Green roofs and thermal comfort: a comparative study of soil layers’ seasonal thermal performance integrated with ventilation in hot climate

Green roofs’ (GR) positive impact on indoor thermal conditions in hot areas may have possible negative impacts during hot and cold weather. Most previous studies have focused on GR’s positive effects as a standalone strategy without mitigating these side effects of GR application. This study contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of the impact of GR and how to mitigate the negative aspects by integrating it with other passive techniques (natural ventilation and thermal insulation). Therefore, this study experimentally compares the seasonal impact of various soil layer configurations, integrated with natural ventilation, on improving Indoor Thermal Comfort (ITC) throughout the day in summer and winter. Field experiments were conducted using two identical validated test boxes. The results revealed that clay soil reduced Indoor Air Temperature (IAT) during the daytime in summer by up to 4.7 and 4°C for low and high soil thickness, respectively. Increasing clay soil thickness improved average IAT during the daytime in summer and winter by up to 6.49% and 2.61%, respectively. Additionally, adding thermal insulation is preferred in winter, while uninsulated soil had a slight positive effect on IAT and Indoor Relative Humidity (IRH) in summer. The use of natural ventilation at night and closed-ventilated systems during the daytime in summer and winter is recommended. Clay soil could save cooling and heating energy by up to 34.8% and 12.18%, respectively. These findings might inform designers by adjusting different GR soil parameters and the importance of natural ventilation in improving multi-seasonal thermal and energy performance.