THESIS
2023
1 online resource (xii, 130 pages) : color illustrations, 1 color map
Abstract
The building sector is responsible for the largest global energy use and anthropogenic
emissions, leading to severe impacts on urban heat island and urban energy system. However,
current urban climate models often poorly represent building energy processes. This dissertation
aims to enhance building energy modelling in urban climate simulations by developing
and evaluating a coupled building energy modelling and single-layer urban canopy model
(BEM-SLUCM), which provides a powerful tool for urban climate modelling. The research
quantitively demonstrates the importance of incorporating building energy processes in urban
climate models. Without considering building energy processes, SLUCM tends to overestimate
canyon air temperature and sensible heat flux, particularly in compact neighbou...[
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The building sector is responsible for the largest global energy use and anthropogenic
emissions, leading to severe impacts on urban heat island and urban energy system. However,
current urban climate models often poorly represent building energy processes. This dissertation
aims to enhance building energy modelling in urban climate simulations by developing
and evaluating a coupled building energy modelling and single-layer urban canopy model
(BEM-SLUCM), which provides a powerful tool for urban climate modelling. The research
quantitively demonstrates the importance of incorporating building energy processes in urban
climate models. Without considering building energy processes, SLUCM tends to overestimate
canyon air temperature and sensible heat flux, particularly in compact neighbourhoods
with higher canyon aspect ratios and building surface fractions.
To identify the relative importance of uncertain parameters that regulates the interaction
between buildings and urban climate, we found that implementing energy-efficient building
materials and adjusting cooling setpoints can significantly reduce overall energy consumption
and mitigate the urban heat island effect. The study also emphasizes the significance
of considering urban morphology and canyon geometry in urban planning. As one of
the renewable technologies that impact both indoor and outdoor environments, building-integrated
photovoltaic (BIPV) windows show potential for improving energy efficiency in different
cities and climates, particularly in areas with abundant solar potential. Compared to
normal windows, BIPV windows can reduce cooling load but increase heating and lighting
demand. Larger window coverage could generate more renewable energy and provide greater
savings potential. In addition, BIPV windows can improve thermal comfort, making them a
promising solution for sustainable urban design.
To improve urban climate models, future research should bridge the gap between
building and meteorology communities, integrate BEM-SLUCM with mesoscale climate
models, and explore other sustainable building retrofit measures. This research lays a foundation
for future investigations into sustainable energy solutions for buildings and improving
the accuracy of urban climate models, ultimately supporting sustainable urban development.
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