Computational Simulation of Wind Microclimate in Complex Urban Models and Mitigation Using Trees

• Main Authors: Azin Hosseinzadeh, Amir Keshmiri
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-03-01
• Series: Buildings
• Subjects: wind microclimate; wind assessment; computational fluid dynamics; building engineering; turbulence modelling; vegetation
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/11/3/112

Due to a rapid increase in urbanisation, accurate wind microclimate assessment is of crucial importance. Evaluating wind flows around buildings is part of the planning application process in the design of new developments. In this study, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations are carried out for a case study, representing the East Village in the London Olympic Park. Following a validation test against experimental data for a simpler urban configuration, the key input parameters, including appropriate boundary conditions, mesh setting and type of turbulence model, are selected for the Olympic Park model. All the simulations are conducted using the commercial code STARCCM+ under steady-state conditions with the Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) method. The turbulence is modelled using different common variants of eddy-viscosity models (EVMs) including standard k-<inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mi>ε</mi></semantics></math></inline-formula>, realizable k-<inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mi>ε</mi></semantics></math></inline-formula> and standard and shear stress transport (SST) k-<inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mi>ω</mi></semantics></math></inline-formula>. The results demonstrate that standard and realisable k-<inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mi>ε</mi></semantics></math></inline-formula> models correlate very well with the experimental data, while some discrepancies are found with standard and SST k-<inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mi>ω</mi></semantics></math></inline-formula>. Following the determination of areas of high velocity, appropriate tree planting is proposed to overcome the effect of corner and downwash acceleration. With the optimised arrangement of trees and using specific types of tree (e.g., birch), wind speeds at the pedestrian level are reduced by 3.5, 25 and 66% in three main regions of interest. Moreover, we investigate the effects of tree heights. The obtained results illustrate that the wind velocity reduces when the crowns of the trees are located closer to the buildings and the ground. Our high-resolution CFD simulation and results offer a quantitative tool for wind microclimate assessment and optimised design and arrangement of trees around buildings to improve pedestrian comfort.