The effect of building layout forms on thermal environment in residential districts is focused on. Based on typical residential districts in South China

four typical layout forms are established. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) technique is used to simulate the thermal environment in residential districts at different predominant wind for different architectural complex orientations. The results show that layout forms and architectural complex orientation have a great influence on thermal environment

and the thermal environment mainly depends on the ventilation in the residential district. When the predominant wind is east wind or southeast wind

staggered type and determinant residential districts have relatively good thermal environment

and it is appropriate for them to face the north or the south.