RP-1363 -- Generation of Hourly Design-Day Weather Data

The objectives of the project were provided by ASHRAE in the initial RFP. The project is intended to provide methods needed by TC 4.2 to complete their plans for offerings to be included in the 2009 ASHRAE Handbook Fundamentals. In particular, the 2009 Fundamentals will provide methods for generating 24 hour design weather sequences along with the input data required to use those methods. The specific objectives are:

Development of updated, coherent procedures for generation of design-day weather data sequences suitable as input for load calculations, equipment performance analysis, and fenestration heat gain calculations. The sequences will consist of 24 hourly values for dry- and wet-bulb temperature plus direct and diffuse solar radiation. The methods must be applicable world-wide, generate sequences for any day of the year, and be simple (allowing spreadsheet implementation). The procedures must generate sequences for the three cooling design conditions defined in ASHRAE climatic data (high dry bulb, high wet-bulb, or high dew-point) plus additional average and cold day types to be identified in Task 1 of the project. The procedures and associated input requirements must capture interactions between data items; for example, a high dew-point design day will typically exhibit lower solar radiation and lower dry-bulb daily range than a high dry-bulb design day. The input data for the methods must be derivable from standard hourly weather files (as used in 1273-RP to assemble the 2005 Fundamentals climatic data tables) and must be suitable for tabulation in the 2009 revision of Fundamentals.Preparation of specifications for new or revised items in the 2009 Fundamentals climatic data tables. These specifications will be used to update the data tables such that all input required by the data generation methods is widely available to the practitioner. Examples of possible additional data items are daily range of dry-bulb for design-days, daily range of dew point, and atmospheric visibility or aerosol content.

As this report is being written (late 2007), ASHRAE Research Project 1453 is currently assembling enhanced data tables for inclusion in the 2009 ASHRAE Handbook Fundamentals, including those data items needed for application of the methods developed under this project.

This 12 MB zip file includes aPDF with the final report and Appendices A, B and C and an Excel file.

Units: I-P



Product Code(s): D-RP-1363