Thermoregulation Model for the Reference Indian Adult

• Published in: Journal of the Institution of Engineers (India) Series C 2021-08, Vol.102 (4), p.1073-1089
• Main Authors: Karamapuri, Kavya, S. R., Shine
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aerospace Technology and Astronautics; Body temperature; Engineering; Heat storage; Industrial and Production Engineering; Males; Mechanical Engineering; Morphology; Original Contribution; Shivering; Short wave radiation; Skin; Skin temperature; Thermoregulation
• ISSN: 2250-0545; 2250-0553
• DOI: 10.1007/s40032-021-00702-x

A human thermoregulatory model incorporating morphological details of Indians is established. The study uses the fundamental Stolwijk model with modifications to adapt Indian subject scenario. Good agreement is observed between the model predictions and the experimental data, though small discrepancies are noticed. The study investigated core and skin temperature variation during normal, hot and cold environments of Western and Indian subjects as well as Indian male and female subjects. Effect of BMI, age, clothing and short-wave radiation on thermoregulation is also analysed. The core temperature does not differ significantly in all the cases investigated which indicates that the model is able to capture various human thermoregulatory responses effectively. The most notable difference between Western and Indian subjects is the delay in sweating and lower shivering rates under hot and cold environments, respectively. Indian female subject showed slightly increased mean skin temperature and decreased sweating sensitivity compared to the male counterpart. In a hot environment, female thermoregulatory behaviour is characterised by a lower sweating rate, heat storage and increased mean skin temperature. Comparison between obese and lean Indian male subjects showed no significant difference in core body temperature, while the skin temperature is lower in obese subjects. Deterioration of thermoregulation mechanism with age is incorporated in the model based on available data. The effect of clothing is found to be significant under cold environment. The research establishes the strong link between thermoregulatory response and morphology of humans in adverse environments and highlights the necessity of considering race specificity in human thermoregulatory models.