Influence of Gender on Thermal, Air-Movement, Humidity and Air-Quality Perception in Mixed-Mode and Fully Air-Conditioned Offices
, Candi Citadini de Oliveira 1, Enedir Ghisi 1 and Ricardo Forgiarini Rupp 1,2
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
Please, avoid multiple citations (no more than 3) type: "...thermal comfort in office buildings [1–5]..."
Please add very interesting enclosed papers to introduction in your paper. Please find enclosed files and papers.
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A. Kapalo, P.; Sulewska, M.; Adamski, M. (2021). Examining the Interdependence of the Various Parameters of Indoor Air. In: Blikharskyy, Z. (eds) Proceedings of EcoComfort 2020. EcoComfort 2020. Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering, vol 100. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-57340-9_19
The partial results of the investigation of the interrelationship of individual parameters of indoor air - temperature, relative humidity and CO2 concentration, obtained during the experimental measurement, are presented. The experimental measurements have been performed in a selected room, where three separate lessons with three different groups of people have been conducted. During these measurements, the processes of temperature, relative humidity and CO2 concentration have been recorded. Also, people involved in this investigation have made their own evaluation. They, have been asked for opinion about the internal air quality at the beginning and at the end of the experimental measurement.
B. Kapalo, P.; Klymenko, H.; Zhelykh, V.; Adamski, M. (2020). Investigation of Indoor Air Quality in the Selected Ukraine Classroom – Case Study. In: Blikharskyy, Z., Koszelnik, P., Mesaros, P. (eds) Proceedings of CEE 2019. CEE 2019. Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering , vol 47. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-27011-7_21
When reconstructing existing school buildings and building new buildings, great emphasis is placed on increasing their thermal resistance and reducing air tightness. The consequence of these modifications is the reduction of heat flow through the building structure, as well as minimization of uncontrolled ventilation by infiltration through building leaks. According to various studies conducted in the world, it can be said that the exchange of used air for fresh air has a huge impact on the mood of students in the classroom. As part of a research stay at the Lviv Polytechnic, measurements were made in the classroom to determine the air quality during the teaching. The classroom was selected in which measuring instruments were installed for measuring carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration and air temperature. During the measurements didactic classes took place in the classroom. In addition to the measurement of indoor air parameters, a subjective assessment of air quality was carried out using questionnaires. The students filled out the indoor air quality questionnaire at the beginning of their stay in the auditorium at the end of their stay. An assessment of air quality was carried out based on the measured air parameters and questionnaire ratings in the selected classroom.
C. Kapalo, P.; Vilčeková, S.; Mečiarová, Ľ.; Domnita, F.; Adamski, M. Influence of Indoor Climate on Employees in Office Buildings—A Case Study. Sustainability 2020, 12, 5569. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12145569
The presented research work is aimed at investigation of the influence of indoor environmental conditions on employees in office buildings. Monitoring of carbon dioxide, temperature, relative humidity and pulse, as well as subjective evaluation, was carried out in three office rooms where air conditioning systems ensured the required amount of fresh air. Investigation showed that in two offices (A and B), the amount of fresh air did not comply with EN 15251:2017. The concentration of CO2 in office A was above 1000 ppm for 72% of the total length of stay. Respondents confirmed fatigue and headaches. In offices A and B, where CO2 concentration was around 1000 ppm, people with a weight of up to 70 kg experienced a significant increase in air temperature as well as odor. Persons with weight higher than 75 kg experienced a slight decrease in air quality. In office C, where CO2 concentration was around 800 ppm, respondents reported a slight decrease in air quality. According to pulse monitoring, it can be stated that in an office where there is an insufficient supply of fresh air, the pulse of a person falls or only slightly rises. A decrease in pulses may indicate the attenuation or stunning of people caused by poor air quality.
Comments for author File: Comments.rar
Author Response
Firstly, we would like to thank you for your criticisms and suggestions, which were taken into account in this new version of the article. The corrections pointed out were made and/or justified as follows:
- Please, avoid multiple citations (no more than 3) type: "...thermal comfort in office buildings [1–5]..."
R.: As the journal allows multiple citations, we decided to keep it that way.
- Please add very interesting enclosed papers to introduction in your paper. Please find enclosed files and papers.
R.: The authors appreciate the suggestion. Of the articles suggested, we added to the introduction those that we thought contributed the most to the theme developed in our article, which were the references [23] and [24].
Reviewer 2 Report
The author uses long -term field testing and a large number of questionnaires to analyze the effects of gender on air movement, air humidity, air quality and thermal perception in office buildings in southern Brazil. This work provides a large amount of basic data and exposes the difference in thermal comfort of the human body, which helps the application of engineering design and standard formulation. This manuscript describes an original and interesting work. Before it is accepted and published, following suggestions were given to improve the quality of the manuscript.
1 Please add the brand and accuracy of the Portable thermo-Anmometer and CO2 Analysers.
2 Please quote the article to explain the universality of the comfort temperature method through the Griffiths method.
3 It is suggested to add gender differences in the perception of humidity and air quality to the conclusion.
4. It is recommended to improve the language expression of the article.
Author Response
Dear Reviewer,
Firstly, we would like to thank you for your criticisms and suggestions, which were taken into account in this new version of the article. The corrections pointed out were made and/or justified as follows:
- Please add the brand and accuracy of the Portable thermo-Anmometer and CO2 Analysers.
R.: We included a table (Table 1) such requested informations.
2.Please quote the article to explain the universality of the comfort temperature method through the Griffiths method.
R.: The use of the Griffiths method for calculating comfort temperatures was justified.
- It is suggested to add gender differences in the perception of humidity and air quality to the conclusion.
R.: Considerations about gender differences in humidity and air quality perceptions were included in the conclusion(items 5,6 and 13).
- It is recommended to improve the language expression of the article.
R.: We improved the writing throughout the paper.
Reviewer 3 Report
This study makes a very interesting contribution to a common problem in the workplace, as it quantifies the difference in thermal comfort between women and men. It is essential to know the differences (if any...) in order to be able to offer solutions. Although it is a technical study, this topic has a very important social component that can affect behaviours related to gender equality.
In the introduction, the authors should make a broader review: comfort is not exclusively related to quantitative parameters, it is necessary to pay attention to research that has studied the qualitative parameters of comfort. It is possible that at the same temperature (quantitative and objective data), a person's comfort may depend on whether his or her window overlooks the sea or a dark inner courtyard. It is therefore appropriate for the authors to focus their research on one parameter of comfort (temperature), but it is desirable to expand the literature.
The objective of the research is not clearly stated, it would be appropriate to rewrite it for a better understanding.
The description of the methodology lacks information:
- Number of surveys conducted. Although this data is in the results (and is repeated in the conclusions), the methodology should explain the size of the study sample and its percentage with respect to the total number of potential participants.
- The architectural characteristics of each building should be explained.
- A plan describing the location of the measurement sensors within the building is required.
The conclusions should not be a summary of the results, only the last paragraph provides relevant information that has not been written before. It is suggested to provide more architectural solutions that can equalise the feeling of comfort between women and men in workspaces.
This research is undoubtedly interesting but the authors should avoid using it as a negative tool to justify gender segregation in companies, schools or universities.
Author Response
Dear Reviewer,
Firstly, we would like to thank you for your criticisms and suggestions, which were taken into account in this new version of the article. The corrections pointed out were made and/or justified, as follows:
- In the introduction, the authors should make a broader review: comfort is not exclusively related to quantitative parameters, it is necessary to pay attention to research that has studied the qualitative parameters of comfort. It is possible that at the same temperature (quantitative and objective data), a person's comfort may depend on whether his or her window overlooks the sea or a dark inner courtyard. It is therefore appropriate for the authors to focus their research on one
parameter of comfort (temperature), but it is desirable to expand the literature.
We improved the beginning of the introduction and cited two more works to make it broader.
- The objective of the research is not clearly stated, it would be appropriate to rewrite it for a better understanding.
We rewrote the objective of this research, in the last paragraph of the Introduction section.
- The description of the methodology lacks information:
- Number of surveys conducted. Although this data is in the results (and is repeated in the conclusions), the methodology should explain the size of the study sample and its percentage with respect to the total number of potential participants;
- The architectural characteristics of each building should be explained.
- A plan describing the location of the measurement sensors within the building is required.
We included more information in section 2 (Materials and Methods) to complement the mentioned topics.
- The conclusions should not be a summary of the results, only the last paragraph provides relevant information that has not been written before. It is suggested to provide more architectural solutions that can equalise the feeling of comfort between women and men in workspaces.
We improved the conclusions by adding more architectural solutions to enhance users’ individual comfort, including both males and females.
- This research is undoubtedly interesting but the authors should avoid using it as a negative tool to justify gender segregation in companies, schools or universities.
We thank the reviewer for the comment, but we are not using our results to justify or suggest gender segregation. In fact, we are highlighting the potential benefits of using personalised environmental control system (PECS) to enhance individual’s comfort. This information is better presented in the revised version of the paper.
