Traditional architecture has successfully created a desirable indoor environment with minimal energy consumption and compatible with social and cultural contexts. The proper use of environmental passive design strategies that were widely employed in regional, traditional and vernacular architecture is crucial. However, employing traditional architecture vocabularies within contemporary buildings requires a proper understanding of their forms’ environmental-behaviors. Consequently, modifying forms, geometries, and design-concepts may enhance their environmental performance. On the same time such traditional forms will stand for architectural identity that appropriately serves environmental, cultural and social contexts.
A building that respects cultural and social beliefs of the people is believed to address more practically the issue of sustainability. The undertaken review and investigation in this paper seeks a better understanding and application of traditional architecture forms and geometries in Egypt’s northern-coast contemporary architecture. The investigations highlight the methodological approach carried out, to seeking a better understanding of the thermal and solar performance of these traditional passive systems regardless of their construction materials and colors. This is done, as a contribution towards improving their physical qualifications and energy efficiency performances.
Furthermore, the paper is a low-energy architecture approach for more energy efficient and passive buildings (particularly low-rise buildings) in the new communities that are being developed recently in Alexandria, Egypt and other hot-arid parts. Therefore, it establishes an architectural approach to resist the rapid growth of international styles and produce an environmentally, culturally, and socially appropriate architecture. In order to verify whether these forms are environmentally and climatic sound quantitative analysis needs to be carried out. The paper is part of continuing research work carried out on certain traditional roof forms. This is discussed through empirical and experimental tests for number of traditional forms (domes, vaults and cones) in the contemporary built environment of Alexandria city and Egypt’s northern-coast. The paper focuses on the methodology and approach used in the analysis of the chosen forms
