A Comparative Study of Cooling Performance and Thermal Comfort under Street Market Shades and Tree Canopies in Tropical Savanna Climate

Walking through street markets is the most popular outdoor activity in Thailand, promoting local economies and tourism. In the year-round hot and humid conditions, living outdoors with long heat exposure throughout the midday can result in heat-related illness. Artificial shade structures and tree shade canopies are typical cooling strategies to protect market sellers and pedestrians from direct sun exposure and improve outdoor human thermal comfort in the street market. This study investigates microclimate conditions and cooling benefits of typical street market shade structures with different settings-three roofing materials, two roof shapes, and surrounding trees with dense and sparse canopies. The dimension of the single artificial shade was 2 m x 2 m with heights varying 2-2.5 m. The vertical air temperature and sky view factor profiles were measured on winter and summer days. The calculated physiological equivalent temperatures (PET) and thermal comfortable hours beneath different shade structures were assessed using RayMan 1.2 software. A cluster of trees with a dense canopy provided more effective cooling (with a satisfied thermal condition of 9 h) than artificial shade structures. Thermal conditions under the galvanized steel roofing and HDPE tarpaulin plastic roofing shades were cooler than those of polycarbonate roofing shade. Meanwhile, the space beneath the sparse tree canopy had the warmest condition. The temperature reductions beneath the artificial shade structure varied throughout the day, with the maximum reduction occurring during midday and the lowest reduction found in the late morning and late afternoon. Our study demonstrates that the tree canopies and artificial shade structures had limited application for providing comfortable conditions throughout midday. To reduce such extreme heat, a combination of shade structures with other cooling techniques is suggested, which should be the focus for further studies.

Automated summary

This study investigates the impact of shade structures on thermal comfort in Thai street markets. The results show that tree canopies provide better cooling effects compared to artificial shade structures. Galvanized steel roofing and HDPE tarpaulin plastic roofing shades are more effective than polycarbonate roofing shade. Spaces under sparse tree canopies have the highest temperatures. The temperature reductions beneath the artificial shade structure vary throughout the day.