Heatwave vulnerability assessment of nursing homes based on dynamic simulations

Abstract

The frequency and magnitude of summer heatwaves has significantly increased in Hungary in recent years, and research shows that we can expect the same level of temperature anomalies in the near future. For this paper we performed dynamic simulations of nursing homes to examine the effect of building types and construction methods on summer overheating. Potential factors influencing the overheating risk of a building include the design, building number of storeys, roof shape, building materials, glazing ratio and shading. Taking into account these factors, we used a whole-building simulation software to compare the building types and the internal temperatures in the rooms, considering different user behaviour. Several vulnerability maps and models were developed in recent years and most of them are based on meteorological and demographic data. Our research approaches the issue from the point of view of building structures, taking into account the building itself and its environment in detail in case of a particularly exposed group. The results can be used to assess the most critical buildings and construction types and contribute to assessing the heat vulnerability index of Budapest.