Abstract
Continuous growth of building energy consumption CO2 emission (BECCE) threatens urban sustainable development. Urban form is an important factor affecting BECCE. Compactness is a significant urban morphological characteristic. There is currently a lack of research on the effect of urban three-dimensional (3D) compactness on BECCE. To clarify the research value of 3D compactness, we investigated whether 3D compactness has a stronger impact on BECCE than two-dimensional (2D) compactness. A total of 288 buildings of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) were divided into 5 zones according to building climate demarcation. As BECCE is affected mainly by four aspects (socioeconomic condition, building features, macroclimate, and urban form), the BECCE driven by urban form (BECCE-f) in each zone was calculated firstly using the partial least square regression model. Normalized compactness index (NCI) and normalized vertical compactness index (NVCI) were calculated with Python to quantify urban 2D and 3D compactness within a 1 km buffer of PBOC buildings. The mean NCI and NVCI values of each zone were adopted as 2D and 3D compactness of this zone. Gray correlation analysis of the five zones showed that the connection between the NVCI and BECCE-f is stronger than that between NCI and BECCE-f. Based on this, we believe that the emphasis of later research should be shifted to urban 3D form, not just 2D elements. 3D form can describe the real urban form in a more accurate and detailed manner. Emphasizing 3D morphological characteristics in studies of the relationship between urban form and building energy performance is more meaningful and valuable than only considering 2D characteristics. The impact mechanism of urban form on BECCE-f should also be analyzed from the perspective of 3D form. This study also provides beneficial solutions to building energy saving and low-carbon building construction.
Highlights
The building energy consumption CO2 emission (BECCE) we studied is CO2 emission from building operational energy consumption, which refers to energy utilization concerning building heating, cooling, lighting, and other activities [1]
We explored the connection between urban 3D compactness and BECCE-f
Results of gray correlation analysis demonstrated that 3D compactness had a stronger connection with BECCE-f than 2D compactness
Summary
The building energy consumption CO2 emission (BECCE) we studied is CO2 emission from building operational energy consumption, which refers to energy utilization concerning building heating, cooling, lighting, and other activities [1]. In studies concerning the effect of urban form on building energy consumption and CO2 emission, urban compact form is rarely considered [24]. Some studies have explored the regression method to eliminate the effects of household social and economic conditions on residential building energy consumption [28,34,35]. To calculate BECCE driven by urban form and improve research accuracy, the effects of nontarget factors (socioeconomic condition, building features, and macroclimate) on BECCE should be eliminated. It is considered that this research can provide a method and perspective for later studies on the relationship between urban form and building energy performance and CO2 emission and provide a beneficial solution to building energy saving and low-carbon building construction
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