Multiparametric model of urban park cooling island

Abstract

This paper presents a study of mitigation of the heat island effect in the built environment with urban (city) parks. The park cooling island (PCI) effect, considering park grass cover and trees’ density and age, is determined for selected extreme summer days at various wind speeds under the optimum soil water conditions in the root zone based on an all-day quasi-stationary thermal response. PCI was determined numerically by coupling a CFD model of an urban park and quasi-steady state, two-zone thermal response boundary condition models of each park element. The boundary models are evaluated in form of multi-parameter approximation polynomials taking into account the sensible and latent heat transfer and the geometrical, optical and thermal properties of park elements. Three-dimensional CFD modelling was used for the determination of temperature, humidity and air velocity fields in an urban park with a size of 140m×140m. Based on the comparison of the measured and numerically determined air temperatures in the tree crowns, we proved that the method of linking the models is adequate for temperature and flow condition modelling in the city park environment.The results are presented in the form of local PCI as the difference between local air temperature in the pedestrian zone and the reference air temperature preceding the park. The study proved that it is possible to normalise the cooling effect using the specific dimensionless coefficient of leaf area (LAIsp), which includes an approximation of the density of trees planted in the park and their size or age. It was found out that the cooling effect of the park is up to −4.8°C at LAIsp, equal to 3.16, which corresponds to a planting density of 45 trees per hectare, with an age of 50 years. It was also found that with the length of the park cooling effect change decreases. The optimal length of the park with a LAIsp 3 is 130m.