The Concurrent Effect of Building Height Diversity and Cool Pavement Materials on Air Temperature Near the Surface of an Urban Facade: A Case Study of Shahriar Street In Esfahan, Iran

Abstract

The rise in urban temperatures is a significant threat to the urban heat island effect, increasing building energy demand. This increase is worrisome because the supply of renewable energy is a big challenge. The approach to improving the urban microclimate offers a promising solution. This research investigates the concurrent effect of urban morphological parameters and physical characteristics of urban surfaces, such as cool materials, on the urban microclimate near the building's facades in an urban street. This evaluation was conducted by ENVI-met(v4). The results show that the concurrent effects of increasing building height diversity and by using cool pavement materials are more helpful in reducing the average air temperature of an urban street. Because the amount of shade and wind speed increased as building height variety increased, the absorption of solar radiation decreased as pavement material albedo increased. As a result, these two parameters reduced air temperature by 0.8 °C. Also in the combined scenario of increasing building height diversity and by using cool pavement materials, the air temperature near the building's facades was reduced by 1°C on the first and second floors and by approximately 0.5°C on the upper floors.