Pedestrian Dynamic Thermal Comfort Analysis to Optimize Using Trees in Various Urban Morphologies: A Case Study of Cairo City

Ahmed Yasser Abdelmejeed () and Dietwald Gruehn
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Ahmed Yasser Abdelmejeed: Research Group Landscape Ecology and Landscape Planning (LLP), Department of Spatial Planning, TU Dortmund University, 44227 Dortmund, Germany
Dietwald Gruehn: Research Group Landscape Ecology and Landscape Planning (LLP), Department of Spatial Planning, TU Dortmund University, 44227 Dortmund, Germany

Land, 2024, vol. 13, issue 9, 1-36

Abstract: Considering the impacts of climate change on the goal of obtaining sustainable and healthier cities, this research aimed to analyze and assess the impact of different urban forms with different trees densities on the dynamic physiological equivalent temperature (DPET) for pedestrians while walking further than the average walking distance (750 m) using ENVI-met. This study included five different areas within Greater Cairo, which is suffering from extreme heat stress. The selected study areas had lots of urban variety in terms of the canyons’ aspect ratios, orientations, urban form, green areas, mixed uses, and tree densities. Two tree scenarios were analyzed: the current tree density situation and a scenario where the tree density of each study area was increased to its capacity. The results proved that the DPET had different values than the steady physiological equivalent temperature (SPET) at each point within the walking routes. However, the DPET was closely related to changes in the SPET. Keeping the SPET lower or higher for a long time reduced or increased the DPET, and frequent changes (up and down) in the SPET kept the DPET stable. Changes between DPET values were driven more by the microclimate conditions of a space or canyon than the conditions of the overall area, and controlling the microclimate conditions of a whole urban canyon controlled the DPET. Changes in the DPET could reach as high as 10 °C between different walking routes, and increasing the tree density could help lower the DPET by as much as 6 °C in some cases.

Keywords: urban heat island (UHI); outdoor thermal comfort; urban trees; urban shading; dynamic thermal comfort; static/steady thermal comfort; ENVI-met greenery simulation; urban cooling strategies (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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