Analysis of Thermal Comfort in Single-Story Courtyard Vernacular Dwellings in Rural China: Passive Design Strategies for Adapting to the Climate

作者：Chen Yang, A. Misni · 发表于：Buildings · 年份：2025 · DOI：10.3390/buildings15213964

The building industry plays a significant role in global carbon emissions, contributing nearly half of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions during both construction and operation. Within the framework of the “double-low” strategy, addressing energy conservation, emission reduction, and climate adaptation in buildings has become a crucial area of research and practice. In northern China, vernacular dwellings have historically developed passive strategies for climate adaptation; however, their quantified thermal performance has not been thoroughly studied. This research focuses on single-story courtyard vernacular dwellings built in the 1990s, which are inspired by historical Siheyuan forms in Shatun Village, located in Handan, Hebei Province. The study specifically examines their thermal performance during the summer and the relationship between this performance and climate design strategies. To understand how building layout, envelopes, materials, and courtyard landscape design influence the microclimate, six measurement points were established within each dwelling to continuously collect environmental data, including air temperature, humidity, and wind speed. The RayMan model was used to calculate the mean radiant temperature (Tmrt) and physiological equivalent temperature (PET), with subsequent statistical analysis conducted using Origin Pro. The results showed that sustainable design strategies—such as high building envelopes, shaded vegetation, and low-albedo materials—co...