Integrating courtyard microclimate in building performance to mitigate extreme urban heat impacts

Extreme heat events are expected to occur more often as a consequence of climate change. This paper quantifies the impact of urban climate on building performance and evaluates the benefits of specific microclimates, such as inner courtyards, to mitigate extreme heat impacts. A reference case study...

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Main Authors: Lizana, J, Lopez-Cabeza, VP, Renaldi, R, Diz-Mellado, E, Rivera-Gomez, C, Galan-Marin, C
Format: Journal article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2021
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author Lizana, J
Lopez-Cabeza, VP
Renaldi, R
Diz-Mellado, E
Rivera-Gomez, C
Galan-Marin, C
author_facet Lizana, J
Lopez-Cabeza, VP
Renaldi, R
Diz-Mellado, E
Rivera-Gomez, C
Galan-Marin, C
author_sort Lizana, J
collection OXFORD
description Extreme heat events are expected to occur more often as a consequence of climate change. This paper quantifies the impact of urban climate on building performance and evaluates the benefits of specific microclimates, such as inner courtyards, to mitigate extreme heat impacts. A reference case study associated with two outdoor weather conditions, an inner courtyard and a local urban climate, was measured, simulated and validated in TRNSYS. The validated model was then compared to three building models with a single outdoor weather condition associated with the urban climate, weather data from a rural station and a typical year weather file. The models were evaluated in free-running conditions and with air-conditioning systems. The results show how urban climate can increase indoor discomfort hours by 32% in free-running conditions and demonstrate that courtyard microclimate can almost completely mitigate the impact of urban overheating in buildings, eliminating severe indoor discomfort hours by more than 88%. Moreover, the increase in cooling energy demand due to urban climate was reduced by more than 15% in the case of having air-conditioning systems. The findings manifest the importance of accurate weather data for building simulation and demonstrate how multi-nodal outdoor conditions can enable additional strategies to mitigate climate risks, highlighting urban microclimates as a promising strategy to tackle extreme heat events in buildings and cities.
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spelling oxford-uuid:3af7d978-034d-4e9b-b43d-f05e349c274e2023-12-05T10:13:08ZIntegrating courtyard microclimate in building performance to mitigate extreme urban heat impactsJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:3af7d978-034d-4e9b-b43d-f05e349c274eEnglishSymplectic ElementsElsevier2021Lizana, JLopez-Cabeza, VPRenaldi, RDiz-Mellado, ERivera-Gomez, CGalan-Marin, CExtreme heat events are expected to occur more often as a consequence of climate change. This paper quantifies the impact of urban climate on building performance and evaluates the benefits of specific microclimates, such as inner courtyards, to mitigate extreme heat impacts. A reference case study associated with two outdoor weather conditions, an inner courtyard and a local urban climate, was measured, simulated and validated in TRNSYS. The validated model was then compared to three building models with a single outdoor weather condition associated with the urban climate, weather data from a rural station and a typical year weather file. The models were evaluated in free-running conditions and with air-conditioning systems. The results show how urban climate can increase indoor discomfort hours by 32% in free-running conditions and demonstrate that courtyard microclimate can almost completely mitigate the impact of urban overheating in buildings, eliminating severe indoor discomfort hours by more than 88%. Moreover, the increase in cooling energy demand due to urban climate was reduced by more than 15% in the case of having air-conditioning systems. The findings manifest the importance of accurate weather data for building simulation and demonstrate how multi-nodal outdoor conditions can enable additional strategies to mitigate climate risks, highlighting urban microclimates as a promising strategy to tackle extreme heat events in buildings and cities.
spellingShingle Lizana, J
Lopez-Cabeza, VP
Renaldi, R
Diz-Mellado, E
Rivera-Gomez, C
Galan-Marin, C
Integrating courtyard microclimate in building performance to mitigate extreme urban heat impacts
title Integrating courtyard microclimate in building performance to mitigate extreme urban heat impacts
title_full Integrating courtyard microclimate in building performance to mitigate extreme urban heat impacts
title_fullStr Integrating courtyard microclimate in building performance to mitigate extreme urban heat impacts
title_full_unstemmed Integrating courtyard microclimate in building performance to mitigate extreme urban heat impacts
title_short Integrating courtyard microclimate in building performance to mitigate extreme urban heat impacts
title_sort integrating courtyard microclimate in building performance to mitigate extreme urban heat impacts
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