Judicious choice of the building compactness to improve thermo-aeraulic comfort in hot climate

•A new approach was developed for transient thermal behavior simulation.•An evaluation of the temperature and the specific humidity was achieved.•This study was conducted according the contact mode and geometric form.•The building shape should be as compact as possible.•The use of the patio and sunscreens (advanced roof) is required to avoid penalizing natural lighting and aeration.

The geometric shape and arrangement of the buildings have a great influence on the indoor climate. Compactness is one of the most important factors, which reduces heating and cooling requirements. These parameters result from geometrical concepts, used to maximize the internal volume of the structure according to its shape. The present study aims at developing a new approach for transient thermal behavior simulation of multizone buildings in Saharan climate. Thermal nodal method was used to apprehend thermo-aeraulic behavior of air subjected to varied solicitations.As result, this work proves that the compactness is better when the compactness index is lower. For this reason, we must privilege some urban typologies such as the rows of terraced houses, collective buildings and high-dimensional buildings.