Zhou Y, Yu H, Xu S, Luo M, Zhou X. High-density thermal sensitivity of the hand under different thermal states and stimulus intensities.
INDOOR AIR 2022;
32:e13089. [PMID:
36040270 DOI:
10.1111/ina.13089]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2022] [Revised: 07/20/2022] [Accepted: 07/24/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Understanding how the human body senses small-scale heating and cooling stimuli can help researchers evaluate thermal comfort effects and health risks of thermal stimulus combinations under complex thermal exposure. Two experiments measured high-density thermal sensitivity on the hand to investigate whether the initial thermal states and stimulus intensities affect thermal sensitivity. After pilot tests, a 23°C cold-water bath and a 41°C hot-water bath were applied to create initial states deviating from thermal neutrality. The whole hand and part of the wrist with all test spots were immersed for 1 min and dried by a towel. Results showed that cold sensitivity and warmth sensitivity have a linear relationship with each other, but 16 of 20 subjects (80%) were more sensitive to cooling than to heating. The 1-min water-bath treatment significantly reduced hand thermal sensitivity. Compared with a thermally neutral state, a cold-water bath and hot-water bath reduced cold sensitivity by 22% and 61%, respectively, and reduced warmth sensitivity by 47% and 51%, respectively. Under a thermally neutral state, the perceptible thresholds for cooling and heating stimuli were -1.3°C and +1.8°C, respectively. Comfortable stimulating temperature ranges were 24°C-30°C for cooling and 34°C-39°C for heating. Thermal sensitivity differences among stimulus intensities were small, but differences among test spots and subjects were significant.
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