Modeling the influence of vegetation and water pond on urban microclimate

To link to full-text access for this article, visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.solener.2005.06.015 Byline: Mirela Robitu (a)(b), Marjorie Musy (b), Christian Inard (a), Dominique Groleau (b) Keywords: Urban climate; Vegetation; Water pond; Thermal comfort Abstract: The beneficial influence of trees and water ponds on summer comfort in urban spaces was studied experimentally in situ and in wind tunnels but the modeling needs further development to become effective in practical applications. This paper introduces a numerical approach based on coupling the CFD model of airflow, in which the influence of trees is considered as source terms, and the radiation exchange, completed with thermal conduction. The CFD, radiation and thermal conduction models use the same discretization grid at their common boundaries. The model was used to estimate the influence of trees and water ponds in a real town square. Comparison of results between two situations, with and without vegetation and water pond, indicate that surface temperatures are reduced in presence of trees and the comfort is improved. Author Affiliation: (a) LEPTAB University of La Rochelle, Avenue Michel CREPEAU, 17042 La Rochelle, France (b) CERMA -- Architectural School of Nantes, Rue Massenet, BP 81931, 44319 Nantes, France Article History: Received 3 January 2005; Revised 31 May 2005; Accepted 28 June 2005 Article Note: (miscellaneous) Communicated by: Associate Editor Matheos Santamouris