International Journal of

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Using the concept of passive cooling systems has been utilized as a solution to improve thermal and wind comfort and to decrease energy consumption and environmental pollution, recently. Modern windcatcher, as its name denotes, is an architectural element which is using the concept of Badgir and combined proper devices to create ventilation in buildings using wind energy, but including modern technology. It means that the modern windcatcher is an improved model of traditional windcatchers and the design of modern windcatchers is based on computations and they have been analyzed and improved, unlike the ancient ones. The current investigation focused on the technology of modern windcatchers to face how modern technology uses various methods to foster the windcatchers' performance. The purpose of this manuscript is to summarize previous studies on the technology of modern wind catchers and gives insight into the application of windcatchers as passive cooling systems. different employed methods to foster the windcatchers' performance.

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This study examines climate-responsive form in the historic fabric of Lar (Fars, Iran) and clarifies how its vernacular differs from canonical hot-arid cases such as Yazd/Kashan. We adopt a mixed-methods, mechanism-centred approach: plans and field documentation were compiled for 30 dwellings (19 with an iwan, 11 without), iwan and courtyard attributes were coded, and findings were benchmarked against the Mahoney tables. An expert elicitation (n = 218, Cronbach’s α = 0.91) provided ranked environmental and cultural priorities to contextualize the spatial evidence. Across the sample, Lar’s dwellings consistently express façade buffering, solar control, and ventilation staging. Iwans are typically summer-oriented, often aligned with prevailing winds, span about half the façade, and have depth equal to or greater than the principal room, with one-way side access used more often than two-way. Openings on exposed fronts are small and recessed. At the urban-fabric scale, narrow lanes and covered passages (sabat) sustain shaded, ventilated continuity. Courtyards are predominantly central or three-sided, with intermediate plot shares (~20–40%) and elongated proportions (~1/2–1/3) that deepen self-shade and channel breezes; walls and roofs are heavy earthen assemblies, sometimes complemented by basements for thermal damping. Expert rankings place temperature/sunlight as the leading environmental concern and historical/place-based practices as the leading cultural theme, aligning with the observed configurations. Distinctive features of Lar include its dense sabat network, short-wide wind-catchers, and water-organized urban grain. The paper translates these convergences into practice-ready rules for hot-arid design: compact courtyard planning with elongated courts; deep transitional iwans serving principal rooms; protected, recessed openings; shaded, narrow pedestrian ways; and heavy, time-lagging envelopes with adequate drainage. These lessons demonstrate how Lar’s vernacular can inform contemporary, culturally resonant low-energy architecture.