https://github.com/tomlxxvi/python-hvac

A multi-package for HVAC engineering written in Python.
https://github.com/tomlxxvi/python-hvac

air-conditioning cooling-load-calculation energy-estimation fluid-flow heat-exchanger heat-transfer heating-load-calculation hvac python refrigeration vrf

Last synced: 3 months ago
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A multi-package for HVAC engineering written in Python.

• Host: GitHub
• URL: https://github.com/tomlxxvi/python-hvac
• Owner: TomLXXVI
• License: mit
• Created: 2023-03-22T11:51:29.000Z (almost 3 years ago)
• Default Branch: master
• Last Pushed: 2025-03-26T18:53:35.000Z (10 months ago)
• Last Synced: 2025-03-26T19:39:18.850Z (10 months ago)
• Topics: air-conditioning, cooling-load-calculation, energy-estimation, fluid-flow, heat-exchanger, heat-transfer, heating-load-calculation, hvac, python, refrigeration, vrf
• Language: Python
• Homepage:
• Size: 32.7 MB
• Stars: 67
• Watchers: 6
• Forks: 20
• Open Issues: 1
• Metadata Files:
  • Readme: README.md
  • License: LICENSE.md

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README

          
# python-hvac

A Python library for HVAC engineering:

- cooling and heating load calculations of buildings

- estimation of energy needs and energy consumption

- design and analysis of air and hydronic distribution systems

- air conditioning process calculations

- simulation and analysis of heat exchangers (limited for now to plain fin-and-tube heat exchangers)

- simulation and analysis of single-stage vapor compression machines and VRF systems

- sizing of refrigerant piping

- correlations for convection heat transfer coefficients and friction factors

Example scripts and notebooks can be found under `docs/examples`. More examples

will be added over time.

> [!NOTE]

> This project replaces the older project `HVAC`, which is no longer under 

> development and will be no longer maintained.

## Overview

At this moment the following subpackages are part of `hvac`:

**air_conditioning**


A package about air-conditioning processes and systems that can be used to 

design and analyze single-zone or multi-zone CAV and VAV air conditioning

systems.

**air_diffusion**


A package about supplying air to a room. Implements free air jets and some

procedures for designing air supply to a room which come from *Awbi, H. B. (2003).

VENTILATION OF BUILDINGS. Taylor & Francis. Chapter 6.*

**cooling_load_calc**


A package for doing cooling (and heating) load calculations of thermal zones in

a building, based upon ASHRAE's Radiant-Times-Series (RTS) method. 

It uses a lumped capacitance model (thermal network model) to take the thermal 

inertia of flat, opaque building components and the interior thermal mass of a 

zone into account, as explained in Chapter 10 of *Mitchell, J. W., & Braun, 

J. E. (2012). PRINCIPLES OF HEATING, VENTILATION, AND AIR CONDITIONING IN 

BUILDINGS. John Wiley & Sons*.

Using third-party package `python-control` ([Python Control Systems Library](https://github.com/python-control/python-control)),

a state-space model is then derived from this thermal network model, which can

be simulated in time. The state-space model of the thermal zone can then also be

easily integrated in a temperature control feedback system.

A series of notebooks in `docs/examples/cooling_load_calc` explains step by step

how to use the `cooling_load_calc` package and what it can do.

**sun**


This package is about solar radiation on surfaces. It implements a number of

sky-models (isotropic, anisotropic Perez, anisotropic HDKR, KT) to estimate the 

solar radiation incident on exterior surfaces.

It can generate solar radiation data based on the clear-sky model, or it can use

TMY-data of a certain geographic location .

Subpackage *sun* implements the equations in chapters 1 and 2 of *Duffie, 

J. A., Beckman, W. A., & Blair, N. (2020). SOLAR ENGINEERING OF THERMAL 

PROCESSES, PHOTOVOLTAICS AND WIND. John Wiley & Sons.*

**heating_load_calc**


A package for doing the heating load calculation of a building based on the 

method of *European standard EN 12831-1 (July 2017)*.

**energy_estimation**


Estimation of the energy consumption of a building using the bin table method.

**fluid_flow**


A package about fluid flow in pipes and ducts and for designing and analyzing 

pipe and duct network systems. It includes a large number of fittings taken 

from *Crane's TECHNICAL PAPER NO. 410M* and *SMACNA's HVAC SYSTEMS DUCT DESIGN 

MANUAL*.

**refrigerant_piping**


Package for sizing refrigerant lines (suction line, discharge line, and liquid

line) between an outdoor unit and indoor unit of an air conditioning system.

**heat_transfer**


This package implements a number of correlations for calculating convection

heat transfer coefficients and friction factors for different geometries. Most 

correlations were taken from *Nellis G. F. , & Klein S. A.  (2021). 

INTRODUCTION TO ENGINEERING HEAT TRANSFER. Cambridge University Press*.

**heat_exchanger**


Contains two subpackages: **recuperator** and **regenerator**.

Subpackage *recuperator* is about heat exchangers in which the hot and cold 

fluid are separated by a heat transfer wall. 

It implements the effectiveness-NTU method for both dry and wet air 

cooling/heating coils. 

It contains (at this moment) some models of continuous fin-tube heat exchangers

(air condenser, air evaporator, air-to-water cooling coil) for analysis and 

simulation. Implementations are based on solving methods described in *Shah, 

R. K. , & Sekulic, D. P.  (2003). FUNDAMENTALS OF HEAT EXCHANGER 

DESIGN. John Wiley & Sons*.

Subpackage *regenerator* implements the effectiveness-NTU method for a 

counterflow rotary regenerator (e.g. a sensible heat recovery wheel) as outlined

in *Shah, R. K. , & Sekulic, D. P.  (2003). FUNDAMENTALS OF HEAT 

EXCHANGER DESIGN. John Wiley & Sons*, Chapter 5: *Thermal Design Theory for

Regenerators*.

**vapor_compression**


Contains models to represent fixed- and variable speed compressors, and a model

of a single-stage vapor compression machine, that integrates the models for the

air evaporator and condenser in subpackage *heat_exchanger*.

Purpose of this module is to simulate the steady-state performance of a 

single-stage vapor compression machine (air conditioning machine, heat pump). 

Several application examples have been included in the folder `vapor_compression` 

of `docs/examples`.

**vrf_system**


This subpackage can be used to model a VRF-system in relation to the building

in which it is installed, with the purpose to estimate its energy consumption

during a typical heating or cooling season. An example of such an energy 

consumption estimation and a comparison between different candidate VRF-systems 

in relation to the same building have been included in the folder `vrf_system` 

of `docs/examples`.

**radiant_emitter**


This subpackage implements two types of radiant heat emitters. Class 

`PanelRadiator` is for panel radiators and class `RadiantFloorPanel` is for 

floor heating panels. Both classes can be used for design and analysis.

**kitchen_ventilation**


This subpackage implements the detailed calculation method according to European

standard EN 16282-1:2017 *Equipment for commercial kitchens - Components for 

ventilation in commercial kitchens - Part 1: General requirements including 

calculation method* for the design calculation of the extraction air volume flow

rates in commercial kitchens. It also includes two quick methods that can be 

used for a preliminary calculation.

Besides the aforementioned application-oriented packages, `hvac` also includes a 

number of more basic subpackages which are used throughout the modules of 

`hvac`:

First of all, `hvac` is heavily based on third-party library `pint` for

working with physical quantities in Python. Module `pint_setup.py` inside `hvac`

does the necessary setup for using Pint's `Quantity` class throughout the 

package. When you write a script using package `hvac`, simply write `from hvac

import Quantity` to work with physical quantities in your script.

Subpackage `fluids` contains a number of modules with classes that act like

object-oriented wrappers around third-party libraries `CoolProp` and `aipws`. 

The principal classes of `fluids`, that are used extensively throughout 

the code, are `Fluid` and `HumidAir`, which encapsulate CoolProp's API and

allow to accept `Quantity` objects.

A new module `fluid_experimental` has been added to subpackage `fluids` which has a better structured and understandable user interface, especially for defining mixtures. This module has not been integrated yet in other modules or subpackages, while it's still in an experimental stage.

Finally, subpackage `charts` contains a package `matplotlibwrapper`, being a 

tiny wrapper around third-party library `matplotlib`, meant to ease the drawing

of some frequently used chart types. It also contains a module to plot 

refrigeration cycles on the log-p-h diagram of a refrigerant and a module to 

plot air conditioning processes on a psychrometric chart.