Influence of tree location on thermal radiation disturbance of the west wall of summer buildings

Many studies have shown that planting trees near the west wall of a building is conducive to saving energy for cooling in summer. However, there is a lack of research quantifying the thermal radiation disturbance caused by the location of trees near the west wall. This paper studies the influence of long-wave and short-wave thermal radiation disturbance of trees at different locations around the west wall in summer through field experiments and ENVI-met simulations. It was found that the thermal radiation disturbance (TRD) of trees on the west wall of the building is mainly caused by short-waves which produce 2–3 times greater disturbance than that of long-waves. According to the fitting relationship between the change rate of daily thermal radiation disturbance, the view factor and the tree projection area, the functional formula between them is obtained. These findings provide a theoretical foundation for scientifically evaluating the influence of tree location and practical applications for guiding the planning and landscaping of vegetation around building walls.