Case study paper 1

SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE, BUILDING AND DESIGN
BACHELOR OF SCIENCE (HONOURS) (ARCHITECTURE)
ASIAN ARCHITECTURE (ARC 60403 / ARC 2234)
PROJECT – CASE STUDY PAPER
Solutions to Heat Gain by Using Vernacular Traditional Chinese
Design to Achieve Thermal Comfort in The Water House
YVONNE CHIN YUN MIIN 0315662
MOHD. ALIA AHMAD
28th
June, 2016

Abstract
This paper investigates the relationship of vernacular traditional Chinese design with the context in
terms of design a contemporary building, which happens to be the Water House. The objective is to
understand the methods of integrating architectural design and research through analysis and in-
depth discussion on the selected topic chosen within the framework of Contextual Architecture.
Besides that, this paper identifies the important elements of Contextual Architecture through studies
and researches on the Water House. There are many ways of achieving sustainability through passive
designs with the knowledge of the surrounding environment, in order to reduce the negative effects
of environmental impact towards thermal comfort. Literature review was conducted to gain a basic
understanding of the traditional Chinese spatial layout where an evaluation on how the Water House
executed the spatial arrangement in the modern context to achieve sustainability will be proceeded.
Furthermore, the design concept of the building is to be investigated, whether it aids thermal comfort.
Due to its location is in a seasonal country, an analysis and exploration will be conducted to gain
information upon the design response of the building towards the climatic change. The features that
are listed will be taken into consideration while discussing this topic. Like for instance, the materials
of the Water House used were all locally used in that area except for the steel frames which were
bought to a professional company. All these researches are done with using the methodology of
gathering information from the internet resources and bibliography of books, magazines and
dissertations. Discussions were conducted with the tutors to be sure in case the research was done
correctly and whether any further development should be made in the research paper. Hence, this
research will conclude whether the design of the building is efficient or not in seasonal countries.

Solutions to Heat Gain by Using Vernacular Traditional Chinese Design to
Achieve Thermal Comfort in The Water House
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Abstract 1
1.0 Research Methodology and Limitations 3
2.0 Objectives 4
3.0 Proposed Concept Mapping 5
4.0 Introduction 6
5.0 Design Responses of the Water House based on the Contextual Climate 8
6.0 Shallow Pond of the Water House 11
7.0 Sustainable Materials Used to Achieve Thermal Comfort 13
8.0 Orientation and Spatial Layout of the Water House 16
9.0 Adaption of Vernacular Roof Construction in the Water House 20
10.0 Conclusion 22
11.0 References 23

The Water House by Lixiaodong Atelier
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1.0 Research Methodology and Limitations
Research Methodology
This case study paper requires collecting relevant information for the topic that is discussed in the
research paper. Compilation work is done after analysing and going through the materials gathered
so that clarification to the topic “Solution to Heat Gain by Using Vernacular Traditional Chinese Design
to Achieve Thermal Comfort in the Water House” can be done. The materials needed are found via the
internet and books from the library. Discussion was conducted with the tutor to ensure the case study
paper is produced in the right way.
Limitations
In the process of exploring the materials for the case study paper, insignificant limitations appeared
which caused deficiency of information covered in the research. The chosen building is not accessible
from the point that is located in China. There is limited information on the vernacular design of the
building as well.

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2.0 Objectives
The objective of this case study paper is designed to combine architectural design and research which
aids us in creating our architectural design through wide-ranging research where it is still within the
outline of Contextual Architecture in Asia. This research assignment also presents activities that are
to accomplish in the production of the study:
 Collecting, indexing and evaluating the information gathered
 Analysing the information retrieved
 Compile and organize the research in orderly manner
 Encourage and improve writing skills in case study paper
 Gather related illustration and text
 Designing a layout for the case study paper
With these objectives acquired throughout the process, the case study paper is produced where it is
compiled with analysis and in-depth discussion on the selected topic research on the chosen building,
the Water House by Lixiaodong Atelier, which still remains in the module of Contextual Architecture,
where identification of important elements of the Contextual Architecture is made through the
research on the Water House.

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3.0 Proposed Concept Mapping

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4.0 Introduction
The Water House is known as a private family house, located at the foot of the snow mountain Yulong,
in Lijiang. There is a breath-taking panoramic view towards the Lijiang River, just sitting on a wide open
sloping site. The site was an ancient trading settlement where the old town is still famous for its
historic network of waterways and bridges. Since the site is located at the foot of Yulong mountain,
the mountain’s peaks form a dramatic backdrop to the architect, Li Xiao Dong’s architecture.
The architectural design of the Water House is similar to the traditional design of the Chinese
courtyard houses. Courtyard houses are largely used throughout the world, mostly because of its high
adaptation to the climate and it provides better thermal comfort for the users compared with most of
the common residential buildings. In designing future modern architecture, understanding the
adaptability of different vernacular courtyard houses design in response to regional weather will
become great assistance to many architects.
Hence, this case study paper will be discussing on the topic based on vernacular and contextual
features of the courtyard design applied at the Water House which help to achieve thermal comfort
in relation to the modern architecture of the house.

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Research Question(s):
1. What is contextual and vernacular architecture? And how was it applied in The Water House?
2. Based on the contextual climate, what are the design responses of The Water House?
3. What can the shallow pond around The Water House help reduce heat gain to achieve thermal
comfort?
4. What was considered in choosing the building's material to achieve thermal comfort?
5. How does the orientation and spatial layout of The Water House help in achieving thermal
comfort?
6. What is the significance of the roof construction that help to achieve thermal comfort in The
Water House?
7. What kind of method did the architect used to maximize the ventilation of The Water House?

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5.0 Design Responses of the Water House based on the Contextual Climate
The Water House is located Lijiang, China, where it has fine weather throughout the year. It is generally
breezy, with generous amount of rainfall and full of sunlight. During winter season, the larger
mountains block the cold air that comes from the north of China. The weather is still warm like as it is
spring season for most the time. Usually, the average temperature is within the range of 13C to 20C.
The figure below shows the average temperature in Lijiang, China.
Figure 1. Average Temperatures Graph for Lijiang, China

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Figure 2. Map of Heyuan Section, Lijiang, Yunan China
The figure above shows that the location is mostly mountainous areas marked with terrain line at the
Heyuan Section of Lijiang. Lijiang is at the northwest part of China, where it was populated by the Naxi
(纳西) people and some other minor folkloric groups. The Naxi are famous for living in dwelling houses
which are well-known as the courtyard houses. They have four main types of layout for their dwellings.
From the corresponding similarities of the Water House and the Naxi dwellings consisting of four
courtyards and five patios, the architects intended to adapt the traditional design of the Naxi culture
to the Water House in remembrance of them in the past.
The courtyards or as it is called the “siheyuan” (四合院), or the Chinese Quadrangle. They usually have
a main building at the back connected with two side wings and another block of building just opposite
the main building, forming a four-sided courtyard house. The central courtyard is designed with four-
sided enclosure but it retains the sense of security. It is believed that it is the most sacred space
according to the traditional ethnic beliefs. This is all based on the Feng Shui of the house layout that
is explained by Lao Tzu in “Dao De Jing”.

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The architects designed the Water House to focus on the issues of perception with the surrounding
context and how the users will be using the space. The beliefs of Feng Shui relates with the surrounding
environment, hence the architects designed the house to be in sync with the nature, creating artificial
ways to absorb the positive “Qi” or as we called it positive flow of energy into the building, adding
some flare and excitement to the context.
Figure 4. The Water House and its Surrounding Context

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6.0 Shallow Pool of the Water House
The Water House is designed with three shallow pool that encircles the whole house creates a poetic
view of the house being placed on top of a plate. It creates a beautiful panoramic view of the majestic
mountains behind the house together with the calm and serene Lijiang River view upfront.
Other than just the aesthetic purpose, water is known to be brilliant in storing heat. According to
ASHRAE, the solar energy is identified as the main heating where water evaporation is the main
cooling mechanism. Evaporation is known to be an effective passive design method for cooling,
especially where the relative humidity is lower so that the surrounding air has a greater chance of
having bigger capacity of taking up the water vapors. For the Water House, the water threads through
the house where it provides the evaporative cooling for the house during summer. When the water
evaporates, it draws out a huge amount of heat from the surrounding air. Air movement is also
significant in gaining higher effectivity of evaporation, where the higher the speed of air movement,
the higher the rate of evaporation.
Figure 5. Site plan showing the shallow pools surrounding the house

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Normally the pools and water features are designed at the areas with windows or courtyards so that
it pre-cools the air before entering the house. Location of the water features are very crucial as it can
also create convective breezes. Not only that, the surface area of the exposed water can also affect
the rate of evaporation. Since the Water House is encircled with the shallow pools, the house is
effectively designed to have natural evaporative cooling system.
Figure 6. Shallow pool of the Water House near the windows

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7.0 Sustainable Materials Used to Achieve Thermal Comfort
Figure 7. Materials Used in the Water House
The materials used by the architects were carefully chosen. They decided to use local materials for the
simple construction of the Water House, laterally creating a soft architectural language by
harmonizing the materials with the surrounding and local culture. The main feature of the Water
House is created with glass and steel columns with the traditional Chinese courtyard feature, the
terracotta pitched roof, creates a comfortable feeling to the space, however the wooden louver
screens, the texture of the rocky courtyard walls and pebble ground gives a tense feeling to the space.
The combination of the local materials with the construction techniques of the Water House creates
a modern language of relaxation. Without a doubt, not only the architects used the local materials
just to practice the engagement of cultural ideas with the site, the materials chosen are also thermal

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mass used in passive designs. The thermal mass has the ability to absorb and contain heat energy
which happens to be efficient during the night and cold weathers. In order the thermal mass to be
used effectively, the other passive design methods should be conducted appropriately.
Figure 8. Some of the materials used for the Water House

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The table below is a list of thermal mass with its effectiveness to gain thermal comfort in the passive
design. Some of the materials from the list is used to construct the Water House.
Table 1. Analysis Table of Thermal Mass
Source retrieved from: http://www.greenspec.co.uk/building-design/thermal-mass/

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8.0 Orientation and Spatial Layout of the Water House
The figures below show the layout of the Naxi dwelling, which is similar to the Water House.
Figure 3. The Four Sided Courtyard House with Five Sky-wells Naxi dwelling layout
Figure 4. Description of the Four Sided Courtyard House with Five Sky-wells

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The façade of the Water House faces west but the entrance of the house faces the south direction like
any other traditional courtyard houses. It is believed that it was based on the cosmic Chinese belief to
be in harmony stated by Confucianism.
Figure 9. Orientation of the Sun Path
Other than Chinese beliefs, it is also the reason of passive designs. During the winter time, the house
absorbs radiant heat from the sun through north, east and west-facing windows, and also stores heat
from mechanical heating. The thermal mass will slowly release the heat which reduces the need for
heating. The orientation also allows a clear panoramic view of Lijiang River.

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Figure 10. The Wooden Louver Doors
Figure 11. Louver design at the roof truss

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Figure 10 and 11 shows the design of louvers at the Water House. The louvers allow natural air to flow
into the building by cross ventilation. Cross ventilation system is defined whereby the small air inlet
allows larger outlet air flow in the house. It is a beneficial design during hot weather in China. The
openable window and doors are located at different sides of the house, where there is a distance of
less than 8 meters in between so that adequate air flow is ventilated.
Figure 12. Section drawing to indicate the cross ventilation in the Water House

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9.0 Adaption of Vernacular Roof Construction in the Water House
Figure 13. View that shows the terracotta pitched roof of the Water House
The terracotta pitched roof is famously used in China’s traditional courtyard houses and any other
houses. Not only it creates aesthetic quality to the building even when it ages over time the
appearance remains the same, it also has an advantage to the material itself. Terracotta has a long
lasting strength and durability, better than any other roof tile materials. It does not require much of
maintenance, but even if it is damaged, only the affected ones will be removed and replaced with a
new one. Terracotta tiles are frost and fire resistant as well. Furthermore, terracotta is thermal
effective which it varies with the temperature within the building, relating to the energy used to
maintain the temperature at a comfortable level. The density of the terracotta allows the reduction
of external noise too, so that the users of the house can enjoy the serene peace of the environment.

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The part of the roof being pitched allows the rainwater to flow downwards, not being trapped above
the rooftop and creating unnecessary puddles which will create damp ceilings or worse, leakage. With
that, the terracotta tiles are non-toxic which the rainwater could be collected for reuse. Unfortunately,
the Water House does not have the rainwater storage feature which assuming the architects think it
is redundant.

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10.0 Conclusion
In conclusion, the traditional vernacular Chinese design of the courtyard houses adapt to its site
context very well based on the local climate according to the geomancy which aim to achieve harmony
between nature and humankind. Many places in China are still filled with courtyard houses with
different designs in response to its local culture, economical status, political issues, and most
importantly the climate of the geographical zone. History can really teach new things. People tend to
forget the strength of adaption of the building to the site context while designing in this modern
architectural era. Hence, people are gradually highlighting the importance of urban design to put the
costing and efficiency of the building in mind, along with less destruction to the ecosystem. Passive
design is strongly encouraged in current architectural design for it consumes less amount of energy
and reduces harm to the surrounding environment, for instance the vernacular traditional design
which fits most of the requirement needed to construct passive designed buildings. Like the Water
House designed by the Lixiaodong Atelier, not only the design practices vernacular traditional Chinese
courtyard houses design, the architect Li Xiaodong also employed the locals to contribute in
constructing the building itself, in way to enhance the importance of engaging with the local culture
and context. People seek new ways to fuse the traditional and modern design into one especially in
this modern architecture period. Historical events of architectural design are stored with many details
and reasons of the past architectural creation helped us throughout the way to modernization. Past
designs of different culture should not be forgotten, instead it should be modified with the
combination of tradition and modern design, at the same time, creating a harmonious relationship
between humans and nature.

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11.0 References
Yuan, L. (2013). Wind Environment Characteristic in Chinese Vernacular Courtyard and Its Design
Application. Paper presented at 47th International Conference of the Architecture Science Association,
pp. 493-502. Retrieved from http://anzasca.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/7.pdf
Mohammad Talinggani (2014). Dwelling on Courtyard, Architecture and the Built Environment.
Retrieved from http://abe.tudelft.nl/index.php/faculty-architecture/article/view/taleghani
Sheikh Mehreen Feroz (2014). Achieving Thermal Comfort by applying Passive Cooling Strategies to
Courtyard Houses. Retrieved from http://bspace.buid.ac.ae/handle/1234/696
Swasti Sthapak & Abir Bandyopadhyay (2014) Courtyard House: An Overview. Retrieved from
http://recent-science.com/
Ronald, G. K. (1992) Chinese Landscapes. Retrieved from
https://books.google.com.my/books?id=wndqi4A4AIYC&dq=north+china+courtyard+and+south+cou
rtyard+in+China&source=gbs_navlinks_sz
Mat, S. (2013) Environmental Design of Urban Buildings. Retrieved from
https://books.google.com.my/books?id=CKS7MbLQdBkC&dq=southern+compact+building+arrange
ment&source=gbs_navlinks_s
Arvind Krishan (2001) Climate Responsive Architecture. Retrieved from
https://books.google.com.my/books?id=3FiQnjYAEKwC&dq=heat+capacity+material+in+courtyard&
source=gbs_navlinks_s

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