Exploring the spatio-temporal distributions of industrial parks in Xining City from the perspective of buildings made of color steel plates

Industrial parks are like the engine of urban economic development. Exploring their spatio-temporal distributions holds critical significance for ascertaining urban spatial structures and sustaining the development of industrial parks. To objectively characterize the spatio-temporal distributions of industrial parks, this study employed the data of buildings made of color steel plates as auxiliary data for investigating industrial parks in Xining City, Qinghai Province. Combined with some information and road network data of industrial parks in the main urban area of Xining City from 2005 to 2020, this study delved into the spatio-temporal distributions of industrial parks over a long period in Xining City using network kernel density analysis, standard deviational ellipse, and equal sector analysis. The results show that: ① From 2005 to 2020, industrial parks in Xining City continued to increase at a growth rate of 73%, with the fastest growth rate observed in Chengbei District; ② Highly clustered industrial parks developed from single to multiple zones. Concerning the changes in the density of buildings made of color steel plates, newly built industrial parks were mostly distributed on the urban edge, and the cluster areas exhibited north-south crossing banded distributions, aligning with the urban spatial structure. Additionally, all industrial parks showed a northwest-southeast distribution and a less significant clustering trend from 2005 to 2020; ③ The expansion of industrial parks manifested phased and zonal development, with a gradually decreased expansion intensity, suggesting the tendency of stable development. The results of this study will provide objective spatio-temporal data support and methodology for the urbanization development research or structural transformation of industrial parks in Xining.