Development of dry and evaporative fluid cooler models for EnergyPlus

Abstract

Dry and evaporative fluid cooler models were developed and implemented in the EnergyPlus simulation environment. First, the operation of the fluid coolers and a comparison with cooling towers were presented. The literature review has shown various models of the fluid coolers. The Lebrun model was chosen as the basis for evaporative fluid cooler model whiles the Epsilon-NTU correlation for cross flow heat exchanger with both streams unmixed was used for the dry fluid cooler model. The model sensitivity for various input parameters has been analyzed. The evaporative fluid cooler model was validated by using manufacturer's catalog data. The HVACSIM+ dry fluid cooler model (type 762) was used to verify the EnergyPlus dry fluid cooler model. Similarly, The Lebrun model was implemented in VBA to verify EnergyPlus evaporative fluid cooler model. The new models produced results that were comparable to previous models. The implementation of the models was also verified by arranging them in series and parallel configurations and analyzing their performance. The models performed as expected for both the configurations.