The Study of the Thermal Performance of Shavadoons, Case Study: The Souzangar House in Dezful, Iran

Varied harsh climatic conditions in different areas of Iran calls for researching different vernacular architectural methods used to gain thermal comfort with the least consumption of energy. The study of vernacular architecture strategies can provide some solutions for contemporary design. This study uses field measurements to analyze the thermal performance of shavadoons (a kind of underground space used widely in the vernacular architecture of Dezful and Shoushtar in Iran). Variables such as temperature, relative humidity, air velocity and mean radiant temperature of the shavadoon in the Souzangar House were measured and analyzed for this purpose. CFD analysis was performed using DesignBuilder based on temperature contours derived from field measurements. The results indicate that thermal comfort conditions are achieved in different seasons, and the mean radiant temperature is relatively stable especially during the summer due to the high thermal capacity of the soil. The impact of air velocity, which pushes out humidity from the shavadoon, is very little, rather negligible, in these spaces.