Influencia de la vegetación en el microclima urbano: Estudio con UWG para la Ciudad de Rosario (Argentina).

Abstract

The control of outdoor thermal comfort is an important task to ensure the quality of urban public spaces (UPS). The thermal optimization of UPS is vital for the urban design and planning process as it contributes to the quality of life in cities. The thermal comfort in UPS depends on climate and several urban components. In this research the influence of vegetation on urban air temperature is analyzed. The investigation is focused on the summer season, considering three urban areas located in the city of Rosario. The 1st area has the highest building density, whereas the 3rd area has the lowest. Urban air temperatures were calculated with the Urban Weather Generator (UWG) software. A maximum vegetation scenario was evaluated in each area and the effect of the increase of vegetation on air temperatures was calculated. Results show a temperature decrease of 0,4°C during daytime in the 2nd area. In the 3rd área, greater decreases in atmospheric temperatures were achieved, obtaining a temperature difference of 1°C. In the 1st area the vegetation increase generated a decrease of 0,1°C. We can infer that the increment in the latent heat flux due to vegetation is not sufficient to counteract the urban temperature rise due to the other urban sensible heat fluxes. Nevertheless, the latent heat balance in UWG is computed in a simplified manner and its positive contribution on the urban heat island intensity could be underestimated. The influence of urban characteristics (such as albedo and pavement thickness), envelope and energy efficiency of buildings on the urban heat island effect will be investigated in future research; and using different microclimatic simulation softwares that have more sensitivity to the parameters.