Effects of steady-state noise and temperature conditions on environmental perception and acceptability

The combined effects of noise and temperature on environmental perception and acceptability were studied on 18 lightly clothed subjects (0.6 clo), individually exposed for 2 h in a climatic chamber. Three homogeneous climatic conditions were chosen (air temperature at 18, 24 or 30 degrees C, air velocity =0.1 m/s). For each of them, three different noise levels were continuously maintained (35, 60, 75 dBA, recorded fan noise). The 18 subjects were divided into three groups and each group experienced only one single thermal condition, at each level of noise, during three different experimental sessions. Subjective answers about perception and comfort were obtained at t = 30 and 120 min. Main results indicate that acoustic perception decreases when thermal environment is far from thermoneutrality. Although the combined effects of noise and temperature did not influence the physiological data, our results show that whatever the ambient temperature, thermal unpleasantness is higher when noise level increases. Finally, equivalence between acoustic and thermal sensations is proposed for short-term exposure (1 degree C = 2.6 dBA) and for steady state (1 degrees C = 2.9 dBA). In conclusion, this study strongly suggests that interactions between environmental components do exist, right from perceptual level, and might explain some combined effects on cognitive performance.