| 1. |
- Bröde, Peter, et al.
(författare)
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Assessment of Thermal Discomfort when Wearing Bicycle Helmets – A Modelling Framework
- 2015
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Ingår i: International Cycling Safety Conference 2015.
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Excessive sweating is a major ergonomic concern in bicycle helmet use and low wearing rates are suspected to originate, at least partly, from impaired thermal comfort due to accumulated sweat increasing skin wettedness at the head region. As a development from COST Action TU1101 WG4, we introduce a modelling framework for assessing the thermal comfort of bicy-cle helmet use. We predicted local sweat rate (LSR) at the head region as ratio to gross sweat rate (GSR) of the whole body and also based on sudomotor sensitivity (SUD), which relates the change in LSR to the change in body core temperature (ΔTre). We coupled those local models with models of thermoregulation predicting ΔTre and GSR, thus modelling head sweating in re-sponse to the characteristics of the thermal environment, clothing, level of activity, and expo-sure duration. We then validated the predictions of several local models (SUD, LSR/GSR) com-bined with different whole-body models against head sweat rates measured in the laboratory. Eventually, we developed thermal comfort criteria from head LSR by relating skin wettedness to the thermal properties of bicycle helmets. We discuss the potential of this approach as well as needs for further research.
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| 2. |
- Bröde, Peter, et al.
(författare)
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Non-evaporative effects of a wet mid layer on heat transfer through protective clothing
- 2008
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Ingår i: European Journal of Applied Physiology. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1439-6327 .- 1439-6319. ; 104:2, s. 341-349
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In order to assess the non-evaporative components of the reduced thermal insulation of wet clothing, experiments were performed with a manikin and with human subjects in which two layers of underwear separated by an impermeable barrier were worn under an impermeable overgarment at 20 °C, 80% RH and 0.5 ms-1 air velocity. By comparing manikin measurements with dry and wetted mid underwear layer, the increase in heat loss caused by a wet layer kept away from the skin was determined, which turned out to be small (5-6 Wm-2), irrespective of the inner underwear layer being dry or wetted, and was only one third of the evaporative heat loss calculated from weight change, i.e. evaporative cooling efficiency was far below unity. In the experiments with 8 males, each subject participated in two sessions with the mid underwear layer either dry or wetted, where they stood still for the first 30 minutes and then performed treadmill work for 60 minutes. Reduced heat strain due to lower insulation with the wetted mid layer was observed with decreased microclimate and skin temperatures, lowered sweat loss and cardiac strain. Accordingly, total clothing insulation calculated over the walking period from heat balance equations was reduced by 0.02 m2 °C W-1 (16%), while for the standing period the same decrease in insulation, representing 9% reduction only showed up after allowing for the lower evaporative cooling efficiency in the calculations. As evaporation to the environment and inside the clothing was restricted, the observed small alterations may be attributed to the wet mid layer’s increased conductivity, which, however, appears to be of minor importance compared to the evaporative effects in the assessment of the thermal properties of wet clothing.
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| 3. |
- Delin, Mattias, et al.
(författare)
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Ascending stair evacuation : walking speed as a function of height
- 2017
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Ingår i: Fire and Materials. - : Wiley. - 0308-0501 .- 1099-1018. ; 41:5, s. 514-534
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- There is reason to believe that factors such as physical exertion and behavioural changes will influence the ascending walking speed and ultimately the possibility of satisfactory evacuation. To study these effects, a 2-year research project was initiated with the focus on effects of physical exertion on walking speeds, physiological performance and behaviours during long ascending evacuations. Two sets of experiments on human performance during ascending long stairs, with a height of 48 and 109 m, were performed. The results include aspects such as walking speeds, physical exertion (oxygen consumption, heart rates and electromyography data), perceived exertion and behavioural changes, showing that physical work capacity affects walking speeds in case of long ascending evacuation and should be considered while using long ascending evacuation. Analysis of both walking and vertical speeds is recommended because it provides additional insights on the impact of stair configuration on vertical displacement and the importance of not using the same value for walking speed for different stairs because the design of the stairs has an impact. The novel datasets presented in this paper are deemed to provide useful information for fire safety engineers both for assisting fire safety design as well as the calibration of evacuation modelling tools.
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| 4. |
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| 5. |
- Gao, Chuansi, et al.
(författare)
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Cooling vests with phase change materials: the effects of melting temperature on heat strain alleviation in an extremely hot environment
- 2011
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Ingår i: European Journal of Applied Physiology. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1439-6327 .- 1439-6319. ; 111:6, s. 1207-1216
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A previous study by the authors using a heated thermal manikin showed that the cooling rates of phase change material (PCM) are dependent on temperature gradient, mass, and covering area. The objective of this study was to investigate if the cooling effects of the temperature gradient observed on a thermal manikin could be validated on human subjects in extreme heat. The subjects wore cooling vests with PCMs at two melting temperatures (24 and 28°C) and fire-fighting clothing and equipment, thus forming three test groups (vest24, vest28 and control group without the vest). They walked on a treadmill at a speed of 5 km/h in a climatic chamber (air temperature = 55°C, relative humidity = 30%, vapour pressure = 4,725 Pa, and air velocity = 0.4 m/s). The results showed that the PCM vest with a lower melting temperature (24°C) has a stronger cooling effect on the torso and mean skin temperatures than that with a higher melting temperature (28°C). Both PCM vests mitigate peak core temperature increase during the resting recovery period. The two PCM vests tested, however, had no significant effect on the alleviation of core temperature increase during exercise in the heat. To study the possibility of effective cooling of core temperature, cooling garments with PCMs at even lower melting temperatures (e.g. 15°C) and a larger covering area should be investigated.
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| 6. |
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| 7. |
- Halder, Amitava, et al.
(författare)
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Limitations of oxygen uptake and leg muscle activity during ascending evacuation in stairways
- 2017
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Ingår i: Applied Ergonomics. - : Elsevier BV. - 0003-6870. ; 66, s. 52-63
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Stair ascending performance is critical during evacuation from buildings and underground infrastructures. Healthy subjects performed self-paced ascent in three settings: 13 floor building, 31 floor building, 33 m stationary subway escalator. To investigate leg muscle and cardiorespiratory capacities and how they constrain performance, oxygen uptake (VO2), heart rate (HR) and ascending speed were measured in all three; electromyography (EMG) in the first two. The VO2 and HR ranged from 89-96 % of the maximum capacity reported in the literature. The average highest VO2 and HR ranged from 39-41 mL·kg-1·min-1 and 162-174 b·min-1, respectively. The subjects were able to sustain their initial preferred maximum pace for a short duration, while the average step rate was 92-95 steps·min-1. In average, VO2 reached relatively stable values at ≈37 mL·kg-1·min-1. EMG amplitudes decreased significantly and frequencies were unchanged. Speed reductions indicate that climbing capacity declined in the process of fatigue development. In the two buildings, the reduction of muscle power allowed the subjects to extend their tolerance and complete ascents in the 48 m and 109 m high stairways in 2.9 and 7.8 minutes, respectively. Muscle activity interpretation squares were developed and proved advantageous to observe fatigue and recovery over time.
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| 8. |
- Havenith, George, et al.
(författare)
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Apparent latent heat of evaporation from clothing: attenuation and “heat pipe” effects
- 2008
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Ingår i: Journal of Applied Physiology. - : American Physiological Society. - 1522-1601 .- 8750-7587. ; 104:1, s. 142-149
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Investigating claims that a clothed person’s mass loss does not always represent their evaporative heat loss (EVAP), a thermal manikin study was performed measuring heat balance components in more detail than human studies would permit. Using clothing with different levels of vapor permeability and measuring heat losses from skin controlled at 34°C in ambient temperatures of 10, 20, and 34°C with constant vapor pressure (1 kPa), additional heat losses from wet skin compared with dry skin were analyzed. EVAP based on mass loss (Emass) measurement and direct measurement of the extra heat loss by the manikin due to wet skin (Eapp) were compared. A clear discrepancy was observed. Emass overestimated Eapp in warm environments, and both under and overestimations were observed in cool environments, depending on the clothing vapor permeability. At 34°C, apparent latent heat ((lambda)app) of pure evaporative cooling was lower than the physical value ((lambda); 2,430 J/g) and reduced with increasing vapor resistance up to 45%. At lower temperatures, (lambda)app increases due to additional skin heat loss via evaporation of moisture that condenses inside the clothing, analogous to a heat pipe. For impermeable clothing, (lambda)app even exceeds (lambda) by four times that value at 10°C. These findings demonstrate that the traditional way of calculating evaporative heat loss of a clothed person can lead to substantial errors, especially for clothing with low permeability, which can be positive or negative, depending on the climate and clothing type. The model presented explains human subject data on EVAP that previously seemed contradictive.
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| 9. |
- Havenith, George, et al.
(författare)
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Evaporative Cooling: effective latent heat of evaporation in relation to evaporation distance from the skin
- 2013
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Ingår i: Journal of Applied Physiology. - 1522-1601. ; 114:6, s. 778-785
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Calculation of evaporative heat loss is essential to heat balance calculations. Despite recognition that the value for latent heat of evaporation, used in these calculations, may not always reflect the real cooling benefit to the body, only limited quantitative data on this is available which has found little use in recent literature. In this experiment a thermal manikin (MTNW, Seattle) was used to determine the effective cooling power of moisture evaporation. The manikin measures both heat loss and mass loss independently allowing a direct calculation of an effective latent heat of evaporation (λeff). The location of the evaporation was varied: from the skin or from the underwear or from the outerwear. Outerwear of different permeabilities was used and different numbers of layers were used. Tests took place in 20ºC, 0.5 m.s-1 at different humidities and were performed both dry and with a wet layer allowing the breakdown of heat loss in dry and evaporative components. For evaporation from the skin λeff is close to the theoretical value (2430J.g-1), but starts to drop when more clothing is worn, e.g. by 11% for underwear and permeable coverall. When evaporation is from the underwear, λeff reduction is 28% wearing a permeable outer. When evaporation is from the outermost layer only, the reduction exceeds 62% (no base-layer) increasing towards 80% with more layers between skin and wet outerwear. In semi- and impermeable outerwear the added effect of condensation in the clothing opposes this effect. A general formula for the calculation of λeff was developed.
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| 10. |
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