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Cooling Benefits of an Extensive Green Roof and Sensitivity Analysis of Its Parameters in Subtropical Areas

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  • Yu Zhang

    (School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, State Key Lab of Subtropical Building Science, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510641, China)

  • Lei Zhang

    (School of Architecture, State Key Lab of Subtropical Building Science, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510641, China)

  • Luyao Ma

    (School of Architecture, State Key Lab of Subtropical Building Science, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510641, China)

  • Qinglin Meng

    (School of Architecture, State Key Lab of Subtropical Building Science, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510641, China)

  • Peng Ren

    (School of Architecture, State Key Lab of Subtropical Building Science, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510641, China)

Abstract

The present study aims to further demonstrate the cooling benefits of an extensive green roof (EGR) and fill the gap existing in the literature in terms of a sensitivity analysis of an EGR, especially in subtropical areas. First, onsite measurements were performed. The results indicated that the peak air temperatures in the chamber with the EGR were 4.0 °C and 1.9 °C lower, respectively, compared to those in the chamber with a bare roof on sunny and rainy days. Moreover, the EGR decreased the daily electricity consumption from air conditioning by up to 16.7% on sunny days and 6.7% on cloudy days. Second, the measured values were employed to validate the green roof module (GRM) in EnergyPlus. The results demonstrated that the GRM yielded accurate results in quantifying the cooling benefits of the EGR. Finally, we selected 16 factors of the EGR, each with four levels, to perform the sensitivity analysis. Range and variance analyses revealed that the factors that most significantly impacted the EGR performance were the R -value of roof construction, substrate (soil) thickness, the thermal conductivity of dry substrate, the leaf area index, leaf emissivity, and the solar absorptance of the substrate. These factors contributed 90.8% to the performance index.

Suggested Citation

  • Yu Zhang & Lei Zhang & Luyao Ma & Qinglin Meng & Peng Ren, 2019. "Cooling Benefits of an Extensive Green Roof and Sensitivity Analysis of Its Parameters in Subtropical Areas," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(22), pages 1-22, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:12:y:2019:i:22:p:4278-:d:285396
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Mungur, Maheshsingh & Poorun, Yashna & Juggurnath, Diksha & Ruhomally, Yusra Bibi & Rughooputh, Reshma & Dauhoo, Muhammad Zaid & Khoodaruth, Abdel & Shamachurn, Heman & Gooroochurn, Mahendra & Boodia,, 2020. "A numerical and experimental investigation of the effectiveness of green roofs in tropical environments: The case study of Mauritius in mid and late winter," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 202(C).
    2. He, Q. & Tapia, F. & Reith, A., 2023. "Quantifying the influence of nature-based solutions on building cooling and heating energy demand: A climate specific review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 186(C).

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