Thermal environmental effects of vertical greening and building layout in open residential neighbourhood design: a case study in Shanghai

Abstract

Open residential neighbourhood (ORN) and vertical greening system (VGS) are two emerging urban design strategies in Southern Chinese cities. This paper numerically analysed the potential in thermal comfort improvement of these strategies. The strength and limitations of the ENVI-met model is understood through a validation against field-measured data. Then we conducted parameterized numerical simulation on the combined impacts of four types of building layout and six types of vertical greening on outdoor microclimate in a traditional urban block under renovation in Shanghai. Results indicate that the semi-enclosed layout with small building height difference and the enclosed layout are relatively beneficial; For different combinations of layout and greenery, the south-oriented vertical greening scenario yields the best thermal benefit per unit installed area, followed by the east-orientated scenario; overall, south-facing green facade allocated in semi-enclosed building layout with small height difference and enclosed building layout are recommended for optimizing pedestrian thermal comfort.