Simulating the Impact of Urban Morphology on Energy Demand A Case Study of Yuehai, China

The aim of this study is to attempt to explore the impact of urban morphology on the energy demand of buildings, using simulation tools developed by the Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University, called VirVil Plugin and HTB2. The process of simulation is applied to one proposed project with four different scenarios, while the study considers one parameter for each scenario as follows: 1) building forms; 2) average building height; 3) orientation of building; and 4) community pattern. The project is chosen from an urban design scheme of Yuehai Eco-City in Yinchuan, China, designed by Architects& Engineers Ltd of Southeast University, China. The simulation results indicate a quantitative correlation between urban morphology features and the energy performance of buildings at urban scale. Furthermore, the results provide several perspectives for developing constructors to reduce the energy demand at the master planning stage. Moreover, the study also suggests that the method could spread globally.