A novel approach to analyze indoor daylight quality in heritage shophouses: a case study in Nakhon Si Thammarat, Thailand

Numerous heritage buildings are being renovated across historical cities in Southeast Asia as part of conservation efforts. Many such buildings suffer from poor indoor daylight quality, negatively affecting occupants’ visual health. This study proposes a novel framework to analyze daylight quality i...

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Main Authors: Wirut Thinnakorn, Kantaphong Srimuang, Raksiri Kaewtawee, Sarin Pinich, Farhana Mohd Razif, Reyes Garcia
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2025-08-01
Series:Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering
Subjects:
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13467581.2025.2546396
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author Wirut Thinnakorn
Kantaphong Srimuang
Raksiri Kaewtawee
Sarin Pinich
Farhana Mohd Razif
Reyes Garcia
author_facet Wirut Thinnakorn
Kantaphong Srimuang
Raksiri Kaewtawee
Sarin Pinich
Farhana Mohd Razif
Reyes Garcia
author_sort Wirut Thinnakorn
collection DOAJ
description Numerous heritage buildings are being renovated across historical cities in Southeast Asia as part of conservation efforts. Many such buildings suffer from poor indoor daylight quality, negatively affecting occupants’ visual health. This study proposes a novel framework to analyze daylight quality in heritage shophouses using window-to-wall ratios and five metrics. Three typical shophouses with different shape factors (SF) are considered case studies. The shophouses were simulated in Rhinoceros®, Grasshopper®, ClimateStudio™ V1.9, and DIALux evo® to examine different window-to-wall ratios (WWR10–100), aiming to identify an optimal value for high-quality daylight within the buildings. The results show that West-facing (0°) buildings can have suitable indoor daylight, except in cases where a building has an internal courtyard. Increasing the WWR value improves most daylight performance metrics, except the ASE metric, which requires careful control through a reduced WWR – particularly in buildings with narrow and elongated layouts. For buildings with square-shaped and rectangular layouts, even a modest number of openings (WWR10–40) can meet most metrics suggested in LEED V3 and LEED V4 standards. This study serves as a guideline for developing building control regulations in historic urban areas to promote the sustainable adaptation of traditional shophouses.
format Article
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institution Kabale University
issn 1347-2852
language English
publishDate 2025-08-01
publisher Taylor & Francis Group
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series Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering
spelling doaj-art-e8f2c0c748a94c44a9f5bacfd855174d2025-08-20T04:03:21ZengTaylor & Francis GroupJournal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering1347-28522025-08-010011910.1080/13467581.2025.25463962546396A novel approach to analyze indoor daylight quality in heritage shophouses: a case study in Nakhon Si Thammarat, ThailandWirut Thinnakorn0Kantaphong Srimuang1Raksiri Kaewtawee2Sarin Pinich3Farhana Mohd Razif4Reyes Garcia5Walailak UniversityWalailak UniversityWalailak UniversityChulalongkorn UniversityUniversiti Sains MalaysiaUniversity of WarwickNumerous heritage buildings are being renovated across historical cities in Southeast Asia as part of conservation efforts. Many such buildings suffer from poor indoor daylight quality, negatively affecting occupants’ visual health. This study proposes a novel framework to analyze daylight quality in heritage shophouses using window-to-wall ratios and five metrics. Three typical shophouses with different shape factors (SF) are considered case studies. The shophouses were simulated in Rhinoceros®, Grasshopper®, ClimateStudio™ V1.9, and DIALux evo® to examine different window-to-wall ratios (WWR10–100), aiming to identify an optimal value for high-quality daylight within the buildings. The results show that West-facing (0°) buildings can have suitable indoor daylight, except in cases where a building has an internal courtyard. Increasing the WWR value improves most daylight performance metrics, except the ASE metric, which requires careful control through a reduced WWR – particularly in buildings with narrow and elongated layouts. For buildings with square-shaped and rectangular layouts, even a modest number of openings (WWR10–40) can meet most metrics suggested in LEED V3 and LEED V4 standards. This study serves as a guideline for developing building control regulations in historic urban areas to promote the sustainable adaptation of traditional shophouses.http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13467581.2025.2546396daylight indoor qualityheritage buildingswindow-to-wall ratiorenovationfaçades
spellingShingle Wirut Thinnakorn
Kantaphong Srimuang
Raksiri Kaewtawee
Sarin Pinich
Farhana Mohd Razif
Reyes Garcia
A novel approach to analyze indoor daylight quality in heritage shophouses: a case study in Nakhon Si Thammarat, Thailand
Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering
daylight indoor quality
heritage buildings
window-to-wall ratio
renovation
façades
title A novel approach to analyze indoor daylight quality in heritage shophouses: a case study in Nakhon Si Thammarat, Thailand
title_full A novel approach to analyze indoor daylight quality in heritage shophouses: a case study in Nakhon Si Thammarat, Thailand
title_fullStr A novel approach to analyze indoor daylight quality in heritage shophouses: a case study in Nakhon Si Thammarat, Thailand
title_full_unstemmed A novel approach to analyze indoor daylight quality in heritage shophouses: a case study in Nakhon Si Thammarat, Thailand
title_short A novel approach to analyze indoor daylight quality in heritage shophouses: a case study in Nakhon Si Thammarat, Thailand
title_sort novel approach to analyze indoor daylight quality in heritage shophouses a case study in nakhon si thammarat thailand
topic daylight indoor quality
heritage buildings
window-to-wall ratio
renovation
façades
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13467581.2025.2546396
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