The Rehabilitation effects on the thermal behaviour of Algerian earthen built heritage.

Abstract

The earthen built heritage presents today a state of deterioration due to the climate changes that put it seriously at risk, through the degradation of its envelope building materials. These degradations lead its occupants to rehabilitate it by using modern building materials. This paper focuses on the rehabilitation of vernacular earthen architecture and its influence on the thermal behaviour of ksourian houses in sub-arid zones. It is based on a comparative study that combines the site measurements and the numerical simulation by Energyplus. Two courtyard houses, constructed of an adobe brick, were evaluated, one in its initial shape and the other rehabilitated. The results shows that the rehabilitation of the envelope made on this house did not influence its thermal qualities significantly; a very small difference justified on its internal thermal behaviour was recorded in cold period and almost minor during summer.