|
Title
|
The Impact of Natural Elements on Environmental Comfort in the Iranian-Islamic Historical City of Isfahan
|
|
Type
|
JournalPaper
|
|
Keywords
|
Keywords: urban microclimate; thermal comfort; cooling effect; urban hazard; natural elements; climate change; sustainable urban development; urban heat island; smart city; sustainable city; eco-friendly; global warning; natural hazards; built environment
|
|
Abstract
|
Cities directly influence microclimates. As the urbanization expands, and the green spaces diminish, the heat islands begin to emerge. An old technique used during the past centuries—in both hot and dry climates of the central cities of Iran—was the moderation of microclimates via water and plants. With a diachronic approach to the study of the historical Chahar Bagh Street in Isfahan, this paper investigates the impact of the structural changes on its microclimate in three different scenarios, i.e., the street with its features during the Safavid Era (from 1501 to 1736); the street in its current status; and finally a probable critical condition resulting from complete elimination of natural elements from the environment. The mixed strategy used in this study relies on logical reasoning and software-assisted evaluation for comparing the three scenarios. The predicted mean vote (PMV) model was used for measuring thermal comfort. The results indicate that the evaluated comfort-providing area in the Safavid scenario is 7–17 times more favorable than the others. Moreover, the temperature in the contemporary era was found to be 1.5 degrees Celsius cooler than that of the critical status scenario
|
|
Researchers
|
Amir Mosavi (Fifth Researcher), Seyedeh Maryam Hoseini (Second Researcher), Majid Dehshti (Third Researcher), Mojtaba Khanian (Fourth Researcher), kyoumars Habibi (First Researcher)
|