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ORIGINAL RESEARCH
Correlation Analysis of the Spatial Characteristics
and Influencing Factors of the Block-Scale Thermal
Environment: A Case Study in Jinan, China
1
School of Surveying and Geo-Informatics, Shandong Jianzhu University, Jinan 250101, China
2
School of Surveying, Mapping and Spatial Information, Shandong University of Science and Technology, Qingdao
266000, China
Submission date: 2024-09-01
Final revision date: 2024-09-29
Acceptance date: 2024-10-28
Online publication date: 2025-01-15
Publication date: 2025-11-14
Corresponding author
Pol. J. Environ. Stud. 2025;34(6):8277-8293
KEYWORDS
TOPICS
ABSTRACT
As an important factor in urban planning and urban design, blocks exhibit complex and diverse
thermal environment characteristics due to the thermal properties of the underlayment materials and
the non-uniformity of the spatial distribution of the buildings. Previous research has predominantly
concentrated on the urban-scale thermal environment and its underlying drivers. Yet, there remains
a notable inadequacy in the precise identification of core urban heat island patches and critical nodes,
the scientific rigor applied in selecting geographical units and research methodologies, as well as the
depth of exploration concerning improvement strategies for the thermal environment at the block scale.
To address this gap, this study uses a typical urban neighborhood in Jinan as a case study. It employs
geographic information system (GIS), spatial statistics, and analysis methods, grounded in the spatial
heterogeneity of different geographical units, to explore the spatial distribution characteristics and
heterogeneity mechanisms of the thermal environment at the neighborhood scale. The results indicate
that: (1) in the study area, the core area and the edge area account for the largest proportion of the heat
island landscape, and the accumulation, diffusion, and radiation of the two areas lead to the increasing
degree of aggregation among the heat island patches, which has an important impact on the adjustment
balance of the heat environment inside the block and the spatial distribution pattern of the heat island.
(2) There are significant differences in the correlation and explanatory power between urban form
indicators and the land surface temperature (LST) among different geographical units. Local climate
zoning (LCZ) can preserve the complete urban landscape type and has strong explanatory power for
local thermal environmental effects, making it highly suitable for the block-scale analysis of thermal
environmental spatial feature correlations. (3) The HRE (height of roughness elements), BEI (building
evenness index), and SVF (sky view factor) are the indicators that have the greatest impact on the LST.
Building height, evenness, and openness have a significant impact on the spatial distribution pattern of
heat islands. Urban planners should fully consider the impact mechanisms of the indicator factors to minimize the LST. We believe that these findings can offer new theoretical foundations and practical
pathways for the precise governance of urban heat island effects and the intelligent regulation of urban
climates.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
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