This paper reports on a study of electricity consumption, for achieving thermal comfort, and possible relation to respective plan layouts, in apartments of tropical Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, which is one of the most densely populated cities in the world. As approximately 45% of the total population of Dhaka constitutes the middle income and upper-middle income groups, electricity consumption by this group is a critical factor in the national energy balance. According to recent reports, the electricity consumption in the residential sector has almost doubled in 6 years. During the warm months (March–October), ventilation and air movement are vital for thermal comfort in the tropics, and electrical cooling appliances are commonly used for the purpose. The target middle income group resides in apartments of floor area between 93 and 149 m² (1000–1600 ft²). A field survey was conducted, whereby scaled drawings of plan layout of the apartments were obtained, to understand the spatial arrangement of the existing apartments, i.e., to assess the arrangement of spaces in the apartment units in terms of their potential to allow air movement. Two basic types of layouts were found mostly used in Dhaka; defined in the study as “open type” and “cellular type” layouts. A questionnaire survey was conducted on sample units, to determine the specifications of electrical appliances being used for cooling and to assess the comfort situation of the inhabitants. It was the contention of this study that there could be a critical analysis of plan layouts in mid-rise apartment buildings, to determine whether there is a relationship between the energy consumption and layout of these plans. Analysis of the findings from the survey and the questionnaire responses reveal that plan layout does, indeed, have a significant impact on electricity consumption needed for thermal comfort.

中文翻译：

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计划布局对电力消耗的影响，以维持达卡公寓的热舒适度

本文报告了在孟加拉国首都达卡的热带地区的公寓中进行的耗电量研究，以实现热舒适性以及与各个计划的布局之间可能的关系，孟加拉国是世界上人口最稠密的城市之一。由于达卡总人口中约有45％属于中等收入和中上等收入人群，因此这些人群的用电量是影响国家能源平衡的关键因素。根据最近的报告，住宅部门的用电量在6年内几乎翻了一番。在温暖的月份（3月至10月），通风和空气流通对热带地区的热舒适性至关重要，因此通常使用电气冷却设备。目标中等收入群体居住在93至149 m之间的公寓中²（1000–1600英尺²）。进行了实地调查，从而获得了公寓平面布置图的比例图，以了解现有公寓的空间布置，即，根据允许空气流通的潜力评估公寓单元中的空间布置。发现了两种基本类型的布局，这些布局主要用于达卡。在研究中定义为“开放式”和“细胞式”布局。对样本单位进行了问卷调查，以确定用于制冷的电器规格并评估居民的舒适状况。这项研究的论点是，可以对中层公寓楼的布局进行批判性分析，以确定这些布局的能耗与布局之间是否存在关系。