Internal Courtyard Research Articles

Evaluation of the Envrionmental Features of Vernacular Architecture. A Case Study in Cyprus

Traditional settlements are by definition sustainable in relation to their environmental context and available resources. This paper investigates the environmental behaviour of vernacular architecture and the identification of the different factors that contribute to a pleasant environment and thermal comfort within traditional buildings and their surroundings. This investigation is part of an extended ongoing research programme which is the first research programme regarding the vernacular architecture of Cyprus that includes in situ measurements of temperature, humidity and ventilation using data loggers and weather stations. The results indicate the bioclimatic design elements of Cyprus' vernacular architecture and more specifically the passive strategies for heating (solar gains, thermal mass, thermal inertia), cooling (sun-shading, ventilation) and optimization of environmental microclimatic conditions (planting, evaporation). The analysis shows a relatively stable indoor temperature regardless of the fluctuation of outdoor temperature due to the considerable thermal mass of the structure. The data also indicates that the internal temperature reaches a maximum value later in the day compared with the external environment. This is related to the thermal inertia of the building's envelope that delays the heat transfer from the external environment to the internal space. Through this research the great significance of the internal courtyard was underlined, which serves as a microclimate regulator, keeping the temperature at higher levels than the external environment during the winter period. Taking into consideration the sustainability of vernacular architecture, the essential skills for environmentally-friendly approaches to the built environment can be developed, which will benefit society as a whole.

Evaluating thermal effects of internal courtyard in a tropical terrace house by computational simulation

Thermal comfort conditions in residential buildings vary according to the designs, modifications of the house and adaptations of the occupants. The purpose of this paper is to examine thermal performance of terrace housing in tropical climate by exploiting internal courtyard. A case study of a terrace house was chosen, where field measurement was conducted during a three-day recording in naturally ventilated spaces of the house. Results from field measurement were used to develop a baseline model for computational experiment. Subsequently, the effects of introducing an internal courtyard on thermal comfort performance of the building were investigated using ECOTECT software. The results from simulation analysis indicate that, applying internal courtyard in the terrace house will improve natural ventilation and thermal comfort in spaces with openings to the outside environment. It shows that the influence of the internal courtyard on the thermal condition has a strong reliance on the envelop openings. This study suggests that the internal courtyard of a terrace house can affect improvements in thermal conditions of the courtyard's surrounding spaces, provided sufficient and efficient openings with shading devices are suitably incorporated.

A deep courtyard as the best building form for desert climatean introduction to effects of air movement (Case study: Yazd)

Abstract A basic aim of low energy architecture is to create a thermally comfortable internal environment for building occupants whilst consuming the least possible amount of energy. In desert countries this aim is more difficult to achieve since high ambient air temperatures create a barrier to comfort. Traditional building types of these countries, such as courtyard building, have evolved to try and help people to adapt to a state of thermal comfort under these adverse conditions. Their indigenous people were known to have operated sophisticated irrigation systems for their living, and to have adapted to an appreciation of the nature and dynamics of physical systems. This paper looks at the desert climate and its effects on architectural design and the significance of the living conditions in such environments. A best solution for building design, just in terms of building’s form, could be made. The implication of the conclusion on architectural design gives useful guidelines in designing naturally ventilated buildings with internal courtyards in desert condition.

Heritage Preservation And Environment Protection

In 1993, the author relocated their 110-year-old wada from Pune to a suburban location to preserve its heritage and feeling of well-being. The wada's timber structure, which was over 200 years old, was dismantled and reassembled using traditional methods of timber frame construction to create a new 2000 sq. ft. contemporary house with modern conveniences. The old teakwood members were reused in their original form, including windows, doors, and staircase. The construction is based on a module called khan, and an internal courtyard helps with ventilation and lighting. The recycling of old timber has contributed to the protection of the environment by reducing the use of energy-intensive materials such as cement and steel. The use of rat trap bond has reduced the heat transfer and the number of bricks used. The exposed brick walls and clay-tiled roof enhance the warm and gentle feel of the teakwood.

Passive environment control system of Kerala vernacular residential architecture for a comfortable indoor environment: A qualitative and quantitative analyses

The modern day practice does not give due respect to passive and natural environment control measures in buildings. With modern materials and technology, the buildings of present architectural style results in high energy consumption, in an attempt to provide thermal comfort indoors. The vernacular architecture at any place on the other hand has evolved through ages by consistent and continuous effort for more efficient and perfect solutions. The authors have conducted a qualitative analysis of the passive environment control system of vernacular residential architecture of Kerala that is known for ages for its use of natural and passive methods for a comfortable indoor environment. The orientation of building, internal arrangement of spaces, the presence of internal courtyard, use of locally available materials and special methods of construction, etc. have together created the indoor environment. A quantitative analysis was also carried out based on field experiments by recording thermal comfort parameters in a selected building. The study has provided positive results confirming that the passive environment control system employed in Kerala vernacular architecture is highly effective in providing thermal comfort indoors in all seasons.

Proposal to Roof the Courtyards of an Historical Building in Pisa with Glass and Steel Grid Shells: Form Finding and Stability Problems

The technical note describes a proposal to roof two internal courtyards of the main building of the Engineering Faculty at the University of Pisa by means of thin flat shells made of a quadrilateral mesh of steel bars supporting plane glass plates stiffened by a grid of steel cables. An exposure of the structural design concepts and of the geometrical genesis of the shells is presented accompanied by a stability analysis and a description of the technological solutions found to solve some crucial constructional problems.

Potential Thermal Impacts of Internal Courtyard in Terrace Houses: A Case Study in Tropical Climate

Potential Thermal Impacts of Internal Courtyard in Terrace Houses: A Case Study in Tropical Climate

Subsistence practices in an arid environment: a geoarchaeological investigation in an Iron Age site, the Negev Highlands, Israel

The Negev Highlands (southern Israel) is an arid zone characterized by settlement oscillations. One settlement peak occurred in the early Iron Age IIA (late 10th and early 9th centuries BC). The most conspicuous structure in many sites of this period is an oval compound comprised of an internal courtyard surrounded by rooms. Two hypotheses for the function of these oval compounds are that they served as Israelite fortresses which guarded the southern border and routes of the Solomonic kingdom, or that they represent local agro-pastoral groups. In order to gather more information regarding the subsistence practices conducted in these oval compounds, we carried out a small-scale excavation at the site of Atar Haroa. We focused on sediment sampling and used several geoarchaeological, as well as isotopic, techniques in order to identify macroscopic and microscopic remains related to animal husbandry and crop agriculture. The remains identified from the archaeological sediments were compared with modern reference materials collected from abandoned Bedouin camps. The excavation included two half rooms and several test pits in the courtyard of the oval compound, featuring one Iron Age occupation level composed of gray sediments and relatively small amounts of pottery, bones and macro-botanical charred remains. Micromorphological, mineralogical, dung spherulite and isotopic analyses carried out on the gray occupational sediments from the rooms show that they originate from wood ash and dung, both used as fuel. Similar analyses of the gray sediments in the courtyard show that they originate only from degraded livestock dung. Phytolith analyses show that the gray anthropogenic sediments have similar concentrations of phytoliths as in control (yellowish) sediments and in the dung of winter free-grazing desert livestock and lichen-grazing black dwarf Bedouin goats. Phytoliths indicative of cereal crops are completely absent in the archaeological dung remains, indicating that cereal crops were not processed by the site inhabitants. Based on ethnographic and archaeological parallels, and on the presence of grinding stones and absence of sickle blades in the excavated rooms, we infer that the inhabitants at the oval compound at Atar Haroa subsisted on livestock herding and bought or exchanged cereal grains. Our results support the hypothesis that the inhabitants at the oval compound at Atar Haroa were desert-adapted pastoralists, rather than garrisoned soldiers.

Mathematical model for calculating the shaded and sunlit areas in a circular courtyard geometry

This paper presents a mathematical model that was developed specifically to calculate the produced shaded and sunlit areas in a circular courtyard geometry. It examines the interaction taking place between the sun at any time throughout the year and a circular courtyard form with any dimensions and proportions in any place on the earth. This model was included in a new computer program, which allowed detailed investigation to be undertaken into the effect of circular courtyard proportions on the generated wall and floor exposed and shaded areas. The results showed that changing the form's proportions significantly influences the shading or exposure potential of the internal courtyard envelope.

The effectiveness of natural evaporative cooling in improving internal thermal environment in hot-dry regions

SYNOPSIS This research is intended to maximise the thermal function of internal courtyard environments in hot dry regions. The empirical work was conducted during the summer using a single-family house in Al-Oyynaa, a countryside town near Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The main objective of the study is to investigate how the evaporative cooling tower can reduce the internal courtyard air temperature. The courtyard is then utilised as a source for cooling the surrounding house spaces. Three experimental procedures were conducted and analyses carried out. Results indicate that an evaporative cooling tower is effective in cooling both the courtyard and the surrounding rooms. It was found that for the house in question the courtyard and living room maximum air temperatures were reduced by 9.96°C and 6.74°C, respectively. However, when the courtyard and the tower were ventilated by exhaust fans, the courtyard and indoor air temperatures were reduced by 13.5°C and 11.15°C, respectively.

A ventilated courtyard as a passive cooling strategy in the warm humid tropics

The paper investigates the potential of a courtyard for passive cooling in a single storey high mass building in a warm humid climate. The inclusion of an internal courtyard in building design is attributed to the optimization of natural ventilation in order to minimize indoor overheating conditions. However, the efficiency of this strategy greatly depends on the design details of the building composition in providing appropriate airflow pattern to the courtyard. From the results of thermal measurements, a significant correlation between wall surface temperatures and indoor air temperatures is evident. A reduction of indoor air temperature below the levels of ambient is seen as a function of heat exchange between the indoor air and high thermal mass of the building fabric. However, this behavior is affected by indoor airflow patterns, which are controlled through the composition between envelope openings and the courtyard of the building. From a computational analysis, several airflow patterns are identified. A relatively better indoor thermal modification is seen when the courtyard acts as an air funnel discharging indoor air into the sky, than the courtyard acts as a suction zone inducing air from its sky opening. The earlier pattern is promoted when the courtyard is ventilated through openings found in the building envelope. The computational simulation utilizing the standard k- ϵ turbulent model with isothermal condition agrees closely with the measurements taken from the field investigation.

Height profile of some air quality markers in the urban atmosphere surrounding a 100 m tower building

Air quality inside buildings, whether naturally or mechanically ventilated, is strongly dependent on that of ambient external air in the surrounding atmosphere. This paper describes results obtained in the assessment of urban air quality influence in the neighbouring of a tall, multistorey building with mechanical ventilation on its indoor air quality. Within the study, which lasted for more than 30 d of continuous monitoring, the concentrations of carbon monoxide (CO), of total and grossly speciated classes of airborne organic vapours and of PM 10 airborne particulate were measured both outdoors, at ground and at various heights between street level and the top of the tower building (approximately 100 m) and inside the building. The daily variation of airborne pollutants in the urban atmosphere in the neighbouring of the tower building was traced as the contribution of both time-dependent pollutant production from urban outdoor sources (mainly vehicular traffic) and of the variation of meteoclimatic conditions influencing pollutant diffusion from street level upwards. In particular, a steady concentration decrease with increasing height of the concentration of automotive-related pollutants, such as of PM 10 airborne particulate, of a mixture of volatile aromatic compounds (TAAC) and of CO could be measured in the immediate neghbouring of the tower building (values of 40 μg m -3 of PM 10 airborne particulate decreasing to 32 μg m -3 at 80 m; of 5 mg of benzene equivalents m -3 at ground level with a 30% decrease at 100 m height; of 3 mg m -3 of CO decreasing to 2.2 mg m -3 at 100 m). The acquired information was employed to advice the building management on the improvement of indoor air quality attainable by moving the air feed grid of the HVAC system to a higher level from ground. An example is reported, which shows the improvement of the indoor air quality in a three-storey peripheral building of the same complex subject to scheduled refurbishing, obtained by moving the HVAC air feed point, originally at +4 m in an internal courtyard, to the building roof, at about +11 m.