Evaluation of Thermal Comfort Performance of a Vertical Garden on a Glazed Façade and Its Effect on Building and Urban Scale, Case Study: An Office Building in Barcelona

Faezeh Bagheri Moghaddam,Isidro Navarro Delgado,Ernesto Redondo Dominguez,Josep Maria Fort Mir

doi:10.3390/su13126706

Faezeh Bagheri Moghaddam, Isidro Navarro Delgado + Show 2 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/su13126706

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Journal: Sustainability	Publication Date: Jun 12, 2021
Citations: 9	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to investigate the thermal performance of vertical gardens by comparing the thermal comfort of bare (glazed) and green façades in the Mediterranean climate. The proposal consists of applying a vegetation layer on a glazed façade that could control solar radiation and reduce indoor air temperatures. This study investigates the thermal performance of green façades of an office building in the Mediterranean climate. For this purpose, the Gas Natural Fenosa Office Building as a case study was simulated, that is located on a site next to the coastline in Barcelona. Dynamic building energy simulation was used to determine and assess indoor thermal conditions and, for this reason, the IES VE as a simulation tool has been utilized. Thermal comfort was assessed through the adaptive comfort approach and results were analyzed and presented in the terms of indoor comfort conditions during occupied hours. As a result, the article shows that applying a green façade as a vegetation layer caused a reduction in the internal and external façade surface temperatures, as well as the indoor air temperature of the workplace. Additionally, enhancing indoor comfort in summer is closely associated with reducing the external surface temperature. In winter, it also protects the exterior surface from the low temperature of the outside, and all of this greatly increases thermal comfort performance.

Highlights

Green façades as vertical greening systems have many ecological and environmental benefits in the urban scale, and some of them can be highlighted in urban rehabilitation: improving air quality, reducing the urban heat island (UHI) impact, improving stormwater management, and absorbing air pollutants from the atmosphere [1,2,3,4,5]
The study analyzed the thermal comfort in the bare and green façades, energy consumption, and various environmental factors for space with the glazing façade on summer and winter days
Must be good at a minimum, and this research revealed that by adding a percentage of vegetation on the glazed façade, it is possible to achieve more than good air quality in the workplace while improving indoor air temperature during the four seasons

Summary

Introduction

Green façades as vertical greening systems have many ecological and environmental benefits in the urban scale, and some of them can be highlighted in urban rehabilitation: improving air quality, reducing the urban heat island (UHI) impact, improving stormwater management, and absorbing air pollutants from the atmosphere [1,2,3,4,5] Urban greenery, such as green façades, has become a significant issue in recent years because the majority of the world’s population lives in cities [6], must deal with global carbon emissions rising by 70%, and accounts for nearly 70% of energy consumption. Some examples of vertical greenery systems, which present some typologies of hanging greenery as a solution for improving the environmental sustainability of buildings, have been proposed [9].

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