We need climate-responsive thermal systems

With the growing population, optimal thermal conditions in large spaces are now a basic requirement. Mihir N. Patel, a consulting engineer in HVAC, emphasises that design engineers can craft efficient designs if they consider the problems of climate change and work to combat global warming.

What are the current trends and challenges in India’s thermal comfort market?

The thermal comfort market in India is presently in an interesting phase due to an intense interplay of three distinct forces. Rising disposable incomes, high ambient temperatures for extended durations, and unmissable signs of impending catastrophic climate events. Climate change thus calls for a fast response in the form of containing global warming and attempting to reverse the damage already done.

Nowhere are the effects and causes of these phenomena more obvious than in the quest for physiological comforts, including thermal comfort. The thermal comfort market is witnessing exponential growth, while at the same time, there are calls for reducing the use of energy obtained from non-renewable and environmentally harmful sources. The result is a rapidly expanding market and a sharp focus on sustainable technologies to minimise energy usage and decarbonise the industry

What role do designers, engineers, and policymakers play in creating sustainable thermal comfort solutions in India?

Rising disposable incomes are a socio-economic consequence of the juggernaut of a fast-developing economy. Elevated ambient temperatures are a fallout of climate changes, which in turn are traceable partly to the current life cycle phase of our planet and partly to the activities of humans. As a result, what remains in the hands of designers and policymakers is to make all possible efforts to reign in the human race-induced part of climate change.

It falls on designers and engineers to make sustainable thermal comfort solutions with the smallest possible climate consequences. This includes developing highefficiency heating-cooling equipment in research setups and its judicious application on the ground. Many efforts are underway to improve equipment-level efficiencies and achieve technological breakthroughs, resulting in noticeable progress, and these efforts must be accelerated. However, at times, the application part of the solution gets much less attention.

System designers and cost evaluators must be more alert to thermal control systems’ far-reaching climate consequences instead of overly focusing on the monetary costs.

Policy makers, including local and central governments, and corporate managements in case of private installations, have a crucial role to play. Where to provide thermal comfort by mechanical means, and to what degree, which type of thermal comfort solutions to adopt these decisions would make much larger difference to the final outcome than the elaborate process of choosing the rightest technological option whether to provide comfort.

What should be prioritised in thermal comfort systems for outdoor environments?

Pharmaceutical manufacturing, hospital operation theatres, electronics, and data centres need a specific degree of air conditioning, also called a “process requirement.” However, in most other cases and public places, the question should not be how to balance energy efficiency with thermal comfort; energy efficiency must always be a priority. Seemingly trivial issues like the exclusion of ceiling fans out of aesthetic reasons, air-cooled outdoor units installed behind architectural louvres, and centrally air-conditioned offices designed and operated at 22–23 degrees are all blatant cases of disregard for energy efficiency, regardless of whether it is a public place or private installation.

What is the approach to selecting the right thermal management solution for different types of spaces?

Diverse requirements call for diverse solutions. Appropriate solutions are available for different spaces, but no one-size-fits-all can exist. To select the right thermal management solution for any requirement, it is necessary to decide whether mechanical thermal comfort is essential, desirable, discretionary, or “should be avoided.”