Proposal and application of comprehensive thermal comfort evaluation model in heating seasons for buildings with solar Trombe wall

•Thermal comfort evaluation model of building with Trombe wall was proposed.•Trombe wall creates a comfortable indoor environment for warmer regions.•Time periods occupied by different thermal comfort states for different indicators.•SET is recommended due to its suitability for transient environment.•Quantitative description of indoor thermal comfort in respect to ambient condition. The accurate prediction of thermal comfort in indoor environment is an important precondition for energy-saving in buildings. In this study, a thermal comfort evaluation model for buildings with solar Trombe wall, by incorporating multiple thermal comfort indicators, i.e. the average values of temperature difference in the air near the head and feet (Δt), predicted mean vote (PMV), predicted percentage of dissatisfied (PPD) and standard effective temperature (SET), was proposed and validated. As the application of this proposed model, the indoor thermal comfort of a single room with two Trombe walls was evaluated and compared. Also, the indoor thermal comfort under different ambient conditions was discussed. The results show that the proposed model can efficiently realize the management of indoor thermal comfort, and is meaningful for energy-saving design of modern buildings and promoting the application of Trombe wall. There exist differences in the time periods occupied by different thermal comfort states for different evaluation indicators, which will lead to different building energy-saving effects under the condition of maintaining comfortable indoor environment. The SET indicator has stricter requirements for comfort state, and is more suitable for changeable indoor environment of the room with solar Trombe wall. Ambient conditions have significant effects on the indoor thermal comfort. Solar Trombe wall can create a very comfortable indoor environment for warmer regions in heating seasons, and provide a cool and uncomfortable environment when the ambient temperature is lower than 9 ℃ and the global solar radiation intensity is smaller than 200 W/m2.