Employment of Islamic Architectural Elements of Dome and Minaret for Wind-Induced Ventilation Enhancement in Mosque Buildings

Religious buildings have their importance and symbolism. Integration of passive cooling techniques in these buildings, in general, will help to increase awareness of the importance of environmental design and energy savings. This paper highlights the potential use of traditional Islamic architectural elements in mosque buildings in the improvement of natural ventilation. The effects of the use of dome and minaret (tower) on wind-induced airflow pattern inside ad around mosque buildings are demonstrated by using CFD simulation. Airflow pattern was observed with different ventilation strategies. Results show the positive effect of such elements on airflow enhancement, and the possibility of introducing new design guidelines to help improve thermal comfort inside the space.