Thermal plume above a simulated sitting person with different complexity of body geometry

Occupants are one of the main heat sources in rooms. They generate thermal plumes with characteristics, which depend on geometry, surface temperature and area of the human body in contact with the surrounding air as well as temperature, velocity and turbulence intensity distribution in the room. The characteristics of the thermal plume generated by a sitting person were studied using four human body simulators with different complexity of geometry but equal surface area: a vertical cylinder, a rectangular box, a dummy, and a thermal manikin.

The results show that the dummy and the thermal manikin generate almost identical thermal plumes. Therefore, with respect to the generated thermal plume, the dummy can be successfully used as a simulator of a sitting person. The cylinder and the rectangular box generate much more concentrated plumes than the thermal manikin but can correctly simulate enthalpy flux and buoyancy force density.