Intelligent urban forms (IUF) a new climate-concerned,urban planning strategy

Summary Adaptive geometrical configurations are presented, which aim to create intelligent urban forms, and which include screening methods applicable to the linear- and grid-type building layouts. They are especially suitable for mid-latitude cities characterized by seasonally swinging climates which necessitate heating in winter and cooling in summer. The screens are envisaged as shading devices in the summer blocking the incoming solar radiation during day-time (that is, on-position), while being removed at night to enhance nocturnal radiative cooling (that is, off-position). In winter they are assumed to be in off-position during sunshine hours to promote the access of solar radiation and in on-position at night to obstruct the sky energy sink and reduce radiant heat losses. Their implications for the urban street canyon climate and the thermal performance of the built environment are simulated using the cluster thermal time constant (CTTC) model. The diurnal variation of both the ambient air temperature and net radiant flux within the urban canopy layer serve as criteria by which the climatetempering effectiveness of the screens is assessed.With 9 Figures     

Urban heat island diagnosis using ASTER satellite images and ‘in situ’ air temperature

This study demonstrates that thermal satellite images combined with ‘in situ’ ground data can be used to examine models of heat island genesis and thus identify the main causes of urban heat islands (UHIs). The models, although proposed over 30 years ago, have not been thoroughly evaluated due to a combination of inadequate ground data and the low resolution of thermal satellite data. Also there has been limited understanding of the relevance of satellite-derived surface temperatures to local and regional scale air temperatures. A cloud-free ASTER thermal image of urban and rural areas of Hong Kong was obtained on a winter night with a well-developed heat island, accompanied by a 148 km vehicle traverse of air temperatures. Over the whole traverse a high R² of 0.80 was observed between surface and air temperatures, with the two datasets showing a similar amplitude and general trend, but with the surface exhibiting much higher local variability than air temperature. Gradients in both surface and air temperature could be related to differences in land cover, with little evidence of large scale advection, thus supporting the population/physical structure model of UHI causation, rather than the advection model. However, the much higher surface and air temperatures observed over the largest urban area, Kowloon, than over any smaller urban centre with similar physical structure in the New Territories, would seem more indicative of the advection model. The image and ground data suggest that Kowloon's urban canopy layer climate is mainly influenced by local city structure, but it is also modified by a strongly developed, regional scale urban boundary layer which has developed over the largest urban centre of Kowloon, and reinforces heating from both above and below.     

Impacts of Realistic Urban Heating. Part II: Air Quality and City Breathability

Urban morphology and inter-building shadowing result in a non-uniform distribution of surface heating in urban areas, which can significantly modify the urban flow and thermal field. In Part I, we found that in an idealized three-dimensional urban array, the spatial distribution of the thermal field is correlated with the orientation of surface heating with respect to the wind direction (i.e. leeward or windward heating), while the dispersion field changes more strongly with the vertical temperature gradient in the street canyon. Here, we evaluate these results more closely and translate them into metrics of “city breathability,” with large-eddy simulations coupled with an urban energy-balance model employed for this purpose. First, we quantify breathability by, (i) calculating the pollutant concentration at the pedestrian level (horizontal plane at \(z\approx 1.5\)–2 m) and averaged over the canopy, and (ii) examining the air exchange rate at the horizontal and vertical ventilating faces of the canyon, such that the in-canopy pollutant advection is distinguished from the vertical removal of pollution. Next, we quantify the change in breathability metrics as a function of previously defined buoyancy parameters, horizontal and vertical Richardson numbers (\(Ri_\text {h}\) and \(Ri_\text {v}\), respectively), which characterize realistic surface heating. We find that, unlike the analysis of airflow and thermal fields, consideration of the realistic heating distribution is not crucial in the analysis of city breathability, as the pollutant concentration is mainly correlated with the vertical temperature gradient (\(Ri_\text {v}\)) as opposed to the horizontal (\(Ri_\text {h}\)) or bulk (\(Ri_\text {b}\)) thermal forcing. Additionally, we observe that, due to the formation of the primary vortex, the air exchange rate at the roof level (the horizontal ventilating faces of the building canyon) is dominated by the mean flow. Lastly, since \(Ri_\text {h}\) and \(Ri_\text {v}\) depend on the meteorological factors (ambient air temperature, wind speed, and wind direction) as well as urban design parameters (such as surface albedo), we propose a methodology for mapping overall outdoor ventilation and city breathability using this characterization method. This methodology helps identify the effects of design on urban microclimate, and ultimately informs urban designers and architects of the impact of their design on air quality, human health, and comfort.     

Effect of the position of the visible sky in determining the sky view factor on micrometeorological and human thermal comfort conditions in urban street canyons

Poor daytime and night-time micrometeorological conditions are issues that influence the quality of environmental conditions and can undermine a comfortable human lifestyle. The sky view factor (SVF) is one of the essential physical parameters used to assess the micrometeorological conditions and thermal comfort levels within city streets. The position of the visible sky relative to the path of the sun, in the cardinal and ordinal directions, has not been widely discerned as a parameter that could have an impact on the micrometeorological conditions of urban streets. To investigate this parameter, different urban streets that have a similar SVF value but diverse positions of visible sky were proposed in different street directions intersecting with the path of the sun, namely N–S, NE–SW and NW–SE. The effects of daytime and night-time micrometeorological variables and human thermal comfort variables on the street were investigated by applying ENVI-met V3.1 Beta software. The results show that the position of the visible sky has a greater influence on the street’s meteorological and human thermal comfort conditions than the SVF value. It has the ability to maximise or minimise the mean radiation temperature (Tmrt, °C) and the physiological equivalent temperature (PET, °C) at street level. However, the visible sky positioned to the zenith in a NE–SW or N–S street direction and to the SW of a NW–SE street direction achieves the best daytime micrometeorological and thermal comfort conditions. Alternatively, the visible sky positioned to the NE for a NW–SE street direction, to the NW and the zenith for a NE–SW street direction and to the zenith for a N–S street direction reduces the night-time air temperature (Ta, °C). Therefore, SVF and the position of the visible sky relative to the sun’s trajectory, in the cardinal and ordinal directions, must be considered during urban street planning to better understand the resultant micrometeorological and human thermal comfort conditions.     

Thermal bioclimate in idealized urban street canyons in Campinas, Brazil

Among several urban design parameters, the height-to-width ratio (H/W) and orientation are important parameters strongly affecting thermal conditions in cities. This paper quantifies changes in thermal comfort due to typical urban canyon configurations in Campinas, Brazil, and presents urban guidelines concerning H/W ratios and green spaces to adapt urban climate change. The study focuses on thermal comfort issues of humans in urban areas and performs evaluation in terms of physiologically equivalent temperature (PET), based on long-term data. Meteorological data of air temperature, relative humidity, wind speed and solar radiation over a 7-year period (2003–2010) were used. A 3D street canyon model was designed with RayMan Pro software to simulate the influence of urban configuration on urban thermal climate. The following configurations and setups were used. The model canyon was 500 m in length, with widths 9, 21, and 44 m. Its height varied in steps of 2.5 m, from 5 to 40 m. The canyon could be rotated in steps of 15°. The results show that urban design parameters such as width, height, and orientation modify thermal conditions within street canyons. A northeast–southwest orientation can reduce PET during daytime more than other scenarios. Forestry management and green areas are recommended to promote shade on pedestrian areas and on façades, and to improve bioclimate thermal stress, in particular for H/W ratio less than 0.5. The method and results can be applied by architects and urban planners interested in developing responsive guidelines for urban climate issues.     

A model of the ground surface temperature for micrometeorological analysis

Micrometeorological models at various scales require ground surface temperature, which may not always be measured in sufficient spatial or temporal detail. There is thus a need for a model that can calculate the surface temperature using only widely available weather data, thermal properties of the ground, and surface properties. The vegetated/permeable surface energy balance (VP-SEB) model introduced here requires no a priori knowledge of soil temperature or moisture at any depth. It combines a two-layer characterization of the soil column following the heat conservation law with a sinusoidal function to estimate deep soil temperature, and a simplified procedure for calculating moisture content. A physically based solution is used for each of the energy balance components allowing VP-SEB to be highly portable. VP-SEB was tested using field data measuring bare loess desert soil in dry weather and following rain events. Modeled hourly surface temperature correlated well with the measured data (r ² = 0.95 for a whole year), with a root-mean-square error of 2.77 K. The model was used to generate input for a pedestrian thermal comfort study using the Index of Thermal Stress (ITS). The simulation shows that the thermal stress on a pedestrian standing in the sun on a fully paved surface, which may be over 500 W on a warm summer day, may be as much as 100 W lower on a grass surface exposed to the same meteorological conditions.     

城市建筑布局要素对区域热环境影响的ENVI-met模拟与分析——以南京江北新区部分区域为例

开展城市建筑物方位、高度等建筑布局要素对局地热环境时空变化的影响研究,对于合理的城市规划布局具有重要理论意义与实践参考价值。采用ENVI-met微气候模式,在南京江北新区顶山街道某区域微气候模拟的基础上,选择一个二类居住用地并设计不同的建筑布局要素作为规划场景,模拟分析了建筑物高度与建筑间距之比（H/W）、建筑布局变化对区域热环境的影响。结果表明：ENVI-met能够以较高精度模拟2 m高度气温;H/W与建筑布局形式都会影响区域热环境,适当增加H/W可在一定程度上降低夏季气温,H/W为1.4时的热环境更为舒适,而不同建筑布局形式下的不同区域温度差异较大。     

基于ENVI-met的福州大学校区冬季热环境模拟与热舒适度变化分析

选取福州大学校园教学区为研究区域,基于典型冬季日背景,运用三维非静力微气候模型ENVI-met,分析模拟校园热环境的差异变化及其热舒适度响应。结合实地勘测,对模型进行校准和验证。结果表明：ENVI-met模型能较好地表征室外热环境,准确预测温度和相对湿度的日变化趋势。混凝土路面、灰色地砖路面行人高度的日平均气温分别比草地高出0.1 ℃和0.3 ℃,逐时最大温差分别为0.68 ℃和0.65 ℃。建筑物阴影和树阴可降低行人高度的气温1.1—1.9 ℃;同一组团在有无遮阴的条件下,平均辐射温度（T_mrt）相差最大可达30 ℃;树木附近和建筑物组团内部生理等效温度（PET）值较小,比硬质路面低2—3个等级。无植被方案下,高温低湿区范围有所扩张,在垂直方向上的增温效应可伸展至10.5 m;风速最大增幅可达1.23 m·s^-1,平均辐射温度较高区域的面积增加了69.25%;热舒适区和热不适区面积分别增加了19.78%和2.03%。     

人体热量平衡模型及其在人体舒适度预报中的应用

人对外界冷热的调节和舒适感，不能根据气温或其他单一的气象要素来评价。要真正全面表述环境对人体的影响必须运用人体热量平衡模型，人体热量平衡模型全面考虑了所有相关的气象要素、行为参数（活动和服装）和人体参数。运用上海有限域数值在气预报和热量平衡模型计算了体感温度，以衡量人体在环境中的热舒适状况。     

Urban heat island and differences in outdoor comfort levels in Glasgow, UK

From extensive outdoor comfort campaigns, preliminary outdoor comfort ranges have been defined for the local population of Glasgow, UK, in terms of two thermal indices: ‘Temperature Humidity Sun Wind’ (THSW) and ‘Physiological Equivalent Temperature’ (PET). A series of measurements and surveys was carried out from winter through summer 2011 during 19 monitoring campaigns. For data collection, a Davis Vantage Pro2 weather station was used, which was equipped with temperature and humidity sensors, cup anemometer with wind vane, silicon pyranometer and globe thermometer. From concurrent measurements using two weather stations, one located close to the city core and another located at a rural setting, approximately at a 15-km distance from the urban area of Glasgow, comparisons were made with regard to thermal comfort levels and to urban–rural temperature differences for different periods of the year. It was found that the two selected thermal indices (THSW and PET) closely correlate to the actual thermal sensation of respondents. Moreover, results show that the urban site will have fewer days of cold discomfort, more days of ‘neutral’ thermal sensation and slightly higher warm discomfort. The most frequent urban heat island intensity was found to be around 3° C, whereas the fraction of cooling to heating degree-hours for a T _base of 65 °F was approximately 1/12th.     

Longwave incoming radiation in the Tropics: results from field work in three African cities

Summary This study investigates differences in longwave incoming radiation (L↓) within and between three African cities, Dar es Salaam (Tanzania), Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso), and Gaborone (Botswana), during the dry season, and evaluates the performance of a model to simulate these fluxes. In each city, direct observations of L↓, shortwave incoming radiation (K↓), air temperature, air humidity, and total suspended particle (TSP) concentration for three land uses (CBD, green residential, and traditional residential) were taken. The observed L↓ flux decreases with increasing latitude, and temperature becomes an increasingly important factor in governing L↓ variations further from the Equator. Humidity, as well as particle loading, differs significantly between the three cities. Differences between observed and modelled ɛ_sky for rural stations near all cities showed a clear diurnal variation, with maximum differences of 0.08 between day and night. This diurnal difference was incorporated in the model and, for urban areas the model overestimates L↓ by around 25 Wm⁻². However, this model performs equally well regardless of the land use considered in any of the cities. The residual (difference between observed and modelled urban L↓) did not show any correlation with particulate pollution. However, the difference between observed and calculated ɛ_sky is around 0.05 higher in Ouagadougou compared to the other cities, likely due to the heavy dust load observed here. It is concluded that tropical urban longwave radiation is not dramatically different from the mid latitudes.     

Effects of Wall Heating on Flow Characteristics in a Street Canyon

We develop a large-eddy simulation (LES) model based on a meteorological numerical model for a real scale street-canyon flow with rough building facets heated by a given temperature. The model is applied to a canyon with the aspect ratio of unity for two idealized heating scenarios: (1) the roof and the entire upstream wall are heated, named as ‘assisting cases’, and (2) the roof and the entire downstream wall are heated, named as ‘opposing cases’. These facets were heated up to 15 K above the air temperature. A wall function for temperature is proposed for a rough facet with an assumption that the thermal roughness length, z _0T, is much smaller than the aerodynamic roughness length, z ₀. It is demonstrated that the sensible heat flux and canyon-air temperature are significantly influenced by the near-facet process that is parametrized by z _0T as the primary factor; other processes such as in-canyon mixing and roof-level exchange are secondary. This new finding strongly suggests that it is vital to choose an appropriate value of z _0T in a numerical simulation of street-canyon flows with the facet-air exchange processes of heat or any scalar. The finding also raises an awareness of the demand for carefully designed laboratory or field experiments of quantifying z _0T values for various urban surfaces. For the opposing cases, an unsteady penetrating narrow updraft zone appears occasionally along the heated wall and this feature is consistent field observations. The unique result indicates the superior capability of LES. The results of this study can be used to guide the parametrization of turbulent processes inside the urban canopy layer.     

The scaling of flow in vegetative structures

Sensible heat flux data obtained from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Regional Air Pollution Study in St. Louis, Missouri are presented and discussed. Large spatial variations exist in heat flux on both a land-use scale and the urban scale. Arguments based upon empirical data and sampling theory show that estimates of heat flux representative of an upwind fetch l _x require a minimum observation height proportional to z ^3/4. The influence of advection on the magnitude of the heat flux is also explored for both the urban and sub-urban or land-use scales. The data clearly indicate that advection can strongly modulate and even dominate the vertical heat flux above surfaces in areas which maintain large horizontal temperature gradients. The advection contribution is positive for cold air advection and negative for warm air advection, and may result from either the urban heat island or land-use mesoscale features. The depth of advective influence is directly proportional to the horizontal scale of the phenomenon and inversely proportional to horizontal temperature gradient.     

A Vegetated Urban Canopy Model for Meteorological and Environmental Modelling

An urban canopy model is developed for use in mesoscale meteorological and environmental modelling. The urban geometry is composed of simple homogeneous buildings characterized by the canyon aspect ratio (h/w) as well as the canyon vegetation characterized by the leaf aspect ratio (σ _l ) and leaf area density profile. Five energy exchanging surfaces (roof, wall, road, leaf, soil) are considered in the model, and energy conservation relations are applied to each component. In addition, the temperature and specific humidity of canopy air are predicted without the assumption of thermal equilibrium. For radiative transfer within the canyon, multiple reflections for shortwave radiation and one reflection for longwave radiation are considered, while the shadowing and absorption of radiation due to the canyon vegetation are computed by using the transmissivity and the leaf area density profile function. The model is evaluated using field measurements in Vancouver, British Columbia and Marseille, France. Results show that the model quite well simulates the observations of surface temperatures, canopy air temperature and specific humidity, momentum flux, net radiation, and energy partitioning into turbulent fluxes and storage heat flux. Sensitivity tests show that the canyon vegetation has a large influence not only on surface temperatures but also on the partitioning of sensible and latent heat fluxes. In addition, the surface energy balance can be affected by soil moisture content and leaf area index as well as the fraction of vegetation. These results suggest that a proper parameterization of the canyon vegetation is prerequisite for urban modelling.     

Effects of Roof-Edge Roughness on Air Temperature and Pollutant Concentration in Urban Canyons

The influence of roof-edge roughness elements on airflow, heat transfer, and street-level pollutant transport inside and above a two-dimensional urban canyon is analyzed using an urban energy balance model coupled to a large-eddy simulation model. Simulations are performed for cold (early morning) and hot (mid afternoon) periods during the hottest month of the year (August) for the climate of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The analysis suggests that early in the morning, and when the tallest roughness elements are implemented, the temperature above the street level increases on average by 0.5 K, while the pollutant concentration decreases by 2% of the street-level concentration. For the same conditions in mid afternoon, the temperature decreases conservatively by 1 K, while the pollutant concentration increases by 7% of the street-level concentration. As a passive or active architectural solution, the roof roughness element shows promise for improving thermal comfort and air quality in the canyon for specific times, but this should be further verified experimentally. The results also warrant a closer look at the effects of mid-range roughness elements in the urban morphology on atmospheric dynamics so as to improve parametrizations in mesoscale modelling.     

The Urban Heat Island Intensity of Paris: A Case Study Based on a Simple Urban Surface Parametrization

We explore the ability of a simple urban surface parametrization, embedded in a mesoscale meteorological model, to correctly reproduce observed values of the urban heat island (UHI) intensity, which is defined as the urban-rural surface air temperature difference. To do so, a simple urban scheme was incorporated into the Advanced Regional Prediction System (ARPS). Subsequently, a simulation was performed with the coupled model over the wider area of Paris, for a 12-day period in June 2006 that was characterised by conditions prone to UHI development. Simulated 2-m air temperature was compared with observed values for urban and rural stations, yielding mean errors of 1.4 and 1.5 K, respectively. More importantly, it was found that the model also displayed an overall good capability of reproducing the observed temperature differences. In particular, the magnitude (up to 6 K) and timing of the diurnal cycle of the UHI intensity was simulated well, the model exhibiting a mean error of 1.15 K. As a result, our conclusion is that the ARPS model, extended with simple urban surface physics, is able to capture observed urban-rural air temperature differences well, at least for the domain and period studied.     

大型火电厂热排放对邹县环境气温影响的初步研究

对1960—2009年邹城和兖州温度及温度日较差的年、季变化趋势进行分析,对比邹县电厂现况发展,研究电厂热排放对环境气温的影响程度和相对贡献。结果表明：近50 a来,邹城和兖州年平均气温呈上升趋势,年增温速率分别为0.326 ℃∕10 a和0.124 ℃∕10 a,且邹城显著增温时间与火电厂投产时间一致。1960—1994年,热排放增温率均为正值,年最低气温高达0.51 ℃∕10 a,年日较差为-0.35 ℃∕10 a,多个季和年值增温贡献为100%。1995—2005年,热排放增温率为正值,平均气温为0.209 ℃∕10 a,年最低气温为0.118 ℃∕10 a,年最高气温为0.056 ℃∕10 a,年日较差为-0.100 ℃∕10 a,表现为热排放对平均气温和最低气温影响显著,对最高气温影响较弱,多个季增温贡献有所降低,仍显示出热排放对环境温度有相当程度的贡献。     

北京地区热岛效应及日较差特征

通过对2007～2010年北京地区经质量控制后的123个自动气象站气温数据采用K均值聚类方法分类, 得到城区、郊区、西部和北部山区、西南和东北部山区4个温度分区, 分析了4个分区气温的年变化、日变化和日较差变化特征, 并对北京地区热岛效应的时间变化特征进行了细致分析。结果表明:聚类分析方法可对北京地区温度很好地进行分区, 分区结果与站点的地形和下垫面情况较为吻合;不同分区温度日较差在西部和北部山区最大, 在西南部和东北部山区次之, 郊区再次之, 在城区的日较差最小;在一年中, 各温度分区以2月、5月与10月日较差较大, 其中以5月的日较差为最大;北京地区热岛效应在冬季和夜间较强, 而3～8月热岛较弱, 在夏季的白天比其它季节白天强。     

Spatial variations of incoming longwave radiationin Göteborg, Sweden

Summary  A measurement programme was conducted in G?teborg Sweden, to examine the spatial variations of incoming longwave irradiance on calm, cloudless nights. Both regional and local spatial variations were examined. Incoming longwave irradiance data was obtained from mobile car transects, and at a fixed site on a building roof at the city centre. Ancillary data included sky view factor at various transect locations, and balloon soundings of air temperature and humidity on one night. Measurements revealed that on average, incoming longwave irradiance at the fixed urban site was 11 W m ⁻² higher than at the rural station, with varying differences for intervening sites. Bulk apparent sky emissivity was higher at the most rural station compared to the fixed urban site, by about 0.03 on average. Nighttime balloon measurements and a sensitivity analysis with a radiative transfer model argue that the bulk apparent sky emissivity differences stem mainly from the temperature structure of the lower boundary layer which changes markedly from rural to urban areas. A good relationship was found between sky view factor and incoming longwave irradiance for a range of urban and park locations. The relationship applies to both individual nights and average data. Using a simple obstruction model, canyon wall temperatures are derived, and the relationship between sky view factor and wall temperature is examined. Received December 23, 1999 Revised May 5, 2000     

Thermal Energy Balance Analysis of the Tokyo Metropolitan Area Using a Mesoscale Meteorological Model Incorporating an Urban Canopy Model

The summer climate around the Tokyo metropolitan area has been analysed on an urban scale, and the regional characteristics of the thermal energy balance of a bayside business district in the centre of Tokyo (Otemachi) have been compared with an inland residential district (Nerima), using a mesoscale meteorological model incorporating an urban canopy model. From the results of the analysis, the mechanism of diurnal change in air temperature and absolute humidity in these areas is quantitatively demonstrated, with a focus on the thermal energy balance. Moreover, effective countermeasures against urban heat-islands are considered from the viewpoint of each region’s thermal energy balance characteristics. In addition to thermal energy outflux by turbulent diffusion, advection by sea-breezes from Tokyo Bay discharges sensible heat in Otemachi. This mitigates temperature increases during the day. On the other hand, because all sea-breezes must first cross the centre of Tokyo, it has less of a cooling effect in Nerima. As a result, the air temperature during the day in Nerima is higher than that in Otemachi.