Temperature Regulation

Contents 1 Moderation of the Urban Heat Island Effect 2 Building Insulation 3 Industrial Cooling 4 Creation of Microclimates

[edit] Moderation of the Urban Heat Island Effect

• Through the daily dew and evaporation cycle, plants on vertical and horizontal surfaces are able to cool cities during hot summer months. In the process of evapotranspiration, plants use heat energy from their surroundings (approximately 592 kcal per L of water) when evaporating water. One m2 (10.76 ft2) of foliage can evaporate over 0.5 litres of water on a hot day and on an annual basis the same area can evaporate up to 700 litres of water.
• This process reduces the 'Urban Heat Island Effect' in the summer. The 'Urban Heat Island Effect' is the difference in temperature between a city and the surrounding countryside. It is mainly due to the expanse of hard and reflective surfaces, such as roofs, which absorb solar radiation and re-radiate it as heat. Reduction of the 'Urban Heat Island Effect' will also reduce the distribution of dust and particulate matter throughout the city and the production of smog. This can play a role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and adapting urban areas to a future climate with warmer summers.
• Green roofs can play a role in reducing the urban heat island (UHI), augmenting the existing vegetation, but the precise amount of coverage is still uncertain. Dr. Brad Bass in collaboration with a modelling group at the University of British Columbia under the direction of Dr. Roland Stull, ran a mesoscale atmospheric simulation for the City of Toronto with green roofs. The city's vegetation reduced the UHI by up to 1 degree C over approximately 1/4 of the City. Using a green roof coverage of 50%, this cooling was extended to approximately 1/3 of the City and increased the maximum cooling to 2 degrees C. Although the green roof coverage was high, Dr. Bass estimated that only 6% of the roofs were fully irrigated as the model decreased irrigation to those parts of the city that were not fully urbanized, decreasing it to zero in totally natural areas of the city. This suggests that the actual green roof coverage to obtain these results could be much smaller than 50% although the exact requirement is difficult to determine due to a number of uncertainties that emerged in this modelling exercise.

See also Tips what to do against Heat Islands.

[edit] Building Insulation

• Historically, green roofs have been used to insulate buildings. Shading the external surface of the building envelope has been shown to be more effective than internal insulation.
• Green roofs insulate buildings by preventing heat from moving through the roof. Their insulation properties can be maximized by using a growing medium with a low soil density and a high moisture content and by choosing plants with a high leaf area index (i.e. the bigger the leaves, the better). This could play a role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and adapting urban areas to a future climate with greater incidences of drought and extreme heat.

[edit] Industrial Cooling

• The Possman Cider Cooling and Storage Facility in Frankfurt, Germany yielded a 2-3 year payoff of their green roof system through savings in heating and cooling costs, as well as in equipment costs, since additional cooling towers had become unnecessary.

[edit] Creation of Microclimates

• A green roof will have a noticeable impact on the heat gain and loss of a building, as well as the humidity, air quality and reflected heat in the surrounding neighbourhood. In conjunction with other green installations, green roofs can play a role in altering the climate of the city as a whole.
• On a summer day, the temperature of a gravel roof can increase by as much as 25 °C (77 °F), to between 60-80 °C (140 - 176 F). Covered with grass, the temperature of that roof would not rise above 25 °C (77 °F), thus resulting in energy cost savings.
• 20 cm (7.9 inches) of substrate with a 20-40 cm (7.9 - 15.7 inches) layer of thick grass has the combined insulation value of° 15 cm (5.9 inches) of mineral wool.
• Rooms under a green roof are at least 3 - 4 °C (5.4 - 7.2°F) cooler than the air outside, when outdoor temperatures range between 25-30 °C (77 - 86 °F).