scholarly journals Evaluation of thermal comfort and building form attributes in different semi-outdoor environments in a high-density tropical setting

2021 ◽  
pp. 108255
Author(s):  
Juan Gamero-Salinas ◽  
Nirmal Kishnani ◽  
Aurora Monge-Barrio ◽  
Jesús López-Fidalgo ◽  
Ana Sánchez-Ostiz
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Comfort ◽  
High Density ◽  
Outdoor Environments ◽  
Building Form

scholarly journals Measurement of Thermal Comfort in Urban Public Spaces Semarang, Indonesia

2021 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rina Kurniati ◽  
Wakhidah Kurniawati ◽  
Diah Intan Kusumo Dewi ◽  
Mega Febrina Kusumo Astuti
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Comfort ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Measurement Data ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Comfort Level ◽  
Design Elements ◽  
Central Java ◽  
Outdoor Environments ◽  
Road Geometry

Indonesia reported a maximum annual temperature rise of 0.3°C in urban regions. Semarang, the largest metropolitan city in the province of Central Java, is also experiencing an increase in temperature due to climate change therefore activities in urban public spaces are disrupted due to the absence of a comfortable temperature. Urban design elements, including land cover materials, road geometry, vegetation and traffic frequency expressed significant effects on micro-climate. Measurement of Thermal Comfort in Urban Public Spaces Semarang was carried out s at the micro level as an old historical district The Old Town and Chinatown. This increment indeed influences thermal comfort level in its outdoor environments which are important for comfortability of outdoor activity. This study aims to analyse surface temperature through Thermal Comfort Measurement. Data was obtained by measuring air temperature, wind speed and humidity in the morning, afternoon, and evening. Inverse distance weighted (IDW), thermal comfort calculations and micro-climate model were employed to evaluate existing physical conditions of these settlements. The results showed both Old Town and Chinatown observed thermal comfort value above 27°C and are categorized as uncomfortable for outdoor activities. This research is contributing to the need to further develop public spaces to potentially adapt to environmental changes.

scholarly journals Optimization of building form and its fenestration in response to microclimate conditions of an urban area

2020 ◽  
Vol 172 ◽  
pp. 19002
Author(s):  
Kavan Javanroodi ◽  
Vahid M. Nik ◽  
Yuchen Yang
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Comfort ◽  
Urban Area ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
High Performance ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
Climate Data ◽  
Heating And Cooling ◽  
Building Form ◽  
Microclimate Conditions

Designing building form in urban areas is a complicated process that demands considering a high number of influencing parameters. On the other hand, there has been an increasing trend to design highly fenestrated building envelopes for office buildings to induce higher levels of natural lighting into the workspace. This paper presents a novel optimization framework to design high-performance building form and fenestration configuration considering the impacts of urban microclimate in typical and extreme weather conditions during a thirty-year period of climate data (2010-2039). In this regard, based on the introduced technique and algorithm, the annual energy demand and thermal comfort of over 8008 eligible form combinations with eight different fenestration configurations and seven different building orientation angels were analysed in a detailed urban area to find optimal design solutions in response to microclimate conditions. Results showed that adopting the framework, annual heating, and cooling demand can be reduced by 21% and 38% while maintaining thermal comfort by taking design-based decisions at the early stages of design.

scholarly journals How do paving and planting strategies affect microclimate conditions and thermal comfort in apartment complexes?

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ga Yoon Choi ◽  
Hwan Sung Kim ◽  
Hyungkyoo Kim ◽  
Jae Seung Lee
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Comfort ◽  
Green Infrastructure ◽  
Thermal Conditions ◽  
High Density ◽  
Landscape Elements ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Coniferous Trees ◽  
Comfort Levels ◽  
Microclimate Conditions

Purpose In cities with high density, heat is often trapped between buildings which increases the frequency and intensity of heat events. Researchers have focused on developing strategies to mitigate the negative impacts of heat in cities. Adopting green infrastructure and cooling pavements are some of the many ways to promote thermal comfort against heat. The purpose of this study is to improve microclimate conditions and thermal comfort levels in high-density living conditions in Seoul, South Korea. Design/methodology/approach This study compares six design alternatives of an apartment complex with different paving and planting systems. It also examines the thermal outcome of the alternatives under normal and extreme heat conditions to suggest strategies to secure acceptable thermal comfort levels for the inhabitants. Each alternative is analyzed using ENVI-met, a software program that simulates microclimate conditions and thermal comfort features based on relationships among buildings, vegetation and pavements. Findings The results indicate that grass paving was more effective than stone paving in lowering air temperature and improving thermal comfort at the near-surface level. Coniferous trees were found to be more effective than broadleaf trees in reducing temperature. Thermal comfort levels were most improved when coniferous trees were planted in paired settings. Practical implications Landscape elements show promise for the improvement of thermal conditions because it is much easier to redesign landscape elements, such as paving or planting, than to change fixed urban elements like buildings and roads. The results identified the potential of landscape design for improving microclimate and thermal comfort in urban residential complexes. Originality/value The results contribute to the literature by examining the effect of tree species and layout on thermal comfort levels, which has been rarely investigated in previous studies.

scholarly journals Improved Human Thermal Comfort with Indoor PCM-Enhanced Tiles in Living Spaces in the Arabian Gulf

2018 ◽  
Vol 57 ◽  
pp. 04001 ◽  
Author(s):  
Albert Al Touma ◽  
Djamel Ouahrani
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Comfort ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Residential Buildings ◽  
Arabian Gulf ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
Building Envelope ◽  
Human Thermal Comfort ◽  
Outdoor Environments ◽  
Radiant Temperature ◽  
Cooling Energy Demand

Al-Majlis is the living space in residential buildings of the Arabian Gulf, and is where occupants spend most of their time. For this reason, the human thermal comfort in this space is of extreme importance and is often compromised due to hot outdoor weather conditions. In contrast with many thermal discomfort mitigation methods in outdoor environments, which become unadvisable in indoor spaces, this study investigates the effect of adding PCM-enhanced tiles to portions of the indoor envelope on the occupant’s thermal comfort and the space cooling energy demand. A simulation model of a space with tight building envelope in Qatar was developed on EnergyPlus with and without the addition of PCM-enhanced tiles. The selected country is a representative location of the Arabian Gulf. Considering different occupant’s positions, the addition of the tiles with PCM on their back was found to moderate the mean radiant temperature, operative temperature, Predicted Mean Vote (PMV) and Predicted Percentage of Dissatisfied (PPD), all of which signify an improvement in the human thermal comfort. Lastly, this change in the indoor envelope was found to save 3.3% of the space daily thermal cooling energy demand during one harsh summer representative day.

scholarly journals Outdoor Wellbeing and Quality of Life: A Scientific Literature Review on Thermal Comfort

Energies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 2079 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ernesto Antonini ◽  
Vincenzo Vodola ◽  
Jacopo Gaspari ◽  
Michaela De Giglio
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Thermal Comfort ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Outdoor Thermal Comfort ◽  
State Of Mind ◽  
Outdoor Environments ◽  
Comprehensive Picture ◽  
Outdoor Comfort

While indoor comfort represents a widely investigated research topic with relation to sustainable development and energy-demand reduction in the built environment, outdoor comfort remains an open field of study, especially with reference to the impacts of climate change and the quality of life for inhabitants, particularly in urban contexts. Despite the relevant efforts spent in the last few decades to advance the understanding of phenomena and the knowledge in this specific field, which obtained much evidence for the topic’s relevance, a comprehensive picture of the studies, as well as a classification of the interconnected subjects and outcomes, is still lacking. This paper reports the outcomes of a literature review aimed at screening the available resources dealing with outdoor thermal comfort, in order to provide a state-of-the-art review that identifies the main topics focused by the researchers, as well as the barriers in defining suitable indexes for assessing thermal comfort in outdoor environments. Although several accurate models and software are available to quantify outdoor human comfort, the evocated state of mind of the final user still remains at the core of this uncertain process.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document