Study on carbon emission calculation method and carbon reduction indexes of urban building stock

Carbon emissions associated with buildings are a major source of urban emissions. To put forward the methods and strategies to curb carbon emissions from urban building stock, it is not only necessary to establish a carbon emission calculation method for fine statistical analysis, but also to evaluate carbon emissions of urban planning schemes with applicable indexes. Currently, researches mainly focus on carbon emissions of individual buildings. When expanded to urban building stock, the calculation faces the lack of basic data, inadequate spatial analysis and unspecific carbon reduction indexes. Therefore, this study proposes a bottom-up calculation method for urban building stock, conducts spatial analysis based on carbon balance of urban grids, reveals the coupling mechanism between urban carbon reduction indexes and grid carbon emissions, and systematically establishes a carbon-reduction-oriented urban planning method that comprises calculation, analysis and evaluation, which is applied to Xi’an, China. This study provides a theoretical reference for cities to formulate carbon reduction targets and implement planning strategies by evaluating and predicting carbon emissions from urban building stock.