Towards Carbon Neutral Settlements. The Importance of Early-Stage Urban and Energetic Optimizations

Abstract

The aim of the research was to verify the essence of interdisciplinary energy optimizations in early-stage urban design process. A further aim was to the find most optimal design variant and scenario in terms of urban energy efficiency for the future. The research combined qualitative and quantitative approaches; an urban design layer (architectural analysis of spatial systems and planning) and an energy layer (simulations). For energy and environmental simulations, the ELAS calculator was used in an innovative way, that enabled comparison of results of several projects in terms of energy demand, carbon dioxide lifecycle emissions and ecological footprint for different urban layouts. The innovative method of working with ELAS tool proposed by the authors proved to be relevant and allowed for an appropriate pre-assessment and comparison of urban energy efficiency parameters and life cycle analysis at an early stage of the project. One of the key conclusions is that the design variant with the highest building density was not the most advantageous in terms of low environmental impact and energy demand. In addition, the research demonstrated that the individual behavior of residents, their mobility patterns and the energy systems are more important than the improvements focused only on building energy performance.