Beyond BLAST and DOE-2: EnergyPlus, a new-generation energy simulation program
- and others
Many of the popular building energy simulation programs around the world are reaching maturity (and may be reaching senility). Some use simulation methods (and even code) that originated in the 1960s. For more than two decades, the U.S. government has supported development of two hourly building energy simulation programs, BLAST and DOE-2. Designed in the days of mainframe computers, without substantial redesign and/or completely rewriting the programs, expanding their capabilities has become difficult, time-consuming, and expensive. During the same period, analysis and computational methods and power have advanced significantly--providing an opportunity for significant improvement of these tools. In early 1996, a federal agency began developing a new building energy simulation took. EnergyPlus, building on development experience with two existing program: DOE-2 and BLAST. EnergyPlus includes a number of innovative simulation features--such as variable time steps, built-in and external modular systems integrated with a heat balance-based zone simulation--and input and output data structures tailored to facilitate third party module and interface development. Other planned simulation capabilities include multizone airflow, and electric power and solar thermal and photovoltaic simulation. Beta testing of EnergyPlus begins in late 1998.
- Research Organization:
- Dept. of Energy, Washington, DC (US)
- OSTI ID:
- 20006318
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-980815-; TRN: IM200007%%374
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 1998 ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings, Pacific Grove, CA (US), 08/23/1998--08/28/1998; Other Information: 10 volume set available for $200.00; PBD: 1998; Related Information: In: 1998 ACEEE summer study on energy efficiency in buildings: Proceedings, [3100] pages.
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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