Thermal Comfort and Energy Analysis in Ceramic Tile

Document Type : Article

Authors

1 Senior R & D Engineer, Eczacıbasi Building Products, Bozuyuk, Bilecik, Turkey

2 Department of Mechanical Engineering, Kutahya Dumlupınar University, Kutahya, Turkey

Abstract

In this study, the thermal touch comfort of ceramic tiles was investigated. For this purpose, energy analysis was made for the heat transfer during touch and the surface temperature during touch was calculated. It is explained how the thermal inertia phenomenon contributes to the calculation of the surface temperature. It has been revealed why ceramic tiles feel cold when touched. In order to examine the tactile comfort, the structure of the human skin and the mechanism of feeling the temperature are shown. In addition, for other coating materials at the same temperature as the ceramic tile, the surface temperatures during touch were calculated and compared. Previous studies to increase thermal comfort in ceramic tiles are discussed. It was calculated how much the thermal comfort increased as a result of coating the ceramic tile with a polymer material. The applicability of the coating option and how close it is to the goal of increasing thermal comfort are discussed. Thus, by calculating how much the coated ceramic tile improves the thermal comfort, a basic study has been put forward to evaluate the thermal comfort improvements to be made on many surfaces used as coating elements in buildings and touched by people.

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