pyregen 0.1.0

A Python port of the NIST REGEN3.3 cryogenic regenerator model.

pyregen

pyregen is a Python-based port of NIST REGEN3.3 cryogenic regenerator model.

It evaluates the fluid dynamics and heat transfer of oscillating helium flow through porous media at cryogenic temperatures. By replacing Fortran structures with a Object-Oriented Python architecture, pyregen acts as a fast, flexible engine.

Installation

pip install pyregen

Quick Start

pyregen is designed to act as a state-machine engine. You initialize the regenerator with your physical parameters, and then drive it forward in a loop.

from pyregen import Regenerator

my_regen = Regenerator(
    gas_temp_cold=80.0,           # Cold end temperature (K)
    gas_temp_hot=300.0,           # Hot end temperature (K)
    herz=60.0,                    # Operating frequency (Hz)
    hydra_diam=50e-6,             # Hydraulic diameter (m)
    mass_flux_cold=0.01,          # Mass flux at cold end (kg/s)
    mass_flux_hot=0.01,           # Mass flux at hot end (kg/s)
    mass_phase=30.0,              # Phase shift (degrees)
    material='stainless steel',   # Matrix material
    porosity=0.68,                # Matrix porosity
    pres_initial=2.5e6,           # Average pressure (Pa)
    rg_area=0.002,                # Cross-sectional area (m^2)
    rg_length=0.05,               # Regenerator length (m)
    geometry='screens',           # Matrix geometry
    num_points_x=21,              # Number of spatial nodes
    num_steps_cyc=80              # Number of time steps per cycle
)

target_cycles = 10
total_steps = target_cycles * my_regen.num_steps_cyc

print(f"Starting Engine: Running {total_steps} steps...")

for step in range(total_steps):
    
    current_data = my_regen.advance()
    
    if (step + 1) % my_regen.num_steps_cyc == 0:
        print(f"Cycle {current_data['Cycle']:.1f} completed.")

full_history = my_regen.results()
final_gas_temp = full_history['Gas_Temperature'][-1, -1]
print(f"\nFinal Gas Temp at the cold boundary: {final_gas_temp:.2f} K")

my_regen.save_to_csv("my_simulation_run.csv")

Supported Materials & Geometries

Materials:

• stainless steel (or ss)
• lead (or pb)
• er3-ni (or er3ni)
• (More materials can be easily added via the material_properties function)

Geometries:

• parallel plates (or 1)
• tubes (or 2)
• screens (or 4)

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License.