Energy Planning and Urban Form: Solar Energy as a Design Parameter in Ouargla, a Southern City in Algeria

Abstract

Energy planning plays a crucial role in the built environment, particularly when aiming at reaching sustainable cities. Today, most researchers are focusing on exploring the accurate potential of renewable energies. However, few studies have explored the correlation between urban forms and renewable energy inputs. The objective of this paper is to examine the relationship between the incident solar irradiation, urban form and the potential of photovoltaic energy at a local level. The study focuses on the case of the city of Ouargla, which is located in southern Algeria. In terms of methodology, it adopts three main steps. Firstly, three different types of urban form have been identified according to three main criteria (morphology of streets and lot, buildings use and environment). Secondly, numerical simulations were performed based on 3D models of these urban forms, with the purpose of evaluating the distributions of solar irradiations on the different building roofs, which helps to determine the most appropriate urban form for solar energy use. The study demonstrates that urban form has an impact on solar energy potential, which means that the latter provides a significant increase in the photovoltaic energy production.