Vertical greening systems to enhance the thermal performance of buildings and outdoor comfort

Abstract

Reflections This chapter provides an overview to the ability of vertical greening systems to provide passive energy savings at building scale and to reduce the urban heat island effect in the built environment. The main influencing aspects for energy performances and outdoor comfort, i.e., the differences between the current constructive systems (basically green facades and green walls), the climate and plant species (climber plants vs shrubs and herbaceous, or perennial vs deciduous), and the operating methods (shade effect, cooling effect, insulation effect, wind barrier effect) will be analyzed. Moreover, a short review throughout the main promising research findings on the topic will be presented to finish with some suggestions for further research. © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.