Unveiling the Thermal Comfort Dynamics of Asymmetrical Buildings Configurations in Malaysia’s Public School Courtyard Design

Most public schools in Malaysia have courtyards for assemblies and outdoor activities, but the hot and humid climate limits their comfortable usage hours.This study investigates how optimising building configurations with asymmetrical building configurations can effectively enhance comfort hours in school courtyards by taking advantage of sun orientation.This study used a simulation method involving five scenarios with a different aspect ratio from 0.4 to 0.8.Simulations tested five different building arrangements surrounding the courtyard with B1 (East and West buildings) and B2 (North and South buildings).Furthermore, the software was validated with field measurements from a school in Kuala Lumpur.The validation result shows a low root mean square error of 1.4C in air temperature.Results indicate that building configuration significantly impacts thermal comfort, with Design 5, the highest buildings (aspect ratio = 0.8) on all sides, providing 4 out of 7 hours of comfort and 30% of the area below a Physiological Equivalent Temperature (PET) value of 42.0C.