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Title: State-of-the-art software for window energy-efficiency rating and labeling

Abstract

Measuring the thermal performance of windows in typical residential buildings is an expensive proposition. Not only is laboratory testing expensive, but each window manufacturer typically offers hundreds of individual products, each of which has different thermal performance properties. With over a thousand window manufacturers nationally, a testing-based rating system would be prohibitively expensive to the industry and to consumers. Beginning in the early 1990s, simulation software began to be used as part of a national program for rating window U-values. The rating program has since been expanded to include Solar Hear Gain Coefficients and is now being extended to annual energy performance. This paper describes four software packages available to the public from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL). These software packages are used to evaluate window thermal performance: RESFEN (for evaluating annual energy costs), WINDOW (for calculating a product`s thermal performance properties), THERM (a preprocessor for WINDOW that determines two-dimensional heat-transfer effects), and Optics (a preprocessor for WINDOW`s glass database). Software not only offers a less expensive means than testing to evaluate window performance, it can also be used during the design process to help manufacturers produce windows that will meet target specifications. In addition, software can show small improvementsmore » in window performance that might not be detected in actual testing because of large uncertainties in test procedures.« less

Authors:
; ; ; ;  [1];  [2]
  1. Lawrence Berkeley National Lab., CA (United States)
  2. Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (United States). Center for Environmental Design Research
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Lawrence Berkeley National Lab., Environmental Energy Technologies Div., CA (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Washington, DC (United States)
OSTI Identifier:
296888
Report Number(s):
LBNL-42151; TA-378; CONF-980815-
ON: DE98059386; TRN: AHC29903%%286
DOE Contract Number:  
AC03-76SF00098
Resource Type:
Conference
Resource Relation:
Conference: 1998 ACEEE summer study on energy efficiency in buildings, Pacific Grove, CA (United States), 23-28 Aug 1998; Other Information: PBD: Jul 1998
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION; WINDOWS; U VALUES; COMPUTER CALCULATIONS; COMPUTERIZED SIMULATION; R CODES; W CODES; T CODES; O CODES

Citation Formats

Arasteh, D, Finlayson, E, Huang, J, Mitchell, R, Rubin, M, and Huizenga, C. State-of-the-art software for window energy-efficiency rating and labeling. United States: N. p., 1998. Web.
Arasteh, D, Finlayson, E, Huang, J, Mitchell, R, Rubin, M, & Huizenga, C. State-of-the-art software for window energy-efficiency rating and labeling. United States.
Arasteh, D, Finlayson, E, Huang, J, Mitchell, R, Rubin, M, and Huizenga, C. 1998. "State-of-the-art software for window energy-efficiency rating and labeling". United States. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/296888.
@article{osti_296888,
title = {State-of-the-art software for window energy-efficiency rating and labeling},
author = {Arasteh, D and Finlayson, E and Huang, J and Mitchell, R and Rubin, M and Huizenga, C},
abstractNote = {Measuring the thermal performance of windows in typical residential buildings is an expensive proposition. Not only is laboratory testing expensive, but each window manufacturer typically offers hundreds of individual products, each of which has different thermal performance properties. With over a thousand window manufacturers nationally, a testing-based rating system would be prohibitively expensive to the industry and to consumers. Beginning in the early 1990s, simulation software began to be used as part of a national program for rating window U-values. The rating program has since been expanded to include Solar Hear Gain Coefficients and is now being extended to annual energy performance. This paper describes four software packages available to the public from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL). These software packages are used to evaluate window thermal performance: RESFEN (for evaluating annual energy costs), WINDOW (for calculating a product`s thermal performance properties), THERM (a preprocessor for WINDOW that determines two-dimensional heat-transfer effects), and Optics (a preprocessor for WINDOW`s glass database). Software not only offers a less expensive means than testing to evaluate window performance, it can also be used during the design process to help manufacturers produce windows that will meet target specifications. In addition, software can show small improvements in window performance that might not be detected in actual testing because of large uncertainties in test procedures.},
doi = {},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/296888}, journal = {},
number = ,
volume = ,
place = {United States},
year = {Wed Jul 01 00:00:00 EDT 1998},
month = {Wed Jul 01 00:00:00 EDT 1998}
}

Conference:
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