Facade Construction Technologies and Their Impact on the Urban Microclimate: A Comparative Study between the Cities of Madrid and Mendoza

ALCHAPAR NOELIA; GIANCOLA EMANUELA; PÉREZ GLORIA; PEZZUTO, CLAUDIA

San Carlos

Congreso; VII Ibero-American Congress of Smart Cities. CITIES; 2024

ICSC-CITIES

The choice of facade technology has a significant impact on the urban microclimate and pedestrian comfort. The thermal and optical properties of materials, along with the climatic context, influence the mean radiant temperature (MRT) within street canyons. To assess the impact of different facade technologies on microclimatic energy performance during the summer period for the cities of Mendoza and Madrid, 8 scenarios of 10-story buildings were constructed using ENVImet v. 5.6 software. The construction technology (traditional and lightweight) and optical properties (albedo: 0.30 and 0.80) were modified according to the climatic contexts (BWk and Csa). The results indicated that traditional technology, with higher thermal mass, better dampens temperature fluctuations, providing a more stable urban environment. In contrast, lightweight technology, with lower heat capacity, presents greater temperature variations. Scenarios with lightweight technology recorded a maximum mean radiant temperature up to 4.5°C higher than scenarios with traditional technologies. On the other hand, increasing the albedo level of facade surfaces raised MRTs by up to 5.3°C, with a greater impact on traditional technology. To improve thermal comfort in outdoor spaces, it is necessary to consider a combination of strategies, including the appropriate selection of materials and the optimization of urban design.