Roof Thermal Design for Naturally Ventilated Houses in a Hot Humid Climate

Roof thermal performance is one of the most important factors for achieving indoor thermal comfort in a tropical house designed for natural cross ventilation. This study, based on field study data, discusses roof design strategies for a hot-humid climate by investigating the impacts of roof thermal performance on indoor thermal comfort in a naturally ventilated house. Conventional roof design for tropical houses mainly focuses on the roofs day-time thermal performance for limiting solar heat gain through the roof structure. However it ignores night-time heat loss to the sky by long wave radiation. This study investigates the impacts of different roof designs on both day-time and night-time indoor thermal comfort in a naturally ventilated tropical house. This paper also discusses the relationships between roof structure (and roof element) design and roof thermal performance in the hot-humid tropical climate.