THERMAL SCIENCE

International Scientific Journal

Sveta G. Cvetanović

,

Srđan Z. Rutić

,

Dejan D. Krstić

,

Stanislav Florus

,

Pavel Otrisal

THE INFLUENCE OF AN ACTIVE MICROCLIMATE LIQUID-COOLED VEST ON HEAT STRAIN ALLEVIATION

ABSTRACT
This research was performed to test the effectiveness of the microclimate body cooling system which belongs to the group of active systems with liquid-cooled technology. The liquid cooling vest efficiency was observed concerning the physiological fitness of the standard protective set used in specific environmental conditions which imply increased thermal strain of the test subjects. Experimental results from the research are based on the examinations carried out in a thermo-physiological laboratory. Ten healthy male volunteers – test subjects aged (23.4 ± 2.4 years, weight 74 ± 7 kg, and height 184 ± 9 cm) were exposed to thermal strain testing (40 °C temperature, 40 ±3 % relative humidity, without wind) and simultaneously to physical effort caused by walking on the treadmill at a speed of 5 km/h, during 45 minutes. Tests were performed in two variants: without any cooling system and with the KewlFlow Circulatory Cooling Vest with Cooler Kit. Throughout heat exposure, the subject’s body core temperature (tympanic temperature – Tty), mean skin temperature, Tsk, and heart rate were measured. Furthermore, sweat rate was calculated in order to determine all changes in the water and electrolyte status. Experimental results confirm that the results of this study have recognized the benefits of a liquid-cooled vest in lowering the thermal strain.
KEYWORDS
heat stress, cooling vest, liquid cooling, physiology, thermal strain indicators
PAPER SUBMITTED: 2020-09-17
PAPER REVISED: 2020-10-31
PAPER ACCEPTED: 2020-11-02
PUBLISHED ONLINE: 2020-11-07
DOI REFERENCE: https://doi.org/10.2298/TSCI200917331C
CITATION EXPORT: view in browser or download as text file
THERMAL SCIENCE YEAR 2021, VOLUME 25, ISSUE Issue 5, PAGES [3837 - 3846]
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The influence of an active microclimate liquid-cooled vest on heat strain alleviation

© 2024 Society of Thermal Engineers of Serbia. Published by the Vinča Institute of Nuclear Sciences, National Institute of the Republic of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International licence