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Design tool for sizing geothermal heat pump heat exchangers. GS2000 performs a monthly analysis of the energy transfer between the ground and the heat exchanger allowing mechanical engineers to accurately size the heat exchanger for specific geothermal designs. GS2000 accounts for ground temperature variation with depth and time of year, thermal properties of the ground, pipe size, monthly ground loads and other design parameters that influence the heat exchanger size. Simplified sizing guidelines based on installed heat pump capacity cannot properly account for the impact of these parameters. GS2000 provides an accurate estimate of heat exchanger requirements for the design conditions of a specific project.
Keywords
geothermal heat pump, heat exchanger sizing, ground source heat pump
Validation/Testing
N/A
Expertise Required
Minimal computer literacy required; simple menu-driven screens are easy to use and logically laid out. Engineering knowledge of closed-loop geothermal heat pump systems necessary to achieve a well-designed system.
Users
Approximately 70.
Audience
Mechanical engineers and architects involved with the design of geothermal heat pump systems, utilities promoting geothermal technologies, research engineers and engineers with school districts considering or designing geothermal systems.
Input
Heat exchanger configuration (choice of 8), location, ground thermal properties, heat exchanger fluid, heat exchanger pipe, minimum and maximum desired fluid temperatures, fluid flow and monthly ground loads. Most input screens have a large selection of predefined inputs to simplify the design process; users can customize predefined inputs.
Output
Ground heat exchanger size, depth or number of boreholes (vertical only) and monthly fluid temperatures entering heat pumps.
Computer Platform
PC-compatible with Windows 98 or higher.
Programming Language
Engineering algorithms are FORTRAN; user interface is Visual Basic.
Strengths
Simple menu-driven screens allow a user with minimum computer skills to quickly size a geothermal heat exchanger. Most input screens have a large selection of predefined inputs to simplify the design process while retaining flexibility for the user. Eight vertical and horizontal heat exchanger configurations can be analyzed by GS2000. Additional data, not included in the predefined selection tables, can be added by the user and saved for future projects.
Weaknesses
Monthly ground loads must be determined by the user outside the program. Commercial buildings require the use of an hourly energy simulation program. Residential ground loads can be calculated manually, using simple equations outlined in the user's manual.
Contact
Availability
This software price is available free of charge from the web site.
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