Solar urban planning is a complex process which needs to consider the interplay between multiple factors and variables, depending on urban form and solar energy inputs. This paper presents a methodology based on a parametric approach to quantify solar energy potential from photovoltaic systems in the urban context. Solar power as a source of low carbon energy is an essential component for the sustainability of cities and its implementation and management, through urban planning practices, can play a strategic role in improving the energy efficiency of cities. Within this framework, the amount of energy provided by the integration of photovoltaic systems into existing buildings and their energy consumption, are two key indicators to identify the neighborhoods of the city that behave as urban units with positive, negative or balanced energy performances. On this basis, a workflow that combines geographical information system (ArcGIS®), parametric modeling (Rhinoceros® – GrasshopperTM) and solar dynamic analysis (Geco® – Ecotect®), has been developed. A case study has been conducted in a medium-size city in Portugal: Oeiras. The research also evaluated the implementation of a smart grid model supported in the relationship between urban densities and mixed land-use. This infrastructure provides the connection between the cellular units and the city energy system in order to optimize the demand-supply balance. In this way, the results reveal how widespread integration of PV systems, in the long term, can give rise to cities with better energy performances and thus contribute to mitigate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions related to fossil fuels consumption

The aim of this paper is to explore the concept of Solar Urban Planning with the goal of developing an operative methodology to achieve the best conditions towards Zero Energy Building (ZEB). In the last two centuries there has been a transformation in the form of cities, from being relatively compact to a confused urban sprawl. By 2020, all new buildings constructed in the European Union will have to be “nearly zero energy” in response to the Energy Performance of Building Directive. The ZEB goal is technically achievable but dependents on various conditions of the urban structure. By 2050, the population will grow from 7 to 9 billion, the facts are clear and the time to act is now. The task to provide high solar performances buildings could be attained in a better way if the urban planning process integrates a solar energy approach to both new and existing urban environments. A “new step” that determines the solar potential of an urban area, implements a model connected to the needs of buildings and their capacity to produce energy from solar resource integrating solar analysis with parametric urban design, represents a useful tool to be added into the conception phase of urban planning. The methodology has been applied to a case study in Portugal to plan the correct orientation and form of new buildings to guarantee the optimal efficiency of photovoltaic roof and façade systems and calculate their solar energy production. Considering the importance and the complexity to minimize the use of cooling system and reduce the buildings energy consumption, multiple actions are required. Solar urban design is a “new phase” of sustainable urban planning, a phase that has wide horizons of development and could provide new solutions to the worlds energy problem by reducing its consumption and improves the performance of future buildings

With more than half of the world's people living in cities and about 75% of the population that will live in urban areas by 2050, meeting energy demands sustainably is one of the most important challenges for the future of society. This paper presents the solar energy integration in urban planning by using the GUUD - Geographical Urban Units Delimitation model. The concept behind this is that city districts and neighborhoods can be turned into solar power stations that behave like atoms. Appealing to the cellular automata (CA) concepts, the GUUD model assumes the division of the city into “cellular units” according to four delimitation criteria: construction timeline, population density, urban morphologies and land-use patterns. To do this, the model is calibrated to collect a selection of data inputs which are the bases of a workflow that combines GIS with parametric modeling and solar dynamic analysis. Its application to a case study shows how is extremely important to understand the existing urban models to relate them effectively with energy aspects at the whole city scale. Furthermore, the results of solar dynamic analysis suggest how the energy supply from the widespread installation of photovoltaic systems in the urban context can provide a sustainable contribution to energy demands but at the same time has to be supported by smart grids for its correct management and completed by more energy efficient buildings and other renewable resources towards the city energy balance