RothNEUsiedl Climate Model District, Vienna, Austria

In the climate-pioneering district of RothNEUsiedl, climate protection and climate adaptation have been at the heart of planning from the very beginning, with the goal of achieving climate neutrality both in operations and—as far as possible—during construction. To this end, Transsolar developed a comprehensive life-cycle assessment concept that takes into account both the emissions from the construction of the buildings and their energy requirements during operation over the development period. Based on this, target and threshold values were defined for building construction as well as for energy use during operation.

Energy supply plays an essential role in achieving this goal. Therefore, energy generation relies on renewable sources such as the ground and the sun. The concept provides for a district cooling system designed at the neighborhood level. The components that feed into, store, and draw energy from the system are geothermal fields in the ground and energy from wastewater, which, in combination with heat pumps, supply the buildings in Rothneusiedl. Local and renewable electricity generation is provided by large-scale photovoltaic systems installed on roofs and facades. Thanks to the early expansion of these systems, a significant contribution to supplying the neighborhood with renewable energy can be made as early as the development phase.

In addition, detailed climate studies were conducted to achieve a high level of outdoor comfort year-round while simultaneously addressing the challenges of climate change. Particular attention was paid to thermal comfort in public spaces, adaptability to climate change, and the integration of climate zones into the urban design. Wind flows in the neighborhood were modeled in detail using CFD simulations. The analysis takes seasonal differences into account, particularly summer heat and winter cold. The study of thermal comfort is based on the UTCI model, which accounts for physiological responses to climatic influences.