Vegetation has a well-known potential for mitigating urban overheating. This work aims to explore the effects of enhancing urban greenery in Melbourne (Australia) through a configuration of the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model including the Building Effect Parameterization and the Local Climate Zones and presents novelties in: i) covering two-months and ii) focusing on air circulation and buildings cooling energy demand through the ventilation coefficient (VC) and the cooling degree hours (CDHs). A control case and two "what-if" scenarios with a growing green coverage equal to 35 % (control case), 50 % (modest increase) and 60 % (robust increase) have been designed and then simulated for January and February 2019.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFUnderstanding and evaluating the implications of photovoltaic solar panels (PVSPs) deployment on urban settings, as well as the pessimistic effects of densely populated areas on PVSPs efficiency, is becoming incredibly valuable. Thus, the deployment of low-efficiency, low-cost, and widely available PVSPs may diminish total solar reflectance, raising the risks of PVSPs-based urban heating, particularly during the summertime heatwaves. This study employs and assesses physical parameterizations that account for the impact of PVSPs on Sydney's urban environment in the context of the mesoscale model weather research and forecasting (WRF).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn this study we investigated the association between daily weather types (WTs) and the Urban Heat Island (UHI) in two Mediterranean coastal metropolises. For this purpose, we employed an existing weather type classification scheme and examined which WTs influence or drive the intensity of the UHI. We used the gridded weather typing classification (GWTC), in which meteorological conditions at a single location are categorized in daily WTs.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFUrban Heat Island (UHI) phenomenon concerns the development of higher ambient temperatures in urban districts compared to the surrounding rural areas. Several studies investigated the influence of individual parameters in the UHI phenomenon, on the other hand, an exhaustive study that quantifies the influence of each parameter in the resulting UHI is missing in the related literature. This paper proposes a new index aimed at quantifying the hazard of the absolute maximum UHI intensity in urban districts during the Summer season by taking all the parameters influencing the phenomenon into account.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFUrban overheating coincides with Heatwaves (HWs) and the thermal stress might get amplified in cities. To predict the interactions between urban overheating and HWs, the surface energy balance response to HWs is crucial. HW is a regional phenomenon and the climatic conditions may influence the local conditions to alter the energy budget contrast between a city and its adjacent peripheral areas.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFOverheated outdoor environments adversely impact urban sustainability and livability. Urban areas are particularly affected by heat waves and global climate change, which is a serious threat due to increasing heat stress and thermal risk for residents. The tropical city of Darwin, Australia, for example, is especially susceptible to urban overheating that can kill inhabitants.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSci Total Environ
October 2020
Urban overheating is the most documented phenomenon of climate change, causing severe energy problems. The study aims to evaluate the mitigation potential of irrigation as a response to the urban overheating and heatwaves in large cities, using simulation-based techniques. Mesoscale simulations are conducted for a 32.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFUrban heat island (UHI), a phenomenon involving increased air temperature of a city compared to the surrounding rural area, results in increased energy use and escalated health problems. To understand the magnitude and characteristics of UHI in Seoul and to accommodate for the high temporal variability and spatial heterogeneity of the UHI which make it inherently challenging to analyze using conventional statistical methods, we developed two deep learning models, a temporal UHI-model and a spatial UHI model, using a feed-forward deep neural network (DNN) architecture. Data related to meteorological elements (e.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHeat waves (HWs) are recognized as a serious threat for human health worldwide, with urban areas being more vulnerable due to the urban heat island (UHI) effect and population density. Yet, in the climate change context, HWs are becoming more frequent, stronger and longer, which, coupled with intensifying urbanization exacerbates thermal risk for urban residents. Despite the profound impact of this global phenomenon there is no clear consensus so far on possible synergies between UHIs and HWs.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe perception of the indoor environmental quality (IEQ) through questionnaires in conjunction with in-field measurements related to the indoor air quality (IAQ), the thermal comfort and the lighting environment were studied in nine naturally ventilated schools of Athens, Greece. Cluster analysis was carried out in order to determine the ranges of indoor air pollutants, temperature (T), relative humidity (RH), and ventilation rates at which the students were satisfied with the indoor environment. It was found that increased levels of particulate matter did not have a negative effect on students' perception while students seemed to link the degradation of IAQ with temperature variations.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFVentilation rates and indoor air pollutants have been extensively monitored in nine naturally ventilated primary schools of Athens, Greece during spring. The ventilation rates and pollutant levels were studied during the teaching and non-teaching periods and ventilation profiles were created for each of the schools. The median ventilation rates per school ranged between 0.
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