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Assessment of solar shading performance of courtyard houses in desert

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 Architectural Engineering and Design Management

ISSN: 1745-2007 (Print) 1752-7589 (Online) Journal homepage: https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/taem20

Assessment of solar shading performance of

courtyard houses in desert climate of Kashan, Iran

Saeid Teshnehdel, Farzaneh Soflaei & Mehdi Shokouhian

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of solar shading performance of courtyard houses in desert climate of Kashan, Iran, Architectural
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ARCHITECTURAL ENGINEERING AND DESIGN MANAGEMENT
https://doi.org/10.1080/17452007.2020.1758025

Assessment of solar shading performance of courtyard houses in

desert climate of Kashan, Iran
a b c
Saeid Teshnehdel , Farzaneh Soflaei and Mehdi Shokouhian
a
Department of Architecture, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Iran; bDepartment of Geography and
Environmental Sustainability, State University of New York, Oneonta, USA; cDepartment of Civil Engineering, Morgan
State University, Baltimore, USA

ABSTRACT ARTICLE HISTORY

This paper concentrates on the effect of courtyard parameters on the Received 11 October 2019
shading function of courtyard houses in hot desert climates; BWh based Accepted 16 April 2020
on Köppen climate classification. The ultimate goal is to optimize the
KEYWORDS
designing pattern for a courtyard regarding orientation, dimensions, and Shading performance; hot
proportions, to enhance the shading performance and improve outdoor desert climate; experimental
thermal comfort. For this purpose, 10 historical courtyard houses were measures; courtyard building;
selected with geometrical properties and different orientations from the numerical method
hot desert climate of Kashan in Iran. The three-dimensional numerical
model was applied, by Design Builder, to simulate sunlit and shaded
areas. A field measurement was conducted on the shading performance
of Borujerdi courtyard house in Kashan. A validation study was
performed on the numerical model using the physical data and a close
agreement was achieved. The shading index that was previously
suggested by authors was employed based on hourly average
temperature to investigate the correlations between the index and
courtyard’s orientation and geometrical properties. Results illustrate that
the courtyard’s design alternatives, particularly length-to-width ratio and
height, have influential impacts on shading performance. Finally, some
design recommendations for courtyard houses in hot desert regions
were extracted to enhance the shading performance and increase the
thermal comfort.

Introduction
The rapid urbanization and the rated intensity of urban heat island are serious issues in the world
which are significantly increasing. Today, 34% of the energy is consumed in the construction
section (Soflaei, Shokouhian, & Zhu, 2017). Therefore, buildings are the largest factor of greenhouse
emission, having the largest impact on man-made climate change (Amasyali & El-Gohary, 2018).
These issues have driven to think more creatively and bring the sustainability concept to the forefront
of their decision. Thermal comfort is the condition of mind that expresses satisfaction with the
thermal environment (Standard55, 2018). Thus, the successful design of buildings requires on
whether the indoor environment is considered for occupant’s behavior or not (Enescu, 2017). In
order to reduce the energy consumption in contemporary buildings, taking advantage of the
passive heating/cooling design strategies to maintain a comfortable temperature range inside the
buildings is extremely important (Pomponi, Barbosa, & Piroozfar, 2017). Unfortunately, this concept
has not been paid enough attention in contemporary buildings that have significant consequences
in negative environmental impact, while a good correlation between traditional buildings and the

CONTACT Saeid Teshnehdel teshnehdel.s@gmail.com

© 2020 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group
2 S. TESHNEHDEL ET AL.

environment has been exhibited during the history of architecture (Soflaei, Shokouhian, & Shemirani,
2016b). According to Fathy (1986), one of the areas to look for energy-efficient architecture might be
to go back and reinvestigate traditional architecture such as courtyard houses. He believed that in the
context of sustainability where ecological issues are of prime importance, the courtyard can still be
perceived as an important design element that functions as a social space as well as something that
reduces the carbon footprint of the building. A courtyard housing typology is a set of building type of
familial and historic dwelling that the living spaces are arranged around a central courtyard (Soflaei,
Shokouhian, & Soflaei, 2017).
On the other hand, some previous studies by the microclimatic factors, such as wind and solar
radiation, have evaluated thermal comfort level in a courtyard. The impact of these factors can
also be assessed by the adjustment of the courtyard’s geometrical and orientation to provide the
maximum indoor thermal comfort (Almhafdy, Ibrahim, Ahmad, & Yahya, 2013; Givoni, 1969; Meir,
2000). However, the land size is influential; to some extent, the average size of the courtyards is
usually defined based on the latitude. They are narrow enough to maintain a shaded area during
summers and are also wide enough to gain solar radiation during the winter days (Soflaee & Shokou-
hian, 2007). A good combination of courtyard layout and aspect ratio can improve the use of natural
ventilation by increasing free cooling during hot summers and reducing cold wind in winters. Eco-
logical buffer areas of a courtyard can reduce cooling loads in the summer by ∼19.6% and
heating loads in the winter by ∼22.3% (Xu, Luo, Wang, Hong, & Fu, 2018). The sun is another signifi-
cant feature to the design of a courtyard; wherever the best sun can be found at the moment is where
the courtyard should be located, with the living spaces arranged around those angles. The east–west
orientation is the most optimal option, which needs morning sunlight in the sunspace to position it
on the building’s west part, with east-facing windows. It should be noted that the inappropriate
orientation can ruin the function of the courtyard as a microclimate modifier, making it looks cold
and dank (FullEnclosure). Despite the special place of the courtyard as a successful climate-represen-
tative design pattern in the history of architecture, it has been neglected in the passage of time
(Edwards, Sibley, Land, & Hakmi, 2006).
In a series of research studies that have been conducted on the passive performance of buildings,
the impact of the courtyard on the thermal performance of residential buildings, particularly in a hot
desert climate (BWh), has been investigated. Previous research has emphasized the environmental
role of the courtyard to provide indoor thermal comfort conditions. For example, Zamani, Heidari,
and Hanachi (2018) investigated that the design of the courtyard in residential buildings is an
efficient strategy to obtain sustainability and energy consumption. They also mentioned that
details of courtyards in houses can reduce energy consumption and better microclimate of buildings.
In this study, most significant designs of the courtyard (such as opening, geometry, and orientation)
were assessed by evaluating the energy performance, indoor temperature, and natural ventilation in
different climates. Akbari and Teshnehdel (2018) investigated the potential of a courtyard based on
shading performance in different hot and cold climates. Their results revealed that in both climates,
the amount of shaded surfaces has appropriate climate compatibility in summer days; while sunlit
surfaces have not appropriate climate compatibility in winter days. Based on Saeed (2007) investi-
gation, the courtyard shapes have taken more dynamic forms other than the rectilinear shapes of
the traditional footprint. The result of this study shows that to create new shapes typified as U, L,
T, or Y. Baboli, Ibrahim, and Sharif (2015) presented an adaptive role for traditional courtyard
houses to suit the users̕ comfort requirements in the moderate climate of Babul, Iran. Their
findings illustrated that the plans of traditional houses were designed to provide natural cross-ven-
tilation, for the southern and northern side of the building. Mousli and Semprini (2015) analyzed the
impact of thermal requirement and natural ventilation on the indoor thermal condition for courtyard
houses in Damascus. Their results showed the importance of high thermal mass structure, high per-
formance materials, openings (areas and positions), the shaded area, trees, and water fountain, which
have an effect on natural ventilation to improve indoor thermal comfort. In other studies (Al-Hafith,
Satish, & De Wilde, 2019), the difference in shading that results from changing the courtyard
 ARCHITECTURAL ENGINEERING AND DESIGN MANAGEMENT 3

geometry can lead to a difference in MRT and Ta of up to 15°C. Some research studies evaluated the
advantages of atrium design in residential buildings (Berardi & Wang, 2014; Omrany, Ghaffarianho-
seini, Berardi, Ghaffarianhoseini, & Li, 2020). They found out that well-designed atriums can reduce
buildings’ energy by supplying daylight and natural ventilation to interiors. Teshnehdel, Bahari,
and Mirnezami (2019) analyzed the impact of the shading performance on the thermal comfort
for courtyard houses in two different hot and cold climates. Their results showed that there is a
high correlation between the MRT and thermal comfort index (PMV), and reducing the MRT improves
the thermal comfort index (PMV). Ahmad, Khetrish, and Abughres (1985) propounded research about
traditional courtyard house in comparison with the modern separated house of Ghadames, Libya.
They concluded that the thermal comfort of a local courtyard house outweighs a modern type
house. Soflaei et al. (2016b), Soflaei, Shokouhian, and Shemirani (2016a), and Soflaei, Shokouhian,
and Zhu (2017) have focused on the thermal requirement of traditional courtyards in hot-arid cli-
mates of Iran. They conducted several field survey research studies and showed that Iranian tra-
ditional courtyards were built based on accurate consideration to geometrical properties and
orientation regarding the natural and physical parameters for doing as an impressive microclimate
adjuster.
A few results of the research also have shown that inside courtyard thermal condition is depen-
dent on the amount of shading. For example, Muhaisen and Gadi (2005) proposed a mathematical
model, which was present to assess the sunlit and shading areas in a courtyard with circular geome-
try. They investigated a circular courtyard form with any proportions and dimensions by the inter-
action taking place between the suns at any time throughout the year. Their results illustrated
that changing the courtyard’s dimensions and proportions considerably impact the shading of the
inner courtyard envelope. Muhaisen and Gadi (2006), who analyzed the shading performance on
polygonal courtyard shapes, have concluded that the courtyard proportions and geometry have a
significant effect on the shading performance of a courtyard. Almumar (2019) conducted research
work on the impact of the sequence orient places in a traditional courtyard dwelling in a civil
fabric of randomly oriented plans. The results of his research showed that a significant percentage
of residential buildings is led to the desired side, notwithstanding the randomness of the land plot
direction. Regarding the mentioned literature gaps and extend the existing knowledge on the
design of courtyard houses, the goal of this study is to investigate how and to what extent orientation
and geometrical properties of a courtyard can impact shading and sunlit areas to enhance outdoor
thermal comfort for occupants during a year, in courtyard houses in hot desert (BWh) climate zones. It
should be noted the sky view factor and the impact of natural elements, such as vegetation and tree
shading, are not considered in this study.

Methodology
Study area
Kashan’s ancient city in Isfahan province was selected to study in this research. It is one of the oldest
cities in Iran, where many ancient relics have been found in archaeological sites around the city.
Kashan is located at (33°59′ North, 51°27′ East) and 982 m above sea level. Kashan is influenced by
the desert climate. In Kashan, there is virtually no rainfall during the year. This location is classified
as BWh climate (Köppen-Geiger). The average temperature in Kashan is 19.5°C and ∼128 mm of pre-
cipitation falls annually. The highest and lowest average temperatures are in July and January, at
around 33.2 and 5.0°C, respectively. The average annual sunshine in Kashan is 2942 h
(MeteorologicalOrganization).
Ten traditional courtyard houses in Kashan, with different design characteristics, were chosen to
investigate as research cases employing a field measurement method. These cases were designed by
the well-known Persian local architects with a careful attention to environmental features to provide
4 S. TESHNEHDEL ET AL.

the maximum indoor thermal comfort for residents (Haji-Qassemi, 1998). Figure 1 shows a detailed
research process.

Environmental spatial analysis of courtyards

This study tries to explore the orientation, dimensions, and proportion of vernacular courtyards in the
hot desert climate of Iran, with the aim of extrapolating of an optimal model for designing a courtyard
to improve thermal comfort in this region. Ten case studies from BWh climate of Kashan were
selected to analyze, and a filed investigation was conducted to identify orientation, dimensions,
and proportion in these 10 research cases, according to two major criteria as follows:

(a) This criterion tries to investigate the rotation angle, extension, and orientation in 10 case studies
to recognize the most optimal suitable climatic orientation in hot desert climates, providing
maximum shading for passive cooling in summers as well as maximum gain radiation for
passive heating in winters. Studies have shown that selecting the most optimal building orien-
tation is one of the critical passive design decisions that could have a great impact on the energy

Figure 1. Research process diagram.

 ARCHITECTURAL ENGINEERING AND DESIGN MANAGEMENT 5

performance of a building’s envelope. Konya (2013) emphasized the importance of orientation in

building design and the fact that is determined by the climatic factors of wind and solar energy.
He claimed that there is a strong relationship between thermal performance and orientation.
Studies have shown that most of the traditional courtyard houses in the hot desert climate of
Iran are designed along north–south, northeast–southwest, or northwest–southeast directions
that are the best orientations to maximize the use of winter, summer living spaces. Service
spaces are also situated at the east side of the house to function as a buffer zone for the heat
due to west daylight (Pirnia, 2005).
(b) Since courtyard’s geometrical proportions among the most important factors to enhance
indoor thermal comfort in surrounding spaces (Almhafdy et al., 2013; Givoni, 1969; Meir,
2000), this part of the paper deals with the assessment of dimensions and proportions of tra-
ditional courtyards, relating to length, width, height, and length-to-width ratio, in BWh climate
of Iran. Previous research emphasized on the building geometry as a key factor that is con-
straining the buildings overall volume and surface area related to its shape, the more
volume equals more heating and cooling loads (Hemsath & Bandhosseini, 2015). According
to Muhaisen and Gadi (2005), building geometry is an influential parameter to consider
from a design perspective that impacts heat loss, heat gains, shading, and infiltration, and
all of these affect the building’s heating and cooling load and its energy consumption.
Iranian traditional courtyards were designed based on a modular geometrical layout, protect-
ing the indoor spaces from gaining the heat and outdoor high temperature to provide thermal
comfort for occupants.

Table 1 shows the summary of the conducted survey-based analysis for the 10 traditional court-
yards selected in BWh climate of Kashan, Iran.

Thermal performance
According to the Köppen climate classification, Kashan city, located in the BW climate area, was ana-
lyzed. Kashan is located in 33.98° north latitude, 51.45° east longitude, and has an elevation of 982 m.
Climate Consultant 6.0 (ClimateConsultant; Liggett et al., 2016) was used in order to assess the
thermal comfort condition in BWh climate zone based on the ASHRAE Standard 55. Results on the
psychometric chart for this city show that 1725 h of indoor comfort can be achieved, which is
∼19.7% of the annual comfort demand. It also reveals that 425 h of natural ventilation cooling can
be obtained in conventional houses, which is ∼4.9% of the annual demand.
The sun shading chart for Kashan city is provided for various bearing angles in Figure 2, the first
plot shows the sun shading chart for winter –spring between 21 December and 21 June, and the
second plot illustrates the sun shading chart for summer and fall between 21 June 21 and 21 Decem-
ber. It reveals that in winter and spring, 611 h are needed to provide shading during which time the
temperature is >24°C. During these seasons, there are 1181 h that sun is needed to bring up the
temperature to 20°C up to 24°C. On the other hand, in summer and fall seasons, 1226 and 571 h
are needed, respectively, to provide shading and sun to make indoor thermal comfort for residents.

Shading and sunlit index

In this research, to evaluate the performance of shading in courtyards, the shading index proposed by
Soflaei, Shokouhian, Abraveshdar, and Alipour (2017) was employed that is described as a thermal
performance in courtyards. To achieve this purpose, the average temperature in a month is
defined according to the hourly data from the local meteorological information of Kashan. After
that, the comfort level of temperature generally used around 20–4◦ C (Commission, 2016), is con-
sidered to be 22◦ C as a constant value. The monthly thermal need is assessed by comparing the
average hourly temperature of each month with thermal comfort temperature that could be positive
6 S. TESHNEHDEL ET AL.

Table 1. Orientation, dimensions, and proportion of case studies.

Criterion #1 Criterion #2
Length
orientation and rotation angle Length Width Height Schematic
No Case studies ID from the North (m) (m) (m) Width plan

C
Al-e-Yaseen #1 33 19 8.5 1.73
1 45.0
House C 7.7 6.5 5 1.18
#2

Borujerdi C
2 23.0 30.5 21 9 1.45
House #1

Kheyrie C
3 55.0 30.5 20.5 8 1.52
House #1

Dastmalchi C
4 15.0 22.5 18.5 6 1.21
House #1

Sajadi C
5 18.0 16.5 12.5 7.5 1.32
House #1

C
#1
Abbasian 27.5 16 12 1.71
6 C 52.0
House 8.8 7.5 7 1.17
#2

Atarha C
7 31.0 33 22 9.5 1.50
House #1

C
#1
25.5 23 6.5 1.10
Alaghband C
8 27.0 5.7 4.6 6.5 1.23
House #2
5.7 4.6 6.5 1.23
C
#3

Karkhanechi C
9 36.0 24.5 20 6.5 1.22
House #1

Mortazavi C
10 75.0 27 13 9.5 2.07
House #1

or negative. According to this assessment, it’s defined that in which months shading or sunlit may
enhance outdoor thermal comfort of different parts of the courtyard (yard, including surrounding
walls, and floor). Afterward, the percentage of the total area of sunlit or shading is considered as
 ARCHITECTURAL ENGINEERING AND DESIGN MANAGEMENT 7

Figure 2. Sun shading chart for Kashan city based on the ASHRAE Standard 55, (a) 21 December–21 June [Winter/Spring], (b) 21
June–December [Summer–Fall].

Table 2. Average Temperature in Kashan (Meteorological Organization).

8 S. TESHNEHDEL ET AL.

an index level between 0% and 100% that presents the courtyard’s shading performance to enhance
the indoor thermal comfort.
Table 2 is based on the weather data in 2013. The maximum and minimum temperatures occurred
in July and January with 40.6 and 0°C, respectively. The average monthly results reveal that the
thermal comfort can be provided in October during some hours and days; however, shading or
sunlit need to be provided in other months to bring the temperature up or down to passively
provide the comfort for residents.
To achieve a shading index, the average hourly temperature can be compared with thermal
comfort level over a period of one year. As is evident in Table 2, in the first three months and last
two months (italics), the median hourly temperatures are under the comfort level; therefore, temp-
erature request is positive and supplying sunlit can attain the temperature to a comfortable range.
Also, between the middle of the April–October (bold), the median hourly temperatures are higher
than the comfort range and it’s needed to reduce the temperature by supplying shading instead
of sunlit area.
In this regard, Equation (1) (Soflaei, Shokouhian, Abraveshdar, et al., 2017) mathematically rep-
resents how to calculate,Ish , shading index: the total shading areas during months with a request
of reduction in temperature. Otherwise, the total sunlit areas are calculated during the months
with the demand of rising temperature level compared with the thermal comfort level.
 
1


Ish = Ashading + Asunlit (1)
12 i j

where Ish is the shading index based on providing thermal comfort; i the months with an average
hourly temperature greater than thermal comfort temperature; j the months with the average
hourly temperature less than thermal comfort temperature

Ashading(k) = AShading (Floor) + AShading (Wall) (2)

Asunlit(k) = Asunlit (Floor) + Asunlit(Wall) (3)

 
Days of month (k) SHAFloor
AShading (Floor) =  (4)
n AFloor

 
Days of month (k) SHAWall
AShading (Wall) =  (5)
n AWall

 
Days of month (k) SLAFloor
Asunlit (Floor) =  (6)
n AFloor

 
Days of month (k) SLAWall
Asunlit (Wall) =  (7)
n AWall

where Ashading (k) is the total average percentage of shading area for the kth month; Asunlit (k) total
average percentage of sunlit area for the kth month; AShading (Floor) the average percentage of
shading area on floors for the kth month; AShading (Wall) the average percentage of average shading
area on walls for the kth month; Asunlit (Floor) the average percentage sunlit area on floors for the
kth month; Asunlit (Wall) the average percentage sunlit area on walls for the kth month; SHAFloor total
shading area of floors each day; AFloor total area of floors; SHAWall the total shading area of surround-
ing walls each day; AWall the total area of surrounding walls; SLAFloor the total sunlit area of floors each
day; SLAWall the total sunlit area of surrounding walls each day; n the number of days in a month (k).
 ARCHITECTURAL ENGINEERING AND DESIGN MANAGEMENT 9

Table 3. Three-dimensional numerical models for 10 courtyards as research cases.

No House 3D plan No Building 3D plan

1 Al-e-yaseen 6 Abbasian

2 Borujerdi 7 Atarha

3 Kheyrie 8 Alaghband

4 Dastmalchi 9 Karkhanechi

5 Sajadi 10 Mortazavi

Modeling and validation

In order to investigate shading/sunlit performance in the case houses, DesignBuilder [v2.1]
was employed that provides for the design of natural ventilation. DesignBuilder is a reliable
energy simulation program for buildings, and its capabilities for solar shading analysis have
been proved by many researchers. The accuracy of this software was also validated using
the Building Energy Simulation TEST procedure adopted by the United States Department of
Energy.
Selected case houses were modeled to study the solar incident and external sunlit fraction as well
as determining outside and inside temperature of courtyard’s floor and walls. Three-dimensional
models were developed in the DesignBuilder for cases illustrated in Table 3. Also, some of the
cases have more than one courtyard, which was also considered in the simulation.
This section intends to validate, using the measured air temperature (Ta) and shading per-
formance of Borujerdi courtyard house in Kashan, for further analysis. The thermometer [Testo
10 S. TESHNEHDEL ET AL.

Figure 3. Position measurement devices on Borujerdi courtyard house in Kashan.

610] and Laser distance meter [Leica D2] were placed 1.5 m above ground in the courtyard
(Figure 3). By using a statistical method, the measured and simulated air temperature and
shading performance of this courtyard are analyzed. The measured data were averaged at
different times on 18–20 August 2017, from 09:00 to 16:00 for air temperature and 09:00 to
13:00 for shading percentage in local time. These three days were clear summer days with
low wind speed and no cloud cover. Therefore, in all simulations, we considered without
cloud cover (cloud cover: 0%). The specifications and technical data of the measurement equip-
ment are illustrated in Table 4.

Results
Field measurements and model validation
With regard to the simulated and measured results, the maximum Ta occurred at ∼11:00 am to 14:00
pm. The air temperature difference between the results of simulated and measured is ∼1.5°C at the
highest point, while the average difference is 0.5°C. Likewise, properties of the used materials and
plant conditions can be attributed to the difference. While the model represented a very close agree-
ment correlation coefficient between the measured and simulated data of Ta (0.93). Also, there is a
high degree of agreement between the observed and simulated shadow percentages (R 2 is 0.99). The
root mean square error (RMSE) value is 1.78°C for Ta and 3.42% for shading performance. The

Table 4. Specifications and technical data of the measuring instruments.

Sensor type Parameter Measuring range Accuracy Output Measuring rate
Testo 610 Temperature −30 to +50°C ±0.5°C 0.1°C 1s
Leica D2 Laser distance meter 330 foot 1/16" 1 mW -
 ARCHITECTURAL ENGINEERING AND DESIGN MANAGEMENT 11

Figure 4. Relationship between simulated and measured data of temperature and shading performance, on 18–20 August 2017
(09:00–16:00 for temperature and 09:00–13:00 for shading).

obtained results of RMSE value show similar results between simulated and measured data. In this
case, corresponding P-values for temperature and shading performance are <.05, implying that
the model is significant (Figure 4).

Impact of shading and sunlit on courtyard thermal comfort

The results of simulations are shown in Table 5 and are analyzed based on the shading index intro-
duced in Figure 8. The calculations are based on the hourly average of each day, then the indicated
numbers in Table 4 for sunlit and shading for each month were extracted from the daily average. The
final results were broken down to the floor and wall in order to demonstrate the contribution of each
building component to provide sunlit and shading. As can be seen in this table, the sunlit areas for
these 10 houses are highlighted with yellow color from November through March, as the sunlit
can provide thermal comfort for this period of the year since the average temperature is
below the comfort level. Through April to October, the shading area is computed instead of
sunlit, as the average temperature is above the comfort level and shading can help to provide
thermal comfort for residents.
The percentage of shading and the sunlit area is determined based on the hourly average shading
for each month, and it’s provided in Figure 5. The sunlit area is determined for November through
March for each research case with a minimum of 21.7% (Case #10), maximum of 65.4% (Case #4),
and an average of 44.1% sunlit. On the other hand, the shading area is determined for April
through October for the 10 courtyard houses with a minimum of 17.0% (Case #4), maximum of
48.8% (Case #5), and an average of 34.3% shading.
Figure 6 shows the contribution of floor and wall in providing the sunlit or shading in each month
for the 10 courtyard houses studied in this research. In addition, shading index, Ish , consists of sunlit
and shading areas that are indicated for each case. Results reveal that floors have less contribution to
provide comfort through sunlit or shading between June and August when compared with the walls.
Among the 10 cases, the maximum and minimum floor contribution can be seen in Case #4 in
12 S. TESHNEHDEL ET AL.

Table 5. Analysis of shading and sunlit in different seasons for 10 courtyards as research cases.

Continued
 ARCHITECTURAL ENGINEERING AND DESIGN MANAGEMENT 13

Figure 5. Percentage of hourly average shading area for each month in 2012.

November and August with the amount of 61.4% and 10.3%, respectively. On the other hand, the
maximum and minimum wall contribution is seen in Case #6 (March) and Case #4 (December)
with 55.2% and 34.6%, respectively.
14 S. TESHNEHDEL ET AL.

Figure 6. Shading index results for floor and wall for 10 courtyard houses.

Figure 7 shows the percentages of shading and sunlit on the case studies, according to the
results in the hottest and coldest days. The most sunlit and least shading in the hottest day
can be seen between 10 am and 2 pm in various cases which is due to the orientation,
 ARCHITECTURAL ENGINEERING AND DESIGN MANAGEMENT 15

Figure 7. (a) Shading percentage and (b) sunlit fraction in the warmest day, (c) shading percentage and (d) sunlit fraction in the
coldest day.

dimensions (length, width, and height), and proportion of these case studies. In this paper, we try
to investigate the most efficient performance of shading; the similar range can be observed the
maximum sunlit and minimum shading in the coldest day although the amount of sunlit can’t
reach 90%.
Figure 8 illustrates the average monthly shading index (Ish ) for these 10 courtyards which are
determined based on Equation (1) to evaluate the shading performance to provide the thermal
comfort.
Table 6 shows the courtyards’ geometrical properties and also presents shading indexes for
each case. It should be noted the geometrical characteristic for case studies, which have more
than one courtyard, it was examined only for the largest yard. The least shading index has
been in Mortazavi’s house, Case #10, with Ish =33.96%, while the most shading level has observed
in Borujerdi’s house with Ish = 40.81%. According to geometrical characteristic, Alaghband’s house
(Case #8) and Mortazavi’s house (Case #10) are as minimum and maximum length to width ratios,
respectively.
A linear multiple regression analysis was conducted to propose an equation to predict the shading
index (Ish ). The design parameters included in this equation are orientation (in radian), length-to-
width ratio, and height

Ish = 49.0 − 1.86 × Orientation − 2.28(L/W) − 0.72H

16 S. TESHNEHDEL ET AL.

Table 6. Shading index and geometrical characteristic of each case study.

  
Length Length Width Ish (%)
No House Rotation angle from the north a° Width Height Height
1 Al-e-yaseen house 45.0 1.73 3.88 2.23 40.62
2 Borujerdi house 23.0 1.45 3.38 2.33 40.81
3 Kheyrie house 55.0 1.52 3.81 2.5 39.7
4 Dastmalchi house 15.0 1.21 3.75 3.08 40.78
5 Sajadi house 18.0 1.32 2.20 1.66 37.68
6 Abbasian house 52.0 1.71 2.29 1.33 35.44
7 Atarha house 31.0 1.50 3.47 2.31 38.37
8 Alaghband house 27.0 1.10 3.92 3.5 40.32
9 Karkhanechi house 36.0 1.22 3.76 3.07 40.75
10 Mortazavi house 75.0 2.07 2.84 1.36 33.96

The range of the data that this equation was extracted from is listed as

15 , Orientation , 75◦

1.19 , (L/W) , 2.1

6 , H , 9.5 m

Figure 9 shows the correlation between the results of the numerical study and the proposed
equation for the shading index. As seen, the proposed equation is in a good agreement with the
simulation results, with the correlation coefficient of 0.8.
As it was explained, the shading index is used to demonstrate sunlit/shading that passively pro-
vides thermal comfort in the courtyards, considering average hourly and daily temperatures. Sunlit
and shading areas are considered in the calculation of this index to provide the efficient thermal
comfort in various temperatures during a year. This paper attempted to realize a correlation
between the shading index and the courtyards’ orientation as well as the geometrical properties.

Figure 8. Determination of obtained sunlit and shading in the 10 courtyard houses.

 ARCHITECTURAL ENGINEERING AND DESIGN MANAGEMENT 17

Figure 9. Correlation between the results of the numerical study and the proposed equation for the shading index.

Figure 10. Correlation between orientation and geometry of courtyard with shading index for case studies, (a) modified length-to-
width ratio and modified height versus area of shading, (b) modified length-to-width ratio and modified height versus area of the
sun.

Figure 10 illustrates the correlation between orientation and courtyard geometrical properties with
sunlit area, shading area, and shading index.

Discussion
As demonstrated in the literature, the relationship between courtyard proportions and thermal
comfort is significant (Martinelli & Matzarakis, 2017; Rodríguez-Algeciras, Tablada, Chaos-Yeras, De
la Paz, & Matzarakis, 2018). They also indicated the impact of courtyard proportions, such as geometri-
cal properties and different orientations, is related to local climatic conditions and meteorological
factors. Few studies address the beneficial effect of shading and sunlit in courtyard houses on the
thermal performance of residential buildings, particularly in a hot desert climate (BWh) (Soflaei, Sho-
kouhian, Abraveshdar, et al., 2017; Soflaei, Shokouhian, Tabadkani, Moslehi, & Berardi, 2020; Teshneh-
del, Mirnezami, Saber, Pourzangbar, & Olabi, 2020). While due to some limitations, this study has
18 S. TESHNEHDEL ET AL.

attempted to fill these gaps by providing an optimal pattern using the simulation of shading and
sunlit in courtyard houses in Kashan, Iran, determined by a hot desert climate. Different courtyard
geometrical properties and different orientations were studied through numerical approach with
simulations by DesignBuilder software. The accuracy of modeling was validated against measure-
ment data on a courtyard house, whose efficacy is largely testified in the literature (Al-Hafith,
Satish, Bradbury, & de Wilde, 2017; Taleghani, Tenpierik, & van den Dobbelsteen, 2014).
In addition, Kubota, Zakaria, Abe, and Toe (2017) and Tsianaka (2006) have focused on courtyard
influences in residential buildings on the mitigation of air temperatures in summer days due to the
improvement of thermal comfort conditions. They have emphasized that the geometry of the court-
yard form affects the shadows produced on the building envelope and consequently, the received
solar radiation and the cooling and heating loads in hot-dry climate. Our results suggest that declin-
ing length to width can increase the percentage of shading area, also deeper courtyard that has
higher height obtains the higher area of shading. On the other hand, height and length-to-width
ratio has opposite effects on providing sunlit area, increasing in height decreases the sunlit area
and increasing in L/W ratio increases this parameter. Also, the shading index, Ish , which is determined
based on both sunlit and shading response, is analyzed. Lowering the modified height and increasing
the modified L/W ratio can significantly increase Ish , which can considerably enhance the shading per-
formance of the courtyard to provide thermal comfort. It should be pointed out that at the night-time,
there is an influence of sunlit loss in the sky and these results are valid only for daytime.
Beyond the study’s findings, the association of diverse strategies should be pursued in courtyard
house designing. For instance, architectural features and predictions in the designing of courtyard
houses are feasible to provide shading in a hot desert climate where the radiant temperature is
very high during the summer season. In conclusion, effective strategies should be collectively con-
sidered to improve human thermal comfort in these areas.

Conclusion
To evaluate the shading performance of the courtyard, with the aim of enhancing outdoor comfort
temperature, the shading index that was previously introduced by authors was employed in this
research. Ten courtyard houses from a hot desert climate (BWh) of Kashan were selected as case
studies. Geometrical characteristics of courtyards were extrapolated from a field investigation, and
each case was simulated by DesignBuilder software. The main goal is to optimize the designing
pattern for the courtyard house regarding orientation, dimensions, and proportions, in order to
enhance shading and sunlit performance in summer and winter to improve thermal comfort con-
ditions. For this purpose, the field observations and numerical simulations are exploited. The follow-
ings are the main conclusions of this research:

. A close agreement between the physical measurements and the simulated shading percentages
was achieved. Results show a high correlation between the effects of shading/sunlit on thermal
comfort.
. A precise design equation for courtyard houses regarding orientation, dimensions, and pro-
portions, to achieve an optimal designing pattern and to improve the thermal comfort based
on the shading index, was derived from the results of the numerical simulations and presented.
. Increasing the length-to-width ratio, and lowering the courtyards’ height obtain a greater shading
index that considerably improves the outdoor thermal comfort in this climate.
. Regarding orientation, enhancing the rotation angle from the north direction has a positive impact
on the shading index that is considered to modify the height; however, it has a negative influence
when is used to modify the length to width; however, in overall, both modified L/W and height
have almost the same weight on affecting the shading index.
. The influence of orientation can be ignored, as increasing the rotation angle can enhance the
shading index in one axis and decrease that in another one.
 ARCHITECTURAL ENGINEERING AND DESIGN MANAGEMENT 19

The proposed design recommendations can improve the shading and sunlit performances of
courtyard houses to enhance thermal comfort which can result in reducing energy consumptions.
The presented research process can be employed for different climates to propose design patterns
for courtyard houses for different locations.

Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

ORCID
Saeid Teshnehdel http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8118-140X
Farzaneh Soflaei http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3949-3538
Mehdi Shokouhian http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9823-0661

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