Hello,
I am wondering if a DOE-2 input file is universally accepted by all front-end softwares that utilize the DOE-2 simulation engine, specifically eQuest. The specific example I'm encountering is a DOE-2 model developed in a proprietary software tool. The model needs to be further developed and evaluated. If I have the input file that was used in the proprietary model, am I able to import that same input file into eQuest for further model development and evaluation of energy conservation measures. If so, are there significant hurdles in this process that make it particularly burdensome?
Thanks in advance for your feedback.
Kind regards,
Joe
The key to your question is what version of DOE-2 the 'proprietory tool' is
generating the simulation input for. If it is DOE-2.2 then you should be
able to import the .inp file into eQUEST. It is more likely however that
the other software is generating a DOE-2.1 input file. There are
instructions in the eQUEST/DOE-2.2 documentation about how to convert a
DOE-2.1e input file to DOE-2.2 but it is "non-trivial". The structure of
the plant keywords completely changed as did the schedules and many other
keywords have small changes. The way to tell the version of DOE-2 you are
looking at is to look at the .sim output file. The version will be in the
corner of each report in the .sim file.
Joe,
Brian is right on. To add a bit, most of the proprietary tools use 2.1e which allows user defined functions. This gives them flexibility to write work around code for things like heat recovery, VRF, etc. DOE 2.2 and EQUEST do not allow user defined functions. I expect how you proceed will come down to whether or not the existing model truly relies on the their functions. You don't sound like you own the tool. If you do or are willing to buy it, I would tell the tool developer where you are and where you want to get to. I expect you will end up buying their tool or starting over in eQUEST.
Paul Riemer, PE, LEED AP BD+C
The other thing to keep in mind is that even after you've converted the input file to
DOE-2.2, you will have to run it with DOE-2.2 in batch mode, not through the eQUEST
interface.
Joe Huang