Thermal comfort in residential buildings: Sensitivity to building parameters and occupancy

Dynamic simulation is widely used for assessing thermal comfort in dwellings. Simulation tools, though, have shortcomings due to false assumptions made during the design phase of buildings, limited information on the building's envelope and installations and misunderstandings over the role of the occupant's behaviour. This paper presents the results of a Monte Carlo sensitivity analysis on the factors that affect the PMV comfort index. The reference building was simulated as both Class-A and F according to the Dutch determination method for the energy performance of residential functions and buildings (ISSO 82.3, 2009), with three different heating systems. The study focuses on the heating period which is of main interest concerning residential energy use in the Netherlands. For the PMV the most influential parameters were found to be metabolic activity and clothing, while the thermostat had secondary impact.OTBArchitecture and The Built Environmen