comfort in transitional spaces—basic concepts: literature review and trial measurement 2004 2.63 53 89
Zomorodian et al. (2016) Thermal comfort in educational buildings: A review article 2016 1.34 17 33
Zain et al. (2007) Hot and humid climate: prospect for thermal comfort in residential building 2007 1.15 41 86
Vesely and Zeiler (2014) Personalized conditioning and its impact on thermal comfort and energy performance – A review 2014 1.02 38 63
Manzano-Agugliaro et al. (2015) Review of bioclimatic architecture strategies for achieving thermal comfort 2015 0.88 24 38
Mishra et al. (2016) Thermal comfort of heterogeneous and dynamic indoor conditions: An overview 2016 0.87 3 8
Khodakarami and Nasrollahi (2012) Thermal comfort in hospitals – A literature review 2012 0.62 33 61
Yau and Hasbi (2013) A review of climate change impacts on commercial buildings and their technical services in the tropics 2013 0.53 26 41
Chandel et al. (2016) Review of energy efficient features in vernacular architecture for improving indoor thermal comfort conditions 2016 0.27 5 12
Ortiz et al. (2017) A review of comfort, health, and energy use: Understanding daily energy use and wellbeing for the development of a 2017 0 0 0
new approach to study comfort
Park and Nagy (2017) Comprehensive analysis of the relationship between thermal comfort and building control research – A data-driven 2018 0 0 1
literature review
Verbeke and Audenaert (2018) Thermal inertia in buildings: A review of impacts across climate and building use 2018 0 0 3
Wang et al. (2017) A state of art of review on interactions between energy performance and indoor environment quality in Passive House 2017 0 1 5
buildings
6
Lan et al. (2017) Thermal environment and sleep quality: A review 2017 0 6 11
Karyono (1996) Thermal comfort in the tropical South-East Asia region 1996 0 13 31
Roetzel et al. (2010) A review of occupant control on natural ventilation 2010 0 73 122
3. Results of stage 1: a broad review on ITC
3.1. Sample 1: general literature reviews on ITC
Sample 1 was selected from three initial searches on Scopus carried on the 11th of November 2017, filtered by title, abstract and
keywords. The searches used the words “thermal comfort review”, “thermal comfort literature” and “thermal comfort overview”,
which resulted in 766, 569 and 186 records respectively. These records were put together and narrowed down to 604 based on scope,
relevance and duplication and then to 125 based on title and keywords. Finally, a sample of 54 reviews was selected according to the
article's type, date, and impact.
The individual impact of each document was examined and ranked according to Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI) and the
number of citations in Scopus and Google Scholar (Table 1). One document (Pérez-Lombard et al., 2008) was excluded from this
analysis due to its atypical number of citations. The documents scored 3.4 FWCI on average, with (Frontczak and Wargocki, 2011;
Rhee and Kim, 2015) scoring 15.71 and 13.47 FWCI respectively. Additionally, the selected reviews were cited in 4173 documents –
analysed as a group at the time of the search. Overall, the reviews indicate a generalised high impact, which validates the sample as a
base for reference regarding the state-of-the-art within the field.
The reviews were classified and coded according to their focus and content in 3 main groups:
• Conceptual (general and theoretical aspects of ITC, such as historical evolution, characterisation and definition of the subject and
upcoming trends)
• Methodological (means, tools and strategies employed to study ITC)
• Procedural (practical aspects and process related to specific study areas, such as building types, control systems, energy use,
climatic characteristics and occupant-building interactions).
As it can be seen in Fig. 3A the publication of documents significantly increased since 2010. 78% of the selected reviews were
published after this year. 47% of the total references used in these reviews were produced in 10 primarily non-tropical countries
(Fig. 3B). Most of the available information was published in 5 journals that specialise in this area: Building and Environment, Energy
and Buildings, ASHRAE Transactions, Applied Energy and Indoor Air (Fig. 3C). The top 5 authors cited in the sample were: Fanger, P.O.;
de Dear, R.; Arens, E; Nicol, F; and Humphreys, M (Fig. 3D).
In this first general review, it was evidenced that ITC is one of the most defining parameters influencing the perception of
environmental quality (Al horr et al., 2016a; Al Horr et al., 2016b). Literature suggests that the ultimate success or failure of a
building, regarding long-term viability, energy use and occupant satisfaction, depends heavily upon the ITC achieved (Cândido et al.,
2011a). Some studies demonstrate that thermally inadequate spaces have negative impacts on occupants' general health and well-
being and contribute to the sick building syndrome (SBS) (Al horr et al., 2016a; Frontczak and Wargocki, 2011; Wargocki et al.,
2002). Therefore, maximising occupant satisfaction and well-being while improving energy efficiency has become a chief driver for
assessment, as thermal comfort is directly linked to energy consumption escalations in the built environment (Al horr et al., 2016a;
Forgiarini Rupp et al., 2015; De Dear et al., 2013). However, frequently well-being and occupants´ comfort is said to be in conflict
with the performance of the building. A conflict which is often decided in favour of building efficiency rather than occupants
concerns, due to the need to comply with standards (Olesen, 2004; Al horr et al., 2016a; Park and Nagy, 2017).
Most documents describe “thermal comfort” in reference to the definition given by the standard ASHRAE 55 (ANSI/ASHRAE,
2013), in which it is “that condition of mind that expresses satisfaction with the thermal environment and is assessed by subjective
evaluation”. This definition implies physiological, behavioural and psychological dimensions involving interpretation, personal
preference and subjective response to the dynamic and changing environmental conditions of a particular space.
It is widely documented that the study of these dimensions has shaped the evolution of ITC and defined the two most common
assessment methods: the static model or heat balance model (introduced by Fanger, P.O. in the 1970s) and the adaptive model (de-
veloped in the 1990s and lead by de Dear, R.; Arens, E; Nicol, F; and Humphreys, M. amongst others) (Roaf et al., 2010; Forgiarini
Rupp et al., 2015; Rhee and Kim, 2015). The former model focuses on the study of set physiological variables related to the heat
exchange between humans and the environment, while the latter includes other dynamic variables related to human behaviour and
outdoor climate.
Both models were initially promoted and endorsed by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning
Engineers (ASHRAE) as part of the Standard 55 (ANSI/ASHRAE, 2013). Based on this, two other similar standards subsequently
emerged: the CSN EN 15251 by the European Committee for Standardization and the ISO 7730 by the International Organization for
Standardization (Olesen, 2004; Roaf et al., 2010). However, research comparing these three standards have found noticeable dif-
ferences between them in terms of databases, basic equations, upper and lower boundaries and reference temperatures (Taleghani
et al., 2013). There have been warnings that, in some cases, standards are blindly implemented in an effort to swiftly comply with
new policies on energy preservation, but without reflecting on local circumstances (Nicol and Humphreys, 2009). Consequently,
there is a recurrent suggestion to consider further assessment parameters, such as economic, geographic, cultural, religious, social,
and personal variables, which also affect human's thermal perception and the experience of pleasure (Yang et al., 2014; Forgiarini
Rupp et al., 2015; Zhang et al., 2015; Vesely and Zeiler, 2014; De Dear, 2011; de Dear, 2009).
Some authors argue that the static model has often overestimated the thermal sensation of occupants, especially in naturally
ventilated buildings in certain climates (Yau and Chew, 2014a; Kwong et al., 2014; Humphreys et al., 2007; Nicol, 2004). Conse-
quently, a progressive paradigm shift in the theoretical, methodological and practical perspectives of ITC research has been
7
8
Fig. 3. Statistical analysis of the selected 54 reviews, references used in these reviews and documents that cite these reviews. (A) Documents by year. (B) Publications´ origin by country. (C) Most
influential journals. (D) Most influential authors.
suggested. This implies the move away from the alleged deterministic approach of the static model towards the indeterministic
outlook of the adaptive model (Yau and Chew, 2014a; De Dear et al., 2013; de Dear, 2004; Brager and De Dear, 1998; Humphreys
et al., 2007).
In contrast, other authors contend that the use of the adaptive approach has pushed the acceptable thermal comfort zones to a
critical boundary, consequently increasing discomfort and potentially encouraging occupants to use more energy to alleviate it (Nicol
and Humphreys, 2002). This is attributed to an oversimplified adaptive approach, which is said to underestimate the earlier and
important findings of the heat balance approach (Halawa and Van Hoof, 2012). The adaptive model is alleged to fall short both in
depth and broadness, as it ignores research on the actual “adaptive activities” and “adaptive choices” (Ortiz et al., 2017). Therefore, it
is argued that more accurate ITC predictions can be achieved using an updated static model, which features adjustments to the
Predicted Mean Vote (PMV) and Predicted Percentage of Dissatisfied (PPD) indexes (Enescu, 2017; d'Ambrosio Alfano et al., 2017;
Fanger, 1970).
Beyond the discussion on the superiority of one model over the other, most reviews highlight the complexity involved when
assessing thermal comfort and the need for further development to understand all its interrelated aspects better (Roaf et al., 2010; Al
horr et al., 2016a; Djamila, 2017a; Frontczak and Wargocki, 2011; Cheng et al., 2012; Mishra et al., 2016; Ortiz et al., 2017). It is
frequently suggested that assessment models should be confirmed further by more robust and comprehensive statistical and scientific
research on physical, physiological and psychological factors (Djamila, 2017a; Yau and Chew, 2014a; Halawa and Van Hoof, 2012).
In this context, stands out the importance of undertaking further experiments in controlled environments (Van Craenendonck et al.,
2018) and more post-occupancy studies with fieldwork in real buildings (Djongyang et al., 2010; Mishra and Ramgopal, 2013;
Roetzel et al., 2010). Deficiencies in data collection and methodology are thought to require particular attention since the accuracy of
the predicted ITC levels heavily relies on the quality of the recorded data (Djamila, 2017a; Carlucci and Pagliano, 2012; Gossauer and
Wagner, 2007).
Additionally, more research on radiant heating and cooling systems and management control is thought to be needed (Karmann
et al., 2017; Dounis and Caraiscos, 2009), especially in hot and humid climates, since condensation is a critical issue to overcome in
those conditions (Rhee and Kim, 2015). It has been claimed that the current standards could promote high energy buildings as their
content and wording may suggest that mechanical cooling is superior (Roaf et al., 2010). This is a growing concern for both de-
veloping and developed countries, where HVAC systems have become an unavoidable feature in recent years (Pérez-Lombard et al.,
2008; Yau and Hasbi, 2013).
Numerous reviews show a significant overlap between the static model and the adaptive model, failing to individually predict
thermal comfort levels accurately (Olesen, 2004; Djamila, 2017a; van Hoof, 2010; Cheng et al., 2012; Enescu, 2017; Gossauer and
Wagner, 2007; Heinzerling et al., 2013; Zomorodian et al., 2016). There is a growing consensus that thermal neutrality is not
necessarily the ideal setting as preferences for other conditions are commonly found (Van Hoof, 2008; Karjalainen, 2012; Zomorodian
et al., 2016). For example, the perception of neutrality can vary greatly between different climates and seasons (Karyono, 1996; Zain
et al., 2007) and between occupants according to age (Zomorodian et al., 2016, Alves et al., 2016) gender (Karjalainen, 2012) and
cultural background (Karyono, 1996).
Studies suggest that in naturally ventilated buildings in warm climates, there seem to be other types of occupant's adaptations that
cannot be explained solely by the adaptations suggested in the current models (Olesen, 2004; Roetzel et al., 2010). Therefore, some
authors advocate for a focal shift in ITC research towards behavioural expressions of comfort, as lifestyles and control actions are
thought to play a crucial part in energy use (Ortiz et al., 2017). A deeper understanding of this subject is thought to require new
physiological and psychological information about comfort in the human body (Zhang et al., 2015; Zhao et al., 2014). In this context,
the term alliesthesia, coined by Cabanac (1971) in reference to “pleasurable sensations generated by the restoration of bodily stress
toward a neutral condition”, has re-emerged in many recent articles (Park and Nagy, 2017; De Dear, 2011; de Dear, 2009; Parkinson
and De Dear, 2015). Related literature highlights the opportunities of personalized conditioning systems which are argued to improve
comfort while reducing the energy consumption, even though they are still not widespread in the building practice (Vesely and Zeiler,
2014; Mishra et al., 2016; Park and Nagy, 2017).
Additionally, a lack of connection between thermal assessment procedures and the architectural and constructional characteristics
of buildings has been widely documented (Halawa and Van Hoof, 2012). Reviews that focus on particular types of buildings or
spaces, such as historic buildings (Martínez-Molina et al., 2016), residential buildings (Peeters et al., 2009; Zain et al., 2007; Lan
et al., 2017), educational buildings (Zomorodian et al., 2016; Wang et al., 2017) hospitals (Khodakarami and Nasrollahi, 2012),
transitional spaces (Chun et al., 2004) and non-uniformed spaces (Mishra et al., 2016) have found that the conventional algorithms
and benchmarks proposed by the current standards are not entirely accurate or adequate for these buildings. Therefore, some re-
search has turned to alternative means to study ITC and strategies to improve comfort according to the climate (Zain et al., 2007;
Roetzel et al., 2010) without the use of air conditioning. Many of these strategies are inspired by vernacular (Chandel et al., 2016),
passive or low-energy architectural solutions (Sekhar, 2016; Manzano-Agugliaro et al., 2015; Verbeke and Audenaert, 2018; Wang
et al., 2017) and on the appropriate use of traditional or advanced building materials (Latha et al., 2015).
Seven of the sampled reviews mentioned the general lack of information and knowledge on thermal comfort in the tropics and the
need for further testing and research (Yau and Hasbi, 2013; Chang, 2016; Olesen, 2004; Taleghani et al., 2013; Kwong et al., 2014;
Djongyang et al., 2010; Enescu, 2017). The historical roots of this subject are critically discussed in (Chang, 2016). However, none of
the reviews investigates the current landscape of ITC research in the tropics in more depth.
9
Fig. 4. Sample 2, type of climate and location of the samples included in the ASHRAE RP-884 database and the ASHRAE Global Thermal Comfort
Database II.
3.2. Sample 2: ASHRAE databases
Sample 2 addressed the ASHRAE RP-884 database (de Dear et al., 1997) comprising 19 field research projects and the ASHRAE
Global Thermal Comfort Database II (Földváry Ličina et al., 2018) comprising 42 field research projects. Both databases were ex-
amined for this article according to the project's origin, author, affiliation, field work, location, type of building, research design and
climate (Fig. 4).
The first database was published in 1998 with information from 9 countries, with a total of 20,693 records collected from 160
buildings (mostly office buildings). 24% of these records (4962) were from 52 buildings in 5 tropical locations, involving three
different types of climate: Af, Am, and Aw. Only 6.52% of the studies in tropical locations considered naturally ventilated (NV)
buildings compared to 15.22% that looked at mechanically ventilated (MV) buildings and 2.17% at mixed mode (MM) buildings. The
totality of field studies from the tropics was cross-sectional.
The second database was published in 2018 with information from 24 countries (19 new countries compared to the first data-
base), with a total of 81,846 records. 23% of these records (18,526) were from buildings in 8 tropical locations that included five
different types of climate: Af, Am, Aw, BSh and Cfa (2 new climates compared to the first database). Again, most of the projects
studied were office buildings (47%), followed by residential (22%) and educational buildings (19%). There was a more even balance
10
11
Fig. 5. Map of the world indicating tropical climates, according to Köppen-Geiger's classification, and the number of weather stations per region, according to data from the National Centres for
Environmental Information (N.O. and A.A. NOAA, 2019).
between the study of buildings with mechanical ventilation and natural ventilation in this database, as it can be seen in the graphics.
Form the above figures it can be evidenced that both ASHRAE databases included minimal information from tropical regions and
climates of Africa, South America, Central America, and the Caribbean. The variety of building-use is reduced to three main types
with the prevalence of offices. The percentage of NV buildings in the first database was limited, considering that for over 20 years the
adaptive model has been widely recommended for these types of buildings. This percentage increased in the second database, but for
the tropics, it is still a minority compare to the other types of control.
4. Results of stage 2: a focused review on ITC in tropical climates
The above broad review confirmed the lack of detailed information from tropical regions and climates within general ITC research
and within the development of the principal assessment models. This second stage of this review set to explore this subject via the
analysis of 4 different samples (Fig. 2). Samples 3–5 studied ITC research in tropical countries and cities concerning their demo-
graphic, economic and climatic contexts, while sample 6 centred on selected documents on ITC in the tropics.
As the tropics host a great diversity of climates and cultures that go beyond national borders, tropical sub-regions were grouped
by continents (Africa, America, Asia, and Oceania). Countries with a small area within the tropics (in proportion to their size) were
not considered, because data is generally reported on a national basis.
The Köppen-Geiger Climate Classification System was used in this review to broadly characterise local outdoor climates (Fig. 5),
as it is the most common climatic classification and the basis for comparison and generalisation in ITC research (Mishra and
Ramgopal, 2013; de Dear, 2009). However, this classification has been described in past literature as unsuitable because it is based on
vegetation and rainfall observations rather than on human-related aspects (Djamila, 2017a). For example, it considers average
rainfall rather than relative humidity, which is one of the variables used to study thermal comfort. It has also been claimed that
climatic information for the tropics is not sufficiently detailed, as weather stations are scattered unevenly across the globe and are
usually sparse in Africa and parts of South America (Voiland, 2015).
4.1. Samples 3–6: reviewed data
Sample 3 examined records on ITC research regarding demographic and economic data from 111 countries in the tropics. Sample
4 studied the top 33 M and large cities (MLC) located between the tropic's lines since many of the most populated cities in the world
are in this region. This sample was selected based on the United Nations (UN) database (D. of E. and S.A.-P.D. United Nations, 2014)
from 2014 and 2015 and demographic predictions for 2015–2030. Sample 5 centred on the top 43 fastest-growing cities (FGC) in the
tropics, selected according to the predicted annual rate growth for 2015–2030. This sample was considered relevant since it is
expected that by 2030 the top 30 most rapidly growing cities in the world will be in the tropics, predominantly in Africa. Ad-
ditionally, nearly half of the world's 3.9 billion population currently reside in settlements with fewer than 500 hundred inhabitants,
while only around 1 in 8 people live in mega-cities with 10 million inhabitants or more (D. of E. and S.A.-P.D. United Nations, 2014).
Data related to population, urbanisation, energy production and consumption, greenhouse gas emissions and economic devel-
opment was sourced from the World Bank database (World Bank, 2016). Urban population records were acquired from the UN
database (D. of E. and S.A.-P.D. United Nations, 2014). Information on geographical location (latitude, longitude, and altitude) and
on climate (classification, average annual temperature, and rainfall) was obtained from an open source climate model (Merkel, 2012),
which includes more than 220 million data points from thousands of weather stations worldwide. Data on AC-use was sourced from
the Japan Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Industry Association (JRAIA) (J.R. and A.C.I.A. JRAIA, 2017). Literature records on ITC
were taken from Scopus searches (February 2018) with the words: “thermal comfort” followed by the name of the region, country or
city.
Sample 6 examined 75 records from Africa (12), America (8), Asia (53) and Oceania (2), selected from bibliometric searches
carried out in February 2018 (Table 2). These resulted in 4354 records from Scopus (1799), Web of Science (1120) and Engineering
Village (1435). Documents were initially filtered based on duplication, title, and keywords to 134 records and then based on article's
type, location, date, and relevance to 75 records. Preference was given to peer-reviewed documents centred on case studies and
published after 2000. The documents were codified and analysed regarding context (location and climate), building characteristics
(use and building control) and study features (assessment models, research tools and sample characteristics) (Fig. 6).
The most cited documents in the sample were (Wong and Khoo, 2003; Busch, 1992) with 313 and 274 Google Scholar citations
respectively. The documents with the highest impact were (Manu et al., 2016; Gou et al., 2018) with 19.43 and 13.14 FWCI re-
spectively. Although, the average for the overall sample was considerably lower at 1.86 FWCI for the field subject. Various articles
included the words “tropics”, “tropical regions” “tropical zones” or “tropical climates” within their titles, however, they primarily
focused on specific countries or cities rather than more extensive tropical regions. Only 11 documents cross-referenced field studies
from various cities within the same country and just two considered studies from different countries (Givoni et al., 2006; Damiati
et al., 2016).
4.2. Demographic and related data
Thousand four hundred and eighty-four records on ITC were found for sample 3. Their analysis revealed that 93 out of 111
countries had less than five ITC records, including 65 with zero records. This indicates that information on thermal comfort is very
limited or non-existent for 84% of the countries located in the tropical region. 87% of the records were linked to 9 countries: Brazil,
12
Table 2
Sample 6 according to the article's source, context, study features and building characteristics.
Source Context Study Building
Reference Title Year FWCI Citations Country City Climate Model of Tool Occupants Scale Participant Use Control
Google assessment
Scholar
Africa
Kameni Nematchoua A field study on thermal comfort 2014 0.43 24 Cameroon Nkongsamba, Am, Aw PS + SA S+M Het L 1120 res NV
et al. (2014a) in naturally-ventilated buildings Douala, Bafang

located in the equatorial
climatic region of Cameroon
Kameni Nematchoua Adaptation and comparative 2014 0 9 Cameroon Douala, Yaounde Am, Aw SA S+M Het L 2650 edu, NV
et al. (2014b) study of thermal comfort in other
naturally ventilated classrooms
and buildings in the wet tropical
zones
Lenoir et al. (2012) Post-occupancy evaluation and 2012 5.45 23 Francia, La Saint-Pierre Aw SA + O S + M + DS Het L 137 edu MM
experimental feedback of a net Reunion
zero-energy building in a
tropical climate
Koranteng and Mahdavi An investigation into the 2011 0.39 14 Ghana Kumasi Aw PS S Het L 64 off NV + MM
(2011) thermal performance of office
buildings in Ghana
Kameni Nematchoua Thermal comfort and 2017 1.94 1 Madagascar Antsiranana Aw PA + SA S+M Het L 400 med, NV
13
et al. (2017a) comparison of some parameters com
coming from hospitals and
shopping centers under natural
ventilation: The case of
Madagascar Island
Kameni Nematchoua Statistical analysis of indoor 2017 0 0 Madagascar Antsiranana Aw SA S+M Het L 1092 res, NV
et al. (2017b) parameters a subjective edu,
responses of building occupants med,
in a hot region of Indian ocean: com
a case of Madagascar island
Nematchoua et al. Adaptive approach of thermal 2017 1 Madagascar Antsiranana Aw PA + SA S+M Het L 692 res, NV
(2018) comfort and correlation edu
between experimental data and
mathematical model in some
schools and traditional
buildings of Madagascar under
natural ventilation.
Adunola (2014) Evaluation of urban residential 2014 1.15 10 Nigeria Ibadan Aw SA S+M Het M 12 res NV
thermal comfort in relation to
indoor and outdoor air
temperatures in Ibadan, Nigeria
Efeoma and Uduku Assessing thermal comfort and 2014 0 1 Nigeria Enugu Aw PA M+O off NV + MM
(2014) energy efficiency in tropical
African offices using the
adaptive approach
Table 2 (continued)
Google assessment
Scholar
Hashemi and Khatami Effects of solar shading on 2017 9.63 2 Uganda Kampala Af PA DS res NV
(2017) thermal comfort in low-income
tropical housing
Malama and Sharples Thermal performance of 1997 0.96 18 Zambia Kitwe Cwa SA S+M Het M 21 res NV
(1997) traditional and contemporary
housing in the cool season of
Zambia
Sharples and Malama A thermal comfort field survey 1997 0 16 Zambia Kitwe Cwa SA S+M Het M 21 res NV
(1997) in the cool season of Zambia
America
Cândido et al. (2011b) Combined thermal acceptability 2011 3.17 62 Brazil Maceio Am SA S+M Het L 2075 edu NV
and air movement assessments
in a hot humid climate
Barbosa et al. (2015) Thermal comfort in naturally 2015 1.79 10 Brazil Rio de Janeiro Am PA DS off NV
ventilated buildings with double
skin facade under tropical
climate conditions: The
influence of key design
14
parameters
Djamila (2017b) Thermal comfort in naturally 2017 0 0 Brazil Maceio Am SA S+M Het L 1885 edu NV
ventilated buildings in Maceio,
Brazil
Caetano et al. (2017) Evaluation of thermal comfort 2017 0 0 Brazil Niteroi Aw PS S Het L 116 off MV
and occupant satisfaction in
office buildings in hot and
humid climate regions by means
of field surveys
Pomponi et al. (2017) On the intrinsic flexibility of the 2017 0 0 Brazil Rio de Janeiro Am PA DS off NV
double skin façade: A
comparative thermal comfort
investigation in tropical and
temperate climates
Natarajan et al. (2015) A field study of indoor thermal 2015 2.42 12 Colombia Bogotá Cfb PA + PS + SA S + M + TR Het L 115 off NV + MV + -
comfort in the subtropical MM
highland climate of Bogota,
Colombia
Tablada et al. (2005) Thermal comfort of naturally 2005 0 19 Cuba Havana Aw PA + PS + SA S+M Het L 101 res NV
ventilated buildings in warm-
humid climates: field survey
Oropeza-Perez et al. Adaptive thermal comfort in the 2017 2.27 3 Mexico Am, SA S+M Spe L 74 res MM
(2017) main Mexican climate Aw,
conditions with and without BSh
passive cooling
Table 2 (continued)
Google assessment
Scholar
Asia
Zhang et al. (2010) Thermal comfort in naturally 2010 0 100 China Guangzhou Cfa PA + PS + SA S Het M 30 edu, NV
ventilated buildings in hot- other

humid area of China
Luo et al. (2015) Evaluating thermal comfort in 2015 7.01 52 China Shenzhen Cwa PA + PS S+M Het L 50 off MM
mixed-mode buildings: A field
study in a subtropical climate
Zhang et al. (2017) Adaptation-based indoor 2017 0 3 China Guangzhou Cfa SA S+M Spe M 40 off MM
environment control in a hot-
humid area
Lu et al. (2015) Influence of natural ventilation 2015 0 3 China Sanya Aw SA S+M Het L 402 other NV
on thermal comfort in semi-
open building under early
summer climate in the area of
tropical island
Lu et al. (2018) Field study of thermal comfort 2018 0 1 China Hainan Cfa PS + SA S Het L 1944 res NV
in non-air-conditioned buildings
in a tropical island climate
15
Rajasekar and Adaptive comfort and thermal 2010 0 8 India Chennai Aw PS + SA S+M Het L 295 res NV
Ramachandraiah expectations–a subjective
(2010) evaluation in hot humid climate
Zhang et al. (2018) Thermal comfort in interior and 2018 0 0 China Guangzhou Cfa SA S+M Het L 1657 res NV
semi-open spaces of rural folk
houses in hot- humid areas
Yan et al. (2017) Thermal adaptive models in the 2017 2.09 123 China Nanning, Cfa, SA S+M Het L 120 res NV
residential buildings in different Guangzhou, Haikou Cwb
climate zones of Eastern China
Mui and Chan (2003) Adaptive comfort temperature 2003 3.38 145 Hong Kong Hong Kong Cwa SA S+M Het M 12 off MV
model of air-conditioned
building in Hong Kong
Pellegrino et al. (2012) A field survey in Calcutta. 2012 0 16 India Calcutta Aw SA S+M+O Het L 100 edu NV + MM
Architectural issues, thermal
comfort and adaptive
mechanisms in hot humid
climates
Mishra and Ramgopal Thermal comfort field study in 2014 1.96 20 India Kharagpur Aw SA S+M Spe L 121 edu MM
(2014) undergraduate laboratories – An
analysis of occupant perceptions
Manu et al. (2016) Field studies of thermal comfort 2016 13.14 50 India Chennai, Aw, PS + SA S Het L 6330 off NV + MV + -
across multiple climate zones Ahmedabad, BSh MM
for the subcontinent: India Bangalore
model for adaptive comfort
(IMAC)
Table 2 (continued)
Google assessment
Scholar
Mishra and Ramgopal An adaptive thermal comfort 2015 2.97 17 India Chennai, Aw, PA + SA S+M Het L 11,181 other NV + MV
(2015) model for the tropical climatic Hyderabad, BSh
regions of India (Köppen climate Kharagpur, Kolkata
type A)
Indraganti (2011) Thermal comfort in apartments 2011 0.75 30 India Hyderabad BSh PA + PS S+M Het L 113 res NV + MV + -
in India: Adaptive use of MM
environmental controls and
hindrances
Maiti (2013) Physiological and subjective 2013 0 12 India Bangalore Aw PS + SA O + TR Spe M 40 TR MV
thermal response from Indians
Dhaka et al. (2014) Effect of building envelope on 2014 0 4 India PA + PS DS NV
thermal environmental
conditions of a naturally
ventilated building block in
tropical climate
Hamzah et al. (2016) Thermal comfort analyses of 2016 0 3 Indonesia Makassar Aw PS + SA S+M Het L 118 edu NV
naturally ventilated university
classrooms
Karyono (2008) Bandung thermal comfort study: 2008 0 20 Indonesia Bandung Af PA + SA S + M + TR Spe M 20 other NV + MV
16
Assessing the applicability of an
adaptive model in Indonesia
Alfata et al. (2015) Field investigation of indoor 2015 0 2 Indonesia Surabaya Af PA M res NV
thermal environments in
apartments of Surabaya,
Indonesia: Potential passive
cooling strategies for middle-
class apartments
Givoni et al. (2006) Thermal sensation responses in 2007 0.5 16 Indonesia, SA O Het L 288 res, NV + MV + -
hot, humid climates: effects of Singapore edu, MM
humidity TR
Hussein and Rahman Field study on thermal comfort 2009 1.82 27 Malaysia Johor Bahru Af PS + SA S+M Het edu, MV
(2009) in Malaysia med
Yau and Chew (2014b) Adaptive thermal comfort 2014 1 9 Malaysia Kuala Lumpur, Af PS + SA S+M Het L 293 med MV
model for air-conditioned Banting, Putrajaya,
hospitals in Malaysia Kajang, Klang,
Sungai Buloh,
Selayang, Kuala
Kubu
Yau and Chew (2009) Thermal comfort study of 2009 0.77 35 Malaysia Putrajaya, Kajang, Af PS + SA S+M Het L 114 med MV
hospital workers in Malaysia Klang
Azizpour et al. (2013) Thermal comfort assessment of 2013 1.52 31 Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Af PS + SA S+M Het L 188 med MV
large-scale hospitals in tropical
climates: A case study of
Table 2 (continued)
Google assessment
Scholar
University Kebangsaan Malaysia

Medical Centre (UKMMC)
Ismail and Barber A field study to determine inside 2001 0 11 Malaysia Penang (region) Af PS + SA S+M Het L 500 off MV
(2001) design conditions for Malaysian

air conditioning systems
Dahlan and Gital (2016) Thermal sensations and comfort 2016 0 12 Malaysia Seri Kembangan Af PS + SA S+M+O Spe M 10 off MV
investigations in transient
conditions in tropical office
Yau and Hasbi (2015) Field analysis of indoor air 2015 1 6 Malaysia Af PS M off MV
quality in high rise and low rise
green offices with radiant slab
cooling systems in Malaysia
Moosavi et al. (2015) Atrium cooling performance in a 2015 0 4 Malaysia Putrajaya Af PS M off NV
low energy office building in the
Tropics, a field study
Aminuddin et al. (2012) Thermal comfort field studies in 2012 0.42 6 Malaysia Af SA S+M off
two certified energy efficient
office buildings in a tropical
climate
17
Yau et al. (2011) A field study on thermal comfort 2011 0 16 Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Af PS + SA S Het other MV
of occupants and acceptable
neutral temperature at the
National Museum in Malaysia
Djamila et al. (2013) Field study of thermal comfort 2013 2.11 41 Malaysia Kota Kinabalu Af SA S+M Het L 890 res NV
in residential buildings in the
equatorial hot-humid climate of
Malaysia
Nugroho et al. (2007) A preliminary study of thermal 2007 2.28 44 Malaysia Johor Bahru Af PS M + DS res NV
comfort in Malaysia's single
storey terraced houses
Al-Tamimi and Fadzil Thermal performance analysis 2011 0 16 Malaysia George Town Af M + DS res
(2011) for ventilated and unventilated
glazed rooms in Malaysia
(comparing simulated and field
data)
Kamaruzzaman and Thermal comfort assessment of 2013 0 Malaysia Bandar Baru Bangi Af PS M edu MM
Samsul Bin Mohd a classroom in tropical climate
Tazilan (2013) conditions
Table 2 (continued)
Google assessment
Scholar
Damiati et al. (2016) Field study on adaptive thermal 2016 7.73 25 Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Af SA S+M Het L 325 off NV + MV + -
comfort in office buildings in Indonesia, Bandung, MM
Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Singapore Singapore, Shah
and Japan during hot and Alam,

humid season
Majid et al. (2014) Field survey of air conditioner 2014 0 2 Oman Nizwa, Rustak BWh SA S Het L 87 res MV
temperature settings in a hot,
dry climate (Oman)
Wong and Khoo (2003) Thermal comfort in classrooms 2003 3.28 274 Singapore Singapore Cfa PS + SA S+M Spe L 506 edu MV
in the tropics
Chen and Chang (2012) Human health and thermal 2012 2.44 37 Singapore Singapore Af SA S+M Het L 210 off MV
comfort of office workers in
Singapore
Gou et al. (2018) An investigation of thermal 2018 19.43 2 Singapore Singapore Af SA S+M Het L 279 other NV
comfort and adaptive behaviors
in naturally ventilated
residential buildings in tropical
climates: A pilot study
Feriadi et al. (2003) Adaptive behaviour and thermal 2003 4.86 31 Singapore Singapore Am PS + SA S+M Het L 300 res NV
18
comfort in Singapore's naturally
ventilated housing
Wong et al. (2002) Thermal comfort evaluation of 2002 4.65 186 Singapore Singapore Af PA + PS S+M Het L 257 res NV
naturally ventilated public
housing in Singapore
de Dear and Leow Indoor climate and thermal 1990 0 37 Singapore Singapore Af PS + SA S+M Het L 583 res
(1990) comfort in high-rise public
housing in an equatorial
climate: A field-study in
Singapore
Wang and Nyuk (2007) Applying natural ventilation for 2007 0 53 Singapore Singapore Af PA + SA M res NV
thermal comfort in residential
buildings in Singapore
Cheung et al. (2017) Longitudinal assessment of 2017 3.61 5 Singapore Singapore Af SA S+M Het M 15 res, NV + MV + -
thermal and perceived air off, MM
quality acceptability in relation other
to temperature, humidity, and
CO2 exposure in Singapore
Inkarojrit et al. (2008) Exploring the variation of the 2008 0.78 1 Thailand Bangkok Aw SA S Het L 100 edu NV + MV
desired thermal sensation in
tropical climate: A pilot study
Yamtraipat et al. (2005) Thermal comfort standards for 2005 0 107 Thailand Chiang Mai, Aw SA S+M Het L 1520 edu, MV
air conditioned buildings in hot Mahasarakham, off
and humid Thailand considering Prachuap Khiri
additional factors of Khan, Bangkok
acclimatization and education
level
Table 2 (continued)
Google assessment
Scholar
Sattayakorn et al. Clarifying thermal comfort of 2017 2.27 4 Thailand Bangkok Aw PS + SA S+M Het L 928 med MV
(2017) healthcare occupants in tropical
region: A case of indoor
environment in Thai hospitals

Busch (1992) A tale of two populations: 1992 0 313 Thailand Bangkok Aw PA + PS S+M Het L 1100 off NV + MV
thermal comfort in air-
conditioned and naturally
ventilated offices in Thailand
Pichatwatana et al. An integrative approach for 2017 0 2 Thailand Bangkok Aw SA S+M Het L 383 other NV
(2017) indoor environment quality
assessment of large glazed air-
conditioned airport terminal in
the tropics
Rangsiraksa (2006) Thermal comfort in Bangkok 2006 2.31 16 Thailand Bangkok Aw SA S+M Het L 1377 res NV + MV
residential buildings
Jitkhajornwanich Shifting comfort zone for hot- 2006 0.77 9 Thailand Aw SA + O S+M Het L 1322 res NV
(2006) humid environments
Srisuwan and Shoichi Field investigation on indoor 2017 0 0 Thailand Bangkok, Rio de Am PA M res NV + MV + -
(2017) thermal environment of a high- Janeiro MM
19
rise condominium in hot-humid
climate of Bangkok, Thailand
Nguyen et al. (2011) An investigation on climate 2011 2.18 69 Vietnam Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh Cwa, PA + PS M + DS res NV
responsive design strategies of City, Danang Aw, Am
vernacular housing in Vietnam
Oceania
Erlandson et al. (2003) Environmental and human 2003 0.47 28 Australia Townsville AW PS + SA S+M Het L 1771 off MV
factors influencing thermal
comfort of office occupants in
hot – humid and hot – arid
climates
W.C. H (1963) Thermal comfort in the hot 1963 0 24 Australia Weipa Aw S+M Spe other
humid tropics of Australia
Key Model of assessment: SA = Statistical Adaptive, Sample: Het = Heterogeneous, Spe = Specific
PA = Predictive adaptive, PS=Predictive Static, O=Other Scale: S=Small, M = Medium, L = Large
Tools: S=Survey, M = Measurement, DS = Computer Use: edu = Educational, med = Medical, off = Office, res = Residential, TR = test room,
dynamic simulation, O=Other, TR = Test Room Control: NV = Natural Ventilation, MV = Mechanical Ventilation, MM = Mix Mode
Fig. 6. Coding criteria for sample 6.
20
India, Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, Mexico, Thailand, Nigeria and Indonesia. China was not included in the country list because its
tropical region is relatively small compared to its overall size. However, five Chinese tropical cities were part of the city analysis in
sample 4.
Five hundred and forty-three records on ITC were found for sample 4, which studied 33 MLC. Sixteen of these cities displayed less
than 5 records, including 5 cities with zero records. 65% of the documents were linked to 4 cities: Hong Kong, Singapore, Guangzhou,
Guangdong, and Mexico City. In sample 5, which studied 43 FGC, only 20 ITC records were found. Brasilia was at the top of the list
with 6 records, the rest 98% of FGC had less than five records, including 72% with zero records.
Tables 3 and 4 highlight the most and least studied countries and cities. Table 3 includes data on seven different aspects (A–G)
from each country that are directly or indirectly related to ITC research and that could potentially impact the development of this
subject. For example, countries with large populations and high levels of CO2 emissions, electric consumption and AC demand per
capita are in theory in more need of ITC research. Additionally, countries with high household consumption and GDP per capita are
likely to increase AC demand in the future. The highest levels in each category were highlighted in order to identify where ITC
research is critical. Table 4 includes data on six aspects that influence ITC in cities related to population, type of climate and potential
HVAC demand in terms of cooling degree days (CDD) and heating degree days (HDD).
Tropical Africa emerges as the region with less research on thermal comfort overall, closely followed by tropical America (Fig. 7).
Forty-three African countries were studied with a total population of 986.4 million people. One hundred and fifteen ITC documents
were found for this region, with an average of 0.39 documents per million people (DPM). Thirty-nine countries were below this
average, 29 of them with zero ITC records. Amongst these, Ethiopia, Congo DR, Sudan, South Sudan, Mozambique, and Angola are
the least studied regarding their population, with the first two identified as critical. Nigeria was the country with most records in this
region (44), but only 0.24 DPM. Seven African cities (MLC) were considered with a combined population of 49.2 million people.
Lagos and Nairobi were the most studied cities, whereas Kinshasa and Luanda were the least studied regarding their population.
Thirty-nine tropical American countries were studied with a total population of 572.5 million people. Four hundred and fifty-one
ITC documents were found for this region, with an average of 0.45 DPM. Thiry-three countries were below this average, 27 of them
with zero ITC records. Peru, Guatemala, Bolivia, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic are the least studied. Brazil was the country with
most records in this region with 298 documents and a 1.44 DPM; however, it also shows the highest levels of energy consumption and
AC demand per capita. Five American cities (MLC) were considered with a combined population of 59.2 million people. Mexico City
and Rio de Janeiro were the most studied cities, whereas Lima and Bogotá were the least studied regarding their population.
Sixteen Asian countries were examined with a total population of 2013.8 million people. Six hundred and ninety-four ITC
documents were found for this region, with an average of 4.07 DPM. Thirteen countries were below this average, 4 of them with zero
ITC records. The Philippines, Vietnam, Myanmar, Yemen, and Cambodia are the least studied. India was the country with most
records in this region with 246 documents but only 0.19 DPM and high records in categories F and G. Therefore, it was identified as
critical together with Vietnam. The countries that had the most records per capita were Singapore with 18.1 DPM and Malaysia with
5.9 DRM. These were also the highest records for sample 3. Sample 4 considered 21 Asian cities with a combined population of 190
million people. Hong Kong and Singapore were the most studied cities, whereas Manila, Ahmadabad, and Foshan were the least
studied regarding their population.
Thirteen countries in Oceania were considered with a total population of 46.2 million people. Two hundred and twenty-four ITC
documents were found for this region. Two hundred and twenty-three of these documents were from Australia in general, but it was
not possible to establish how many were only from its tropical region. The average DPM when Australia is taken into account is 0.72
DPM; however, when Australia is not considered, it decreases to 0.01 DPM. Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea were identified
as the least studied countries. No cities from this region were included in sample 4.
Various populous cities were not considered in this review because they were outside the tropic latitudes; for example, Sao Paulo
(23.55° S, Cfb climate and 21.1 million people), Dhaka (23.7° N, Aw climate and 14.4 million people), Karachi (24.8° N, BWh climate
and 21.2 million people and Delhi (28.7° N, BSh climate and 19 million people). However, many of the issues discussed here may also
apply to these cities as their location is very close to the tropics.
4.3. Tropical climates
The studied cities were located in 11 different types of climates: Af, Am, Aw, BSh, BSk, BWh, Cfa, Cfb, Csb, Cwa, and Cwb.
Records show that in the tropics most people lived in climates classified as A, followed by C and B (Table 4). The most common
climate found in the sample was Aw, with more than 149.6 million people in 2015, this figure is expected to grow to 226.9 million by
2030. The largest cities with this climate are Mumbai, Kolkata, Lagos, Manila, and Kinshasa, which by 2030 are expected together to
host 108 million people. All of these cities are coastal, apart from Kinshasa, which is located on a river bank.
Temperate C climates appear to be the most researched in the tropics, Cwa in particular, which is characteristic of cities such as
Shenzhen, Hong Kong, and Belo Horizonte. However, little research was found for Cfb and Csb characteristic of cities such as Bogota,
Nairobi, and Nakuru, which together currently host almost 14 million people (number expected to increase to 20 million by 2030).
Arid B climates are the least researched. No records were found for BSk and only one record for BWh, which is characteristic of cities
such as Lima and Al-Khartum expected together to have more than 20 million people by 2030.
Studies for nine types of climates were found in sample 6, mostly from Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, India, and China. The most
studied climates were Af, Am, Aw, Cwa, and Cfa and the least studied were Cwb, Cfb, BSh, and BWh (Fig. 8).
Results from samples 4 and 5 indicated that by 2030 most urban population in the tropics will likely live in Aw climates, followed
by BSh, Am and Cfa (Fig. 9). However, the climates that have been studied the most in samples 2,4,5 and 6 were Cwa and Af. Aw has
21
Table 3
Most and least studied tropical countries in sample 3.
A B C D E F G
AC demand Household
CO2 Popula!on GDP (per
Electric power (units per consump!on
POPULATION emissions living in slums capita
consump!on million (expenditure per
(millions) (metric tons (% of urban growth
(kWh per capita) people) capita growth
per capita) popula!on) annual %)
COUNTRY ITC docs. annual %)
Total DPM 2014 2016 2000-2014 2014 2016 2014 2014 2014
Nigeria 44 0.24 176.5 186.0 -0.9 144 2,715 50 -2.0 3.5
MOST STUDIED
Cameroon 11 0.47 22.2 23.4 2.4 281 .. 38 2.5 3.1

Kenya 9 0.19 46.0 48.5 -0.5 167 .. 56 1.6 2.6
Tanzania 8 0.14 52.2 55.6 7.5 99 .. 51 1.3 3.7
Madagascar 7 0.28 23.6 24.9 0.7 .. .. 77 -2.9 0.6
AFRICA
Ethiopia 0 0.00 97.4 102.4 5.7 70 .. 74 .. 7.5

Congo, DR. 0 0.00 73.7 78.7 9.3 109 .. 75 9.0 5.9
LEAST STUDIED
Sudan 0 0.00 37.7 39.6 .. 190 .. 92 -0.1 0.3

South Sudan 0 0.00 30.8 32.3 2.2 9,444 .. .. 3.3 0.8
Mozambique 0 0.00 27.2 28.8 10.2 463 .. 80 1.7 4.4
Angola 0 0.00 26.9 28.8 5.7 312 .. 56 .. 1.2
Brazil 298 1.44 204.2 207.7 2.3 2,601 13,995 22 1.3 -0.4
MOST STUDIED
Mexico 96 0.75 124.2 127.5 -0.1 2,090 8,452 11 0.4 0.9

Venezuela 18 0.57 30.7 31.6 -0.2 2,658 9,883 .. -4.7 -5.2
Colombia 17 0.35 47.8 48.7 1.5 1,290 5,693 13 3.3 3.4
AMERICA
Cuba 5 0.44 11.4 11.5 1.9 1,434 8,017 .. 4.3 0.8

Peru 3 0.09 31.0 31.8 3.8 1,308 3,556 34 2.6 1.0
Guatemala 0 0.00 15.9 16.6 2.2 578 .. 35 2.0 2.0
LEAST STUDIED
Bolivia 0 0.00 10.6 10.9 2.7 753 .. 44 3.8 3.8

Hai! 2 0.18 10.6 10.8 3.8 39 .. 74 0.5 1.4
Dominican
1 0.09 10.4 10.6 -0.8 1,578 .. 12 2.3 6.3
Rep.
India 246 0.19 1,293.9 1,324.2 4.1 806 3,404 24 5.0 6.2
MOST STUDIED
Malaysia 184 5.90 30.2 31.2 2.8 4,596 30,012 .. 5.1 4.2
Singapore 101 18.01 5.5 5.6 -1.2 8,845 27,999 .. 1.1 2.2
Thailand 51 0.74 68.4 68.9 3.4 2,540 22,668 25 0.5 0.5
ASIA
Indonesia 41 0.16 255.1 261.1 2.7 812 8,808 22 4.0 3.7

Philippines 3 0.03 100.1 103.3 0.8 699 7,743 38 3.8 4.4
LEAST STUDIED
Vietnam 8 0.09 90.7 92.7 7.1 1,411 21402 27 4.9 4.8

Myanmar 0 0.00 51.9 52.9 4.6 217 3,895 41 .. 7.0
Yemen 1 0.04 26.2 27.6 0.4 216 .. 61 .. -2.7
Cambodia 2 0.13 15.3 15.8 7.1 271 6,979 55 2.8 5.3
MS Australia 223 9.24 23.5 24.1 -0.8 10,059 41,779 .. 1.1 1.0
OCEANIA
Solomon
1 0.08 11.5 12.2 .. 40 .. 96 -9.4 0.2
Islands
LS
Papua New 0 0.00 7.8 8.1 3.8 .. .. .. .. 10.2
Guinea
Light grey: Documents that cite the selected reviews. The bars and lines in this colour represent the documents in which the selected review articles
have been cited. Purple: References used in the selected 54 reviews. The bars and lines in this colour represent the documents that appear cited in
the reference sections of the selected review articles. Light green: Selected 54 reviews. The bars and lines in this colour represent the selected review
articles.
been moderately studied, but little research was found for BWh, Cfb, BSh, BSk, and Csb.
When data on average temperature, rainfall, and altitude from samples 2,4,5 and 6 was cross-referenced (Fig. 10), significant
differences were found between climates with the same classification but different location. Results show little variance between
temperature values, more dispersion between rainfall values and very widespread between altitude values. In terms of rainfall,
climates Cwa, Am, Cfa, and Cwb presented higher standard deviations in the samples. In terms of altitude, climates BSk and Cfb, in
particular, showed excessive standard deviations and marked differences between the meridian and the average values. For example,
22
Table 4
Most and least studied mega and large cities in sample 4.
ITC docs. Potenal average average

POPULATION Altu
HVAC Köppen annual annual
CITY (millions) de
Total DPM demand -Geiger temp. rainfall
2015 (m)
(CDD+HDD) (°C) (mm)
COUNTRY
MOST Lagos NGA 10 0.37 2,653 13.1 Aw 27 1,693 6
STUDIED Nairobi KEN 8 0.42 3.9 C 19 869 1,669
LEAST Kinshasa COD 0 0.00 2,098 11.6 Aw 26 1,368 279
AFRICA
STUDIED Luanda AGO 0 0.00 5.5 BSh 24 439 75
MOST Mexico City MEX 31 1.95 829 21.0 Cwb 16 625 2,238
STUDIED Rio de Janeiro BRA 20 0.86 2,406 12.9 Am 23 1,278 8
23
LEAST Lima PER 0 0.00 1,011 9.9 BWh 19 16 163
AMERICA
STUDIED Bogotá COL 2 0.15 1,787 9.8 C 14 866 2,586
Hong Kong CHN 182 8.05 2,374 7.3 Cwa 23 2,152 39
MOST
Singapore SGP 101 3.77 5.6 Af 27 2,378 9
STUDIED
Guangzhou CHN 41 1.85 2,449 12.5 Cfa 22 1,720 18
ASIA
Manila PHL 1 0.04 3,438 12.9 Aw 27 2,047 10
LEAST
Ahmadabad IND 1 0.04 3,528 7.3 BSh 27 753 51
STUDIED
Foshan CHN 0 0.00 7.0 Cfa 22 1,661 8
Light grey: Documents that cite the selected reviews. The bars and lines in this colour represent the documents in which the selected review articles have been cited. Purple: References used in the selected
54 reviews. The bars and lines in this colour represent the documents that appear cited in the reference sections of the selected review articles. Light green: Selected 54 reviews. The bars and lines in this
colour represent the selected review articles.
Table 5
Types of climates in samples 4 and 5 regarding population and representative cities.
Climate ITC doc. Total POP. (millions) Representative city
Group Sub-group 2015 2030 Name POP. 2015 ITC doc.
A (tropical) Aw 87 149.6 226.9 Mumbai 21 8

Kolkata 14.8 6
Lagos 13.1 10
Manila 12.9 1
Kinshasa 11.6 0
Am 34 32.2 43.4 Rio de Janeiro 12.9 20
Jakarta 10.3 12
Af 123 14.7 20.6 Kuala Lumpur 6.8 22
Singapore 5.6 101
244 196.5 290.9
B (arid) BWh 1 15.4 21.3 Lima 9.9 0
Al-Khartum 5.1 1
BSk 0 0.8 1.6 Asmara 0.8 0
BSh 23 33.8 54.6 Hyderabad 8.9 18
Ahmadabad 7.3 1
24 50.0 77.4
C (temperate) Cwb 35 28.1 37.3 Mexico City 21 31
Cwa 207 28.8 36.6 Shenzhen 10.7 14
Hong Kong 7.3 182
Csb 0 0.3 0.6 Nakuru 0.3 0
Cfb 10 14.0 19.7 Bogota 9.7 2
Nairobi 3.9 8
Cfa 43 26.9 34.6 Guangzhou 12.4 41
Dongguan 7.4 2
295 98.1 128.8
The text that appears in bold shows the total sum in each column according to the climate group.
the cities in the ASHRAE databases (sample 2) classified as Cfb were located near the cost at an average of 30 m above sea level, while
tropical cities with the same climate such as Nairobi (1669 m) and Bogota (2586 m) were located in highlands. When average altitude
values for this climate are compared, the average is 1482, the meridian is 1886 and the standard deviation is 990.
4.4. Assessment models
In the information reviewed from field studies in tropical regions (sample 6), some aspects coincide with the general tendencies
found in the broad review (sample 1). For example, there is significant evidence of the marked differences between the analysis with
the static and the adaptive models, regularly producing disperse outcomes. Additionally, the occupant's desired thermal sensation
was very often found to be other than the established as ‘neutral’ by the standards (Manu et al., 2016; Hamzah et al., 2016; Wong
et al., 2002; Inkarojrit et al., 2008; Hwang et al., 2009). Most studies used these standards to analyse data after fieldwork rather than
to predict ITC, with the models been rarely used on their own to evaluate ITC (Fig. 11). 84% of the studies employed combinations of
models or alternative statistical adaptive (SA) models, combined with additional observations from the authors. SA models refer here
to those that used ad hoc linear regressions or other statistical strategies to adjust the standard model's algorithms to suit particular
conditions and data obtained during fieldwork.
In ITC for tropical regions, there is a marked tendency for the proposal of bespoke SA models, including a model for hot and
humid climates in general (Toe and Kubota, 2013) or models for specific tropical regions in South-East Asia (Nguyen et al., 2012),
India (Mishra and Ramgopal, 2015), Mexico (Oropeza-Perez et al., 2017) and Brazil (Cândido et al., 2011a). Other proposals con-
centrated on specific types of buildings, such as residential buildings in different climate zones of Eastern China (Yan et al., 2017) and
office buildings in hot and humid climates of India (Indraganti et al., 2014). However, there is not yet a consensus of the viability or
applicability in diverse contexts for any of the proposed models. These results show the importance given to post-occupancy data and
evidenced that the standard models alone are not fully trusted to study ITC in tropical regions.
Five data collection tools were identified in the sample: on-site environmental measurements, occupant's surveys, dynamic
computer simulation, test room, and observation. In 62% of the sample, measurements were combined with occupants' surveys.
Surveys alone were used in 11% of the studies, while dynamic computer simulations were used in 5%. The remaining studies used
varied combinations of these tools.
Surveys were classified here as large (more than 50 participants), medium (from 10 to 50 participants) and small (less than 10
participants). Large-scale studies were the majority with 82% of the sample. Surveys targeted two types of occupants: heterogeneous
(generally referred to as workers, residents or occupants) and specific (occupants grouped according to age, gender or other particular
characteristics). 87% of the studies that featured participants focused on heterogeneous groups, whereas 13% of the studies centred
on specific groups (the most studied being students and the elderly).
In terms of building-use, most of the information in the sample was from residential buildings (34%), followed by offices (24%),
24
25
Fig. 7. Percentage of ITC documentation per region in each sample, contrasted against population figures for 2015.
26
Fig. 8. Map showing the geographical location and climate for the 75 studies in sample 6.
27
Fig. 9. Population (million people) per climate in samples 4 and 5 compared to ITC documents per climate in samples 2, 4, 5 and 6.
28
Fig. 10. Climatic characteristics for samples: 2(ASHRAE databases), 4(MLC) and 5(FGC).
29
Fig. 11. Building characteristic, methods of assessment and tools in sample 6.
educational (19%), medical (8%), commercial (2%), test room (1%), and other buildings (12% e.g. museums, station halls, airport
terminals, hotel semi-open lobbies and student's dormitories). Most studies centred on NV buildings, followed by AC and MM
buildings. These results suggest that there is now available information from the tropics in a broader variety of building-use and
environmental control systems that could complement the ASHRAE databases.
4.5. ITC variables
Most studies in sample 6 confirm that people in tropical hot and humid regions are generally quite tolerant to high indoor
temperatures, heat stress (Lu et al., 2018) and humid environments (Zhang et al., 2010), while they have a lower tolerance to cold
conditions than predicted (Lu et al., 2018). Although, some studies highlight that in extreme hot-arid climates people instinctively
express their preference for cold environments rather than for neutral ones (Majid et al., 2014). Within the sample, comfort ranges
varied from 22 to 27 °C in Brazil (Caetano et al., 2017), 24.6 to 28.4 °C in Madagascar (Nematchoua et al., 2018), 19.6 to 28.5 °C in
India (Manu et al., 2016) and 27.1 to 29.3 °C in Singapore (Wong and Khoo, 2003); whilst in Mexico research suggested that people
are capable of standing temperatures over 30 °C, as long as they have control over avenues of adaptation (Oropeza-Perez et al., 2017).
Literature from tropical regions in China specified that the ability to adapt is effective in the range of 10 to 35 °C outdoor tem-
perature, but it is limited beyond this range (Yan et al., 2017).
Occupants' thermal sensation and acceptance were perceived differently according to the ventilation mode. Studies showed a
higher acceptable temperature in NV buildings while overcooling appears to be a common phenomenon in office spaces, being the
cause of thermal discomfort and energy waste (Chen and Chang, 2012). For example, research in Thailand (Srisuwan and Shoichi,
2017) suggested 28 °C as the neutral temperature for NV spaces and 25 °C for AC spaces. On the contrary, comfort ranges varied from
25.4 to 26.5 °C in Ghana (Koranteng and Mahdavi, 2011) and from 19.7 and 24.7 °C in Zambia (Sharples and Malama, 1997) under
NV mode, while the temperature range was wider (between 25.4 and 30.5 °C) for MV spaces (Koranteng and Mahdavi, 2011). A study
in Nigeria (Efeoma and Uduku, 2014) showed that when combining NV and MV systems, acceptable comfort temperature could reach
up to 32.9 °C.
The two most common adaptive practices observed in hot and humid climates that were linked to improving acceptability levels
were, primarily, increasing the indoor air velocity (via cross ventilation of mechanical fans) and secondarily, reducing clothing
insulation (Efeoma and Uduku, 2014; Zhang et al., 2010; Mishra and Ramgopal, 2014; Djamila et al., 2013; Gou et al., 2018) and
activity levels (Efeoma and Uduku, 2014). For example, a study from Brazil established different acceptable ranges, from 24 to 27 °C
with less than 0.4 m/s; from 27 to 29 °C with 0.41 to 0.8 m/s, and from 29 to 31 °C with more than 0.81 m/s (Cândido et al., 2011b).
Regarding clothing insulation, a study in Cameroon (Kameni Nematchoua et al., 2014b) identified that ranges could vary from 0.36 to
1.45 clo according to the season (wet or dry). These results were confirmed by different Chinese studies (Luo et al., 2015; Zhang et al.,
2018) that indicated a 0.3 clo for the summer season and a range between 0.27 and 1.2 clo for the no-summer season in the city of
Guangzhou. Clothing resistance of 0.78clo on average was found within wet tropical climates (Am type) for 22.4–26.7 °C comfort
temperatures; while in tropical hot humid climates (Aw type) it was 0.67 clo on average for 24.3–27.8 °C comfort temperatures.
No similar study was found in the sample regarding the specific impact of metabolic rates (met) on temperature acceptability. It
was noticed that most comfort evaluations in naturally ventilated environments adopted the range of 1.0–1.3 met, recommended by
the adaptive model. Although, a study warns that met could noticeably change according to seasonal variations, as a result of physical
activities usually being more intense in the dry than in the rainy season (Kameni Nematchoua et al., 2014b).
In the case of relative humidity (RH), however, there appear to be conflicting views. Some studies indicated that high levels of
humidity could cause a negative effect on thermal comfort (Zhang et al., 2017; Jing et al., 2013). Therefore, it is suggested that
optimal ranges lie between 50 and 60% RH (Yau et al., 2011). Other studies argued that high relative humidity effects the thermal
sensation of the occupants only when the indoor temperature is relatively high (26–27 °C) (Yamtraipat et al., 2005). It is also claimed
that the effect of RH on the thermal sensations is typically very small to negligible (Lu et al., 2018; Givoni et al., 2006). Therefore,
indoor high relative humidity might be acceptable in the humid tropics, with optimum comfort close to 73%. (Djamila et al., 2014).
Literature from Thailand recommended a comfort zone with temperatures ranging from 25.6 to 31.5 °C and RH between 62.2 and
90.0%. Further research based on the ASHRAE RP-884 database proposed an alternative RH-inclusive adaptive model that sig-
nificantly extended the range of acceptable indoor conditions refading humidity (Vellei et al., 2017).
There was evidence in the sample that climate adaptation was directly related to particular economic and physiological factors.
For example, in offices occupants are generally inclined to favour the use of AC systems, while in housing, the preference is to
increase air velocity by opening the windows or using electrical fans (Hwang et al., 2009). These choices are related to the availability
and affordability of the systems. Therefore, occupants in residential spaces generally tolerate higher temperatures because they have
more adaptive options available (opening windows, changing their clothes, drinking beverages or using fans) (Zhang et al., 2018;
Djamila et al., 2013). Additionally, they are usually responsible for the cooling costs. The degree of the agency had been frequently
cited as a critical factor influencing psychological adaptation to the thermal environment (Zhang et al., 2017).
Other non-thermal considerations can also have an impact on thermal perceptions, for example, job satisfaction or health
awareness (Erlandson et al., 2003). Some field studies in Thai hospitals showed that patients tended to accept a broader comfort
condition than others hospital's occupants and have a lower expectation on the thermal environment, due to their focus being on their
illness (Sattayakorn et al., 2017). Furthermore, studies indicated that occupants frequently exposed to AC environments tend to
acclimatise and adapt relatively quickly to lower temperatures (Ismail and Barber, 2001), but develop less tolerance to extreme
thermal conditions and show a desired for “thermal indulgence” (Indraganti, 2011). Additionally, abrupt thermal changes caused
when moving out of AC spaces and into hot-humid climates or vice versa could produce up to 2 °C variations in skin temperature
30
Fig. 12. General results and conclusions from the samples studied.
31
(Dahlan and Gital, 2016). This is viewed as a great source of discomfort and a concern due to its potential association with health
problems.
It is known that aspects such as thermal mass, layout planning, sun exposure, the location of the openings, construction systems,
and material choices affect the energy performance of buildings in all climates. In many tropical regions building users play a critical
role in deciding these formal characteristics, as self-built construction is still widespread. Vernacular architecture elements such as
shading devices, roof overhangs, balconies, courtyards, latticework, or water features, and construction techniques with materials
such as timber or earth have evolved over a long period of time to improve thermal comfort according to the climate. However, the
introduction of these elements in buildings is no guarantee for occupant satisfaction, as these alone might not be sufficient to
maintain acceptable comfort levels in modern buildings, in countries such as Vietnam (Nguyen et al., 2011) or Indonesia (Alfata
et al., 2015). Therefore, further research is needed not only regarding the thermal performance of vernacular buildings, but also
concerning the human factors that affect the feeling of contentment and pleasure. For example, a study in hot and humid areas of
southern China (Zhang et al., 2018) suggested that neutral and acceptable temperatures were significantly different between rural
occupants and urban occupants due to variances in local culture, expectations and environmental cognition. This could explain the
reason behind the higher satisfaction in traditional buildings, which are often located in rural settings. Additionally, changes in socio-
cultural aspirations, beliefs and aesthetic preferences are blamed for the decline of vernacular architecture in countries such as India,
where it is frequently considered of inferior quality or value (Chandel et al., 2016).
5. Conclusions and discussion
5.1. Research gaps
The results of the broad and focused reviews presented here highlight diverse outlooks on acceptable limits for the most common
ITC variables, as well as other influential factors regarding tropical regions. This work also contributes to quantify the volume of
information available on ITC in the tropics and to identify the location, climate and demographic background from this information.
In this context, the following research gaps are underlined:
• The available data on ITC in tropical regions is concentrated in very few countries and cities. It is considerably limited or non-
existent in 84% of the studied countries, as well as, 39% of the mega and large cities (MLC) and 95% of the fastest-growing cities
(FGC). Research is essentially concentrated on MLC rather than FGC, which is a concern, as it is expected that by 2030 the top 30
FGC in the world will be in the tropics, predominantly in Africa.
• Tropical Africa is the region with less ITC research overall and in more need of attention, followed by South America, Central
America, and the Caribbean. Tropical Asia is the most studied region. However, it is also the most populated with ITC research
concentrating only on a reduced number of Asian countries, such as Singapore and Malaysia. Very little research per capita is
available in highly populated countries such as India, Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Congo DR, and Ethiopia. No ITC
records were found for populous countries such as Myanmar, Sudan or South Sudan. This is a concern since in most of these
countries there are additional demographic and economic factors that could potentially rise HVAC demand in the future.
• A wide variety of different climates was found in tropical cities. Figures indicated that by 2030 most urban population in the
tropics will likely live in climates described as Aw, followed by BSh, Am, and Cwb. However, the climates that have been studied
the most are Cwa and Af. Aw has been fairly studied, but little research was found for other climates in the B and C categories.
• Marked climatic differences between cities classified within the same Köppen-Geiger category were noticed. The analysis showed
little variance between temperature values; however, more dispersion between rainfall values and very widespread between
altitude values. These findings reinforced the argument that further research is needed regarding climatic characterisation suited
to study thermal comfort. This area deserves further consideration, especially within the current context of global climate-change,
where rural and urban patterns can vary drastically in relatively small distances and periods of time. Additionally, phenomena
such as La Niña and El Niño, which are particular of tropical climates, can have a high impact on climatic characterisation.
• Even when the selected studies in the tropics exhibited a marked tendency for the use of the adaptive over the static model, there
is still no substantial proof of its suitability for tropical regions. On the contrary, the analysis of sample 2 showed, in detail, the
absence of information relevant to tropical environments in both of the ASHRAE databases. There is compiling evidence that the
existing models cannot be literally translated to all types of climates, buildings or cultural context. However, no united research
protocol or strategy has been adopted for tropical regions.
5.2. Future lines of research
The above arguments are considered significant in light of supporting a pursuit in ITC research to move from universal standards
towards more tailored standards. However, acquiring local knowledge on ITC is not only relevant for the particular regions where
there is a shortage of studies, but also for humanity in general. As tropical countries rank amongst the most populated and clima-
tically diverse in the world, the ways in which ITC is addressed will have long-term global implications on sustainable development,
energy use, climate change, CO2 emissions, and related pollution. Therefore, the responsibility of addressing the current gaps ought
to be shared, becoming the next frontier for the advancement of ITC knowledge. This is, nevertheless, a complex task as there are
conflicting guidelines on the best means of assessment and tools to use across different geographic contexts. In that area, the fol-
lowing future lines of research emerge from this work:
32
• An essential discussion is in need regarding how to address the coexistence of a variety of regional models to assess thermal
comfort. It is speculated here that the response could lie in a “microzonation” system (comparable to seismic microzonation),
where regions are subdivided according to prevailing social, cultural, economic or climatic variables that affect occupant's sa-
tisfaction. For this purpose, existing studies from the tropics could be cross-referenced in similar databases to those used by the
ASHRAE. This exercise could help to identify emerging affinities, which could be used to create more comprehensive and accurate
models with individual scopes.
• There are some environmental variables that have not been contemplated within the algorithms of mainstream assessment
models, which can be very influential in tropical regions. For example, relative humidity is not a primary variable for the adaptive
model, but it is a defining feature in the tropics, being particularly high in tropical humid climates and extremely low in tropical
desert regions. Another important but greatly overlooked variable is altitude, which defines particular climates in mountain
ranges located in the tropics (e.g. the Andes and the Ghats). Climatic conditions in cities located at high altitude vary significantly
during the day due to changes in atmospheric pressure. Altitude also affects oxygen concentration in the body and the function of
the vascular system, resulting in changes in metabolic rates (Bernardi, 2012; Wang et al., 2010). Therefore, the impacts of altitude
on the perception of thermal comfort are very likely. Furthermore, CO2 levels are often overseen as a core variable in thermal
comfort. However, they can be found in relatively large concentrations within AC spaces and densely populated urban en-
vironments, both common scenarios in tropical regions. High levels of CO2 have been associated with an over-stimulation of the
respiratory system, resulting in increased metabolic rates and heat exchange with the environment, which suggests potential
effects on thermal comfort.
• There are also social variables related to the perception of status, aspirations, and desires, which are characteristic of individual
cultures in tropical regions and require further study. For example, the preferences for the use of active devices (HVAC systems)
could be rooted in their depiction as a symbol of advancement, social status, and purchasing power; in contrast to passive
strategies that might imply conventionality, obsolescent or economic scarcity. Although these variables are difficult to quantify
within algorithms, they ought to be taken into consideration for the wording and focus of the standards.
Finally, general results and conclusions from this work have been summarised and corelated in Fig. 12 for further clarity. It is
believed that clues and answers for the current issues faced by ITC research could be found through further and more inclusive
research in the tropics; as it is in this region where boundaries and extremes regarding all elements of thermal comfort coexist.
Acknowledgements
This work is independent research supported by the academic institutions where the authors have affiliations. It did not receive
any specific grant from funding agencies or commercial bodies. The authors would like to acknowledge the help of David Stevenson,
Juan Manuel Medina and Juan David Cuadros in the development of this manuscript.
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Urban Climate 29 (2019) 100488

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Indoor thermal comfort review: The tropics as the next frontier

ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT

1. How much is scientific documentation on ITC in tropical regions available? (volume)

Fig. 2. Methodology map.

Reference Title Year FWCI Citations Scopus Citations Google Scholar

3. Results of stage 1: a broad review on ITC

3.1. Sample 1: general literature reviews on ITC

3.2. Sample 2: ASHRAE databases

4. Results of stage 2: a focused review on ITC in tropical climates

4.1. Samples 3–6: reviewed data

4.2. Demographic and related data

et al. (2014a) in naturally-ventilated buildings Douala, Bafang

Source Context Study Building

Source Context Study Building

ventilated buildings in hot- other

Source Context Study Building

Source Context Study Building

University Kebangsaan Malaysia

(2001) design conditions for Malaysian

Source Context Study Building

and Japan during hot and Alam,

Source Context Study Building

environment in Thai hospitals

Fig. 6. Coding criteria for sample 6.

4.3. Tropical climates

Cameroon 11 0.47 22.2 23.4 2.4 281 .. 38 2.5 3.1

Ethiopia 0 0.00 97.4 102.4 5.7 70 .. 74 .. 7.5

Sudan 0 0.00 37.7 39.6 .. 190 .. 92 -0.1 0.3

Mexico 96 0.75 124.2 127.5 -0.1 2,090 8,452 11 0.4 0.9

Cuba 5 0.44 11.4 11.5 1.9 1,434 8,017 .. 4.3 0.8

Bolivia 0 0.00 10.6 10.9 2.7 753 .. 44 3.8 3.8

Indonesia 41 0.16 255.1 261.1 2.7 812 8,808 22 4.0 3.7

Vietnam 8 0.09 90.7 92.7 7.1 1,411 21402 27 4.9 4.8

ITC docs. Potenal average average

Group Sub-group 2015 2030 Name POP. 2015 ITC doc.

A (tropical) Aw 87 149.6 226.9 Mumbai 21 8

4.4. Assessment models

4.5. ITC variables

5. Conclusions and discussion

5.1. Research gaps

5.2. Future lines of research

air movement acceptability. Build. Res. Inf. 39, 145–153. https://doi.org/10.1080/09613218.2011.557858.

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ITC docs. Potenal average average