Along with global climate change and the worldwide heat island phenomenon, developing climatic methods and planning practices for the benefit of thermal comfort is of increasing interest. Studies have focused on urban streets, studying the aspect ratio, the orientation, street vegetation patterns, etc. and how they affect thermal comfort. While the role of vegetation is undeniable, this paper asks the question whether the effects of a tree configuration does not vary under different street configurations, and if yes, how to select tree species and determine their appropriate layout. Here, an analytical framework is proposed to test the different tree configurations (changing one variable at a time) with the least favorable street configuration. It is confirmed that the east–west oriented streets are the least favorable cases and denser tree canopies are better for cooling. The interval between the trees are observed to have an optimal effect when it is equal to the crown width at maturity. Furthermore, the results show that the heat mitigation rate of a tree configuration is not linearly improved by the Aspect Ratio (AR). In the case of Shantou city, the improvement of thermal comfort slows down when the AR reaches 1.5 while Mangifera indica planted with 10 m intervals is recommended among the common street-tree species. Other species could be used also, but should meet the requirements of the canopy density and the interval of layout. The paper does not consider other configuration options such as asymmetrical cases of street geometry and one-side or axial tree planting, etc., but the framework allows for adding such options and simulating thermal comfort for a greater number of scenarios.

Urban renewal is an ideal approach to promoting the value of the urban fabric and improving the sustainability of the urban environment. This study, which shows the continuity of research on sustainable urban renewal, aimed to identify sustainable urban renewal literature based on a library analysis of scientific research since 2000. A total of 3971 scientific papers from the SCIE (Science Citation Index Expanded) and SSCI (Social Sciences Citation Index) databases were reviewed to examine how research concerning “sustainable urban renewal” has emerged and developed in the past 20 years. The h-indices and impact factors of the most relevant journals in urban renewal and sustainable development since 2000 were analyzed. The most frequently cited articles were analyzed using analysis of social networks (VOSviewer). The results revealed potential future focuses of research and guidelines that link urban renewal and sustainability: the engagement of all stakeholders in the decision-making process; the involvement of residents in projects; the development of cooperation between towns and cities; the preservation and reuse of built and industrial heritage while respecting environmental law; and, finally, the search for new financing techniques. These potential future research topics were analyzed in four research areas so that sustainable development can easily be integrated into an urban renewal project.

Greenery impacts the urban thermal environment, but the benefits of the three-dimensional green volume of space have not been effectively evaluated. In this paper, we analyzed the impact of 3D greenery on urban heat island intensity and thermal comfort in residential areas from the perspective of the green plot ratio (GPR). We selected a typical residential area, set up simulation models, and then analyzed the effect of different GPR values on the outdoor thermal environment using the validated ENVI-MET simulation. The results showed that increasing GPR in residential areas can effectively reduce the intensity of urban heat island and improve thermal comfort. When the GPR reaches 0.5 and 1.5, the thermal comfort level of the building overhead space and the north–south street space decreases from “very strong thermal stress” to “strong thermal stress”. When the GPR reaches 2.5, the outdoor thermal comfort of the east–west street space and courtyard space is reduced to “hot”. When the GPR is higher than 0.5, the urban heat island intensity in the north–south street space decreases by one level, from “very strong” to “strong”. When the GPR reaches 3.5, all four types of spaces have “moderate” urban heat island intensity. Increased GPR exacerbates urban heat island intensity to some extent and worsens outdoor thermal comfort due to the nocturnal insulating effect of plants. Based on the results, the study proposes the bottom-line control of the GPR index from the perspective of urban heat island mitigation and thermal comfort improvement. This paper points out the benefits of GPR in residential areas in improving the human environment, which is of great practical value for developing urban residential environment from “increasing quantity” to “improving quality”.

Though building-scale energy demand and indoor thermal comfort have been extensively covered by recent studies, the automation of middle- and larger-scale outdoor microclimate evaluation in parametric design is less covered. The relatively slow computation and the need for sophisticated expertise are some of the current issues. This paper proposes a Rhino–Grasshopper custom script to automatically compute spatial indicators for a quick thermal comfort estimation. The Galapagos evolutionary algorithm is used to optimize thermal comfort and select the best combinations of spatial indicators. In a summer case study located in Shantou, China, the proposed workflow was three times faster than a non-automated indicator calculation in ArcGIS, while the optimization method achieved 25% to 33% reduction in land areas under extreme heat stress. This automated process applies to existing states and new urban designs. It is adaptable to customized prediction models under different climatic zones.

Optimizing urban spatial morphology is one of the most effective methods for improving the urban thermal environment. Some studies have used the local climate zones (LCZ) classification system to examine the relationship between urban spatial morphology and Surface Urban Heat Islands (SUHIs). However, these studies often rely on single-time-point data, failing to consider the changes in urban space and the time-series LCZ mapping relationships. This study utilized remote sensing data from Landsat 5, 7, and 8–9 to retrieve land surface temperatures in Changsha from 2005 to 2020 using the Mono-Window Algorithm. The spatial-temporal evolution of the LCZ and the Surface Urban Heat Island Intensity (SUHII) was then examined and analyzed. This study aims to (1) propose a localized, long-time LCZ mapping method, (2) investigate the spatial-temporal relationship between the LCZ and the SUHII, and (3) develop a more convenient SUHI assessment method for urban planning and design. The results showed that the spatial-temporal evolution of the LCZ reflects the sequence of urban expansion. In terms of quantity, the number of built-type LCZs maintaining their original types is low, with each undergoing at least one type change. The open LCZs increased the most, followed by the sparse and the composite LCZs. Spatially, the LCZs experience reverse transitions due to urban expansion and quality improvements in central urban areas. Seasonal changes in the LCZ types and the SUHI vary, with differences not only among the LCZ types but also in building heights within the same type. The relative importance of the LCZ parameters also differs between seasons. The SUHI model constructed using Boosted Regression Trees (BRT) demonstrated high predictive accuracy, with R² values of 0.911 for summer and 0.777 for winter. In practical case validation, the model explained 97.86% of the data for summer and 96.77% for winter. This study provides evidence-based planning recommendations to mitigate urban heat and create a comfortable built environment.

With the gradual depletion of shallow resources, the process of resource exploitation is being transferred to greater depths. The temperature of the surrounding rock increases gradually in the process of deep mining, and the temperature of the underground substation chambers often exceeds the normal working temperature in summer. In this paper, the equipment layout and ventilation conditions of the deep substation chamber of the Jiangxi Qujiang Mining Company were selected as the research subjects, and numerical simulation software was used to study the temperature distribution within the chamber under different conditions by changing the combinations of the wind velocity and air temperature of the inlet air of the chamber. The study showed that, under the conditions of the current equipment layout and air door size, the equipment temperature was prone to being too high in the summer. Therefore, the layout of the equipment was optimized based on the simulation results. The transformer equipment was changed from the original serial mode to the juxtaposed mode, and the size of the air door was increased, which effectively reduced the disturbance of the air flow and the length of the air flow path in the chamber. This meant that the high temperature area of the chamber was at the end of the chamber, which efficiently reduced the area of the high temperature zone and ensured that the equipment was in a lower temperature environment. This method can be used as a reference for temperature distribution, layout, and temperature control measures within buildings.