Bioclimatic Architecture and Urban Morphology. Studies on Intermediate Urban Open Spaces

01 Pubblicazione su rivista
Battisti Alessandra
ISSN: 1996-1073

This paper deals with the interactions between biophysical and microclimatic factors
on the one hand with, on the other, the urban morphology of intermediate urban open spaces,
the relationship between environmental and bioclimatic thermal comfort, and the implementation of
innovative materials and the use of greenery, aimed at the users’ well-being. In particular, the thermal
comfort of the open spaces of the consolidated fabrics of the city of Rome is studied, by carrying
out simulations of cooling strategies relating to two scenarios applied to Piazza Bainsizza. The first
scenario involves the use of cool materials for roofs, cladding surfaces, and pavement, while the
second scenario, in addition to the cool materials employed in the first scenario, also includes the use
of greenery and permeable green surfaces. The research was performed using summer and winter
microclimatic simulations of the CFD (ENVI-met v. 3.1) type, in order to determine the dierent
influences of the materials with cold colors, trees, and vegetated surfaces on the thermal comfort
of the urban morphology itself. Meanwhile, the comfort assessment was determined through the
physiological equivalent temperature (PET) calculated with the RayMan program. The first scenario,
with the use of cool materials, improves summer conditions and reduces the urban heat island
eect but does not eliminate thermal discomfort due to the lack of shaded surfaces and vegetation.
The second scenario, where material renovations is matched with vegetation improvements, has a
slightly bad eect on winter conditions but drastically ameliorates the summer situation, both for
direct users and, thanks to the strong reduction of the urban heat island eect, to urban inhabitants as
a whole.

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