Assessment of Plant Species Suitability in Green Walls Based on API, Heavy Metal Accumulation, and Particulate Matter Capture Capacity

Today, one of the most pressing issues confronting the civilized and modern world is air pollution. Particulate matter (PM) is a well-known pollutant that contributes significantly to urban air pollution and has numerous short- and long-term adverse effects on human health. One method of reducing air pollution is to create green spaces, mainly green walls, as a short-term solution. The current study investigated the ability of nine plant species to reduce traffic-related PM using a green wall system installed along a busy road in Mashhad, Iran. The main aims were (1) estimate the tolerance level of plant species on green walls to air pollution using the Air pollution tolerance index (APTI); (2) assess the PM capture on the leaves of green wall species using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis and accumulation of heavy metals using Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP); (3) select the most tolerance species for reducing air pollution using Anticipated Performance Index (API). The plants' APTI values ranged from 5 to 12. The highest APTI value was found in Carpobrotus edulis and Rosmarinus officinalis, while Kochia Prostrata had the lowest. Among the APTI constituents, leaf water content (R2 = 0.29) and ascorbic acid (R2 = 0.33) had a positive effect on APTI. According to SEM analysis, many PM were adsorbed on the adaxial and abaxial leaf surfaces, as well as near the stomata of Lavandula angustifolia, C. edulis, Vinca minor, and Hylotelephium sp. Based on EDX analysis, carbon and oxygen formed the highest amount (more than 60%) of metals detected in the elemental composition of PM deposited on the leaves of all species. The Sedum reflexum had the highest Cr, Fe, Pb, and As accumulation. The concentrations of all heavy metals studied in green wall plants were higher than in the control sample. Furthermore, the C. edulis is the best plant for planting in industrial, urban areas of the city based on APTI, biological, economic, and social characteristics. It concludes that the use of green walls composed primarily of plants with small leaves can significantly adsorb PM and accumulation of heavy metal.

Evaluating the Street Greening with the Multiview Data Fusion

Street greening, an indispensable element of urban green spaces, has played an important role in beautifying the environment, alleviating the urban heat island effect, and improving residents’ comfort. Vegetation coverage is a common index used for measuring street greening. However, there are some shortcomings in the traditional evaluation methods of vegetation coverage. Part of the vegetation coverage cannot be determined from a two-dimensional perspective, such as shrubs and green walls. In this paper, the Sentinel-2 image was used to extract the street fractional vegetation cover (SFVC) and the Baidu street view panoramas were used to extract the green view index (GVI). To overcome the lack of a single perspective from the street vegetation coverage evaluation, the above two indices were merged to construct a comprehensive street greening evaluation index (CSGEI). The research area is the Longhua District of Shenzhen city in Southern China. All three indices were divided into five classes using natural breakpoint methods based on previous research experience. The results showed that Baidu street view panoramas could effectively identify shrubs and green walls that were deficient in the Sentinel-2 image. The GVI is a supplement to the street vegetation coverage. The SFVC and GVI were divided into five classes, from L1 to L5 implying a gradual increase in the percentage of the vegetated area. The result has shown that the SFVC was in the L1, accounting for 53.68%. After index merging, the process of accounting for the L1 decreased to 31.29%. The multiperspective integrated CSGEI could comprehensively measure the distribution information of street greening and guide the planning and management of urban green landscapes.

Sustainability of green walls

Not long ago, the sustainability of buildings was not taken as a design priority, although it was considered to some extent. The required level of sustainability has risen sharply in recent years, buildings are becoming more self-sufficient, environmental friendly and greener. Towards more attention to green sustainable alternatives in architecture, new solutions for sustainability began to be sought, such as the use of vertical and horizontal surfaces of the building for green facades, the use of roofs for roof greenery, as well as introduction of greenery into building in the form of green walls. Along with the introduction of greenery into the interior comes the new necessary technical solutions, thinking about the overall green wall with respect to the indoor environment and building itself as well as new possibilities of using rainwater, beautify the interior, improving the air etc. However, it is important to perceive a green wall as a living element that must be sustainable, and this is what this article is about. The article focuses on the green walls from the point of examining the available information on this subject in domestic as well as in foreign sources. The results of this article can help to improve understanding of various green walls from different perspectives and compare their view on the green wall in terms of sustainability. The paper helps designers and researchers to orientate in the given topic to create an overview of the different options of the current greenery systems.

Germinando redes

La propagación de las semillas es un documento estructurado como exégesis en el que se reflexiona sobre el trabajo realizado en torno a un proyecto de índole social y ecológica ubicado en el Barrio La Concordia en Bogotá, Colombia. Mediante la intervención y realización de una muestra cultural estética en las fachadas en conjunto con grafitis y agricultura urbana vertical se incita a los residentes del sector a recuperar su conexión con la naturaleza y ejercer desde su privacidad de forma pública y visible prácticas sostenibles. Germinando Redes hace uso de materiales reutilizables como las botellas plásticas y materiales naturales como el fique para su realización, consta de varias macetas colgantes distribuidas en las fachadas de manera particular para cada caso, busca así dinamizar los muros y paredes de este sitio histórico para que cada vecino pueda poner y quitar a gusto los muros verdes. Así mismo medita en las actividades sociales y económicas que hacen parte del barrio y la identidad barrial y encuentra que se pueden desarrollar y regenerar relaciones cooperativas entre los residentes produciendo cambios culturales alrededor de la comida orgánica creando nuevas dinámicas comunitarias que influyan en la identidad y apropiación del barrio. The propagation of seeds is a document structured as exegesis in which it reflects on the work done around a project of a social and ecological nature located in the Barrio La Concordia in Bogotá, Colombia. Through the intervention and realization of an aesthetic cultural sample on the facades in conjunction with graffiti and vertical urban agriculture, residents of the sector are encouraged to recover their connection with nature and employ sustainable practices from their privacy in a public and visible way. Germinating Networks used reusable materials such as plastic bottles and natural materials such as fique for its realization. Includes several hanging pots; distributed on the facades in a particular way for each case, thus seeking to energize the walls and walls of this historic site so that each neighbor can put and remove the green walls at ease. It also meditates on the social and economic activities that are part of the neighborhood and the neighborhood identity and finds that cooperative relationships can be developed and regenerated among the residents producing cultural changes around organic food creating new community dynamics that influence the identity and appropriation of the neighborhood.

Deterrents to the adoption of green walls: a hybrid fuzzy-based approach

PurposeGreen walls (GWs), comprising living walls and green facades, have been touted as environmentally friendly products in architectural design. GWs can be viable in every aspect of sustainability; they provide residents of buildings with a wide range of economic, social and environmental benefits. Despite this, the adoption rate of GW is still in its infancy stage, and the existing literature concerning the hindrances inhibiting GW adoption is very limited. To address these gaps, the aim of this paper is to identify and prioritize the hindrances to GW adoption in Hong Kong.Design/methodology/approachAfter identifying 17 hindrances through an in-depth review of literature, the fuzzy Delphi method (FDM) is employed to refine the hindrances based on the local context with the help of 21 qualified experts in the field. Subsequently, Fuzzy Parsimonious Analytic Hierarchy Process (FPAHP) is exploited as a recently developed technique to prioritize the identified hindrances.FindingsResults reveal that the most significant hindrances to the adoption of GW are maintenance cost, high installation cost, difficulties in maintenance, sophisticated implementation and inducement to fire. Findings call for scholars to address ways to improve GW installation practices and methods in order to eradicate the hindrances and provide lessons for policymakers, assisting them in facilitating the larger-scale adoption of GW.Originality/valueConsidering the dearth of studies on hindrances to the adoption of GWs, this paper provides a comprehensive outlook of the issue, providing knowledge that can be used as a building block for future scholars within the field. It also provides valuable insights for stakeholders within the construction industry about the hindrances to the adoption of GWs which could direct their efforts toward better implementation of it.

LEAF COLOR SEGMENTATION AND POT VOLUME INFLUENCE ON THE CO2 ABSORPTION EFFICIENCY IN TWO COMMON GREEN-WALL PLANTS

ABSTRACT Green walls can improve indoor air-quality by reducing concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other air pollutants. Our study focused on the spider plant, Chlorophytum comosum, and devil’s ivy, Epipremnum aureum, both common green-wall plants that have been found to be efficient CO2 absorbers. Both species have multiple variants with varying degrees of leaf green-white segmentation. Since photosynthesis depends on the concentration of leaf chlorophylls, we hypothesized that green variants are more efficient carbon absorbers than green-white variants. In addition, we tested the hypothesis that the photosynthetic rate of plants is affected by pot volume, as suggested by previous studies. We used a portable gas exchange system to determine the rate of photosynthesis of the study plants. No evidence was found for better photosynthetic performance in the green vs. green-white variants of each species. In fact, our results suggest the opposite. It was observed that a spider plants assimilated carbon more efficiently when grown in a larger pot volume. In conclusion, our study shows that in terms of carbon assimilation, green-white variants of spider plants are the better choice for indoor green walls. Their efficiency can be improved dramatically by increasing pot volume.

Assessment of the Particulate Matter Reduction Potential of Climbing Plants on Green Walls for Air Quality Management

Background and objective: To improve air quality, particulate matter (PM) can be reduced using green infrastructure. Therefore, in this study, we aimed to determine the particulate matter reduction potential of climbing plants used for green walls, an element of vertical green infrastructure. Methods: A sealed chamber with controlled environmental variables was used to assess the PM reduction level caused by climbing plants. PM concentration in the plant chamber was measured after two and four hours of PM exposure, and the reduction potential was assessed based on the leaf area. Results: Compared to the empty chamber (Control), the PM reduction speed per hour was higher in the plant chamber, which confirmed that climbing plants contribute to the reduction of PM in the air. The PM reduction speed immediately after exposure in the plant chamber was high, but this slowed over time. Additionally, PM has been continuously reduced in plants with large leaves. As a result of calculating the particulate matter reduction level based on leaf area, it was found that there was a difference by particle size. Actinidia arguta, Parthenocissus tricuspidata, Trachelospermum asiaticum, and Euonymus fortunei var. radicans showed a high reduction effect. The trichomes on the leaf surface of Trachelospermum asiaticum were found to affect PM reduction. Conclusion: PM adsorption on the leaf surface is an important factor in reducing its concentration. It was possible to compare different plants by quantifying the amount of PM reduction during a fixed time period. These results can be used as the basic data to select the plant species suitable for urban green walls in terms of PM reduction.