A multi-criteria computational workflow for solar-driven urban district design

This paper presents a solar-informed, multi-criteria computational workflow for shaping climate-responsive urban districts. Building on and extending the Solar Envelope principle towards a practical “Solar Envelope 2.0,” the method integrates simplified radiation-based and geometry-driven predictors within a multi-objective optimisation (MOO) framework to support district-scale evaluation of solar access, photovoltaic potential, energy demand, daylight availability, and outdoor thermal comfort. Tested on a redevelopment site in Holon, Israel, the workflow compares solid and voxelated morphologies, using solar-exposure metrics as the primary optimisation drivers. Results show that voxelated forms provide finer control of solar access and achieve higher PV potential and improved summer shading, while solid forms offer more stable seasonal behaviour and stronger contextual daylight performance. Detailed multi-domain simulation benchmarking indicates that the solar-based predictors support comparative evaluation of energy, daylight, and outdoor-comfort outcomes. Under future climatic conditions (2070, RCP 8.5), energy demand rises while solar availability remains broadly stable, demonstrating the robustness of the solar-based optimisation logic under climatic warming. The study establishes a scalable evaluation workflow for next-generation solar urban design, where solar radiation becomes the organising parameter for district morphology and a basis for balancing cross-domain environmental objectives. This contributes a computational pathway for solar-adaptive, climate-resilient urban form generation and early-stage decision support.