Bioclimatic Analysis and Proposal of Bioclimatic Strategies for Buildings: Case Studies in Santo André, São Paulo, Brazil

Santo André city is located in the region called ABC Paulista, in the southeast of the Metropolitan Region of São Paulo and it is an important city, considering its industrial and economic role. There are few attempts to develop projects that fit the local climate in order to save energy consumption. The study aims to use weather data to define the parameters of normal climate of Santo André that are essential for the thermal comfort project, considering urban planning, new buildings, and retrofit of existing solutions. Data were obtained from meteorological stations in Santo André, regarding five different points of the city to evaluate different microclimates and the influence of the surroundings areas in microclimates, and a climate file was created to predict bioclimatic strategies for buildings. The results reveal spatial variations of temperature (T) and relative humidity (RH) among the five microclimates analyzed (minimum and maximum T and RH were respectively found for stations 04 Paraiso with 17 °C, 01 Camilópolis with 52% and stations 01 Camilópolis with 24,5 °C, 04 Paraiso with 84%), as a result of the following actions: replacement of vegetation by constructions (e.g., asphalt, concrete) and other impermeable surfaces. For the climate pattern of the area, the results reveal that adaptive comfort requires active strategies. If only passive strategies are applied, no more than 32% of the thermal comfort is achieved. This study allows architects and engineers to choose solutions suitable to the climate of the Santo André Urban Qualification Zone, during the process of designing new interventions in urban area. Keywords: Urban climate; Building strategies; Housing; Urban design; Energy saving.