Numerical studies of the outdoor wind environment and thermal comfort at pedestrian level in housing blocks with different building layout patterns and trees arrangement

Alleviating the urban heat-island effect (UHI) is one of the important means to meet energy conservation and pollution reduction targets by demand side. Rational architectural layout and landscape design are significant measures to achieve building energy efficiency and sustainable building. In this study, the effects of building layout patterns and trees arrangement on the outdoor wind environment and thermal comfort at the pedestrian level were investigated by using Simulation Platform for Outdoor Thermal Environment (SPOTE). The conclusions were summarized as follows: 1) it has been found that trees arrangement, buildings layout patterns and their orientations with respect to wind have significant effects on the outdoor wind environment and pedestrian level thermal comfort. The long facades of building, which are parallel to the prevailing wind direction, can accelerate horizontal vortex airflow at the edges and obtain pleasant thermal comfort and wind environment at pedestrian level. 2) Configurations that contain a square central space articulated by buildings and oriented toward the prevailing wind can offer better exposure to air currents as a result of attenuated revised standard effective temperature (SET*). Such configurations are regarded as the optimum building layout patterns and trees arrangement.

[1]  S. Kato,et al.  Study on outdoor thermal environment of apartment block in Shenzhen, China with coupled simulation of convection, radiation and conduction , 2004 .

[2]  Liang Chen,et al.  A study on the cooling effects of greening in a high-density city: An experience from Hong Kong , 2012 .

[3]  A. Mochida,et al.  Wind tunnel tests on the relationship between building density and pedestrian-level wind velocity: Development of guidelines for realizing acceptable wind environment in residential neighborhoods , 2008 .

[4]  Hong Chen,et al.  Simulation analysis of site design and layout planning to mitigate thermal environment of riverside residential development , 2010 .

[5]  Akashi Mochida,et al.  Prediction of wind environment and thermal comfort at pedestrian level in urban area , 2006 .

[6]  Hong Chen,et al.  Study on Optimum Arrangement of Trees for Design of Pleasant Outdoor Environment Using Multi-Objective Genetic Algorithm And Coupled Simulation of Convection, Radiation and Conduction , 2006 .

[7]  Borong Lin,et al.  Optimal design of vegetation in residential district with numerical simulation and field experiment , 2012 .

[8]  Omar S. Asfour,et al.  Prediction of wind environment in different grouping patterns of housing blocks , 2010 .

[9]  Borong Lin,et al.  Numerical simulation studies of the different vegetation patterns' effects on outdoor pedestrian thermal comfort , 2006 .

[10]  Ryozo Ooka,et al.  Study on optimum design method for pleasant outdoor thermal environment using genetic algorithms (GA) and coupled simulation of convection, radiation and conduction , 2008 .

[11]  N. Wong,et al.  Environmental study of the impact of greenery in an institutional campus in the tropics , 2007 .

[12]  Mohd Fairuz Shahidan,et al.  An evaluation of outdoor and building environment cooling achieved through combination modification of trees with ground materials , 2012 .

[13]  Andreas Matzarakis,et al.  Research on ecological design to enhance comfort in open spaces of a city (Valencia, Spain). Utility of the physiological equivalent temperature (PET) , 2013 .

[14]  Borong Lin,et al.  Optimal tree design for sunshine and ventilation in residential district using geometrical models and numerical simulation , 2011 .

[15]  Hiroshi Yoshino,et al.  Examining tree canopy models for CFD prediction of wind environment at pedestrian level , 2008 .

[16]  Yoshihide Tominaga,et al.  AIJ guidelines for practical applications of CFD to pedestrian wind environment around buildings , 2008 .