Cycle-Tempo Frequently Asked Questions

To install Cycle-Tempo:

• ƒDownload the software from the “orders” tab on your account page.
• Unzip the software and click on the installer.
• Follow the instructions on the screen.

Cycle-Tempo makes use of the FluidProp library. You can download a free version of this library from our webshop. After downloading the FluidProp installer, you can install FluidProp by executing the installer.

Finally, you have to place your license file (which you can download from the “orders” tab on your account page) in the directory where Cycle-Tempo has been installed (by default C:\Program Files\Cycle-Tempo or C:\Program Files (x86)\Cycle-Tempo).

Once you have installed Cycle-Tempo like this, it will run on your computer.

If you like to use FluidProp in Microsoft Excel, you need to install the FluidProp Excel Add-In. To do this in excel versions 2003 and below:

1. Start Microsoft Excel
2. Select “Add-Ins…” from the Tools menu.
3. In the dialog box showing the available Add-Ins, click the Browse button.
4. Browse your folders and select the file FluidProp.xla in the FluidProp folder.
5. After clicking “OK”, “FluidProp Add-In 3.x.x.x” appears in the dialog box showing the available Add-Ins.
6. Click OK to close this dialog box as well.

Now a FluidProp category appears every time you use the Excel Function Wizard (Insert -> Function).  If you select this category, you can use all the FluidProp functions from Excel.

To do this in excel versions 2007 and up:

1. Start Microsoft Excel
2. Select “Options” from the File menu/Office-button and go to the “Add-Ins” tab.
3. From the “Manage:” drop-down box select “Excel Add-ins” and press “Go…”.
4. In the dialog box showing the available Add-Ins, click the Browse button.
5. Browse your folders and select the file FluidProp.xla in the FluidProp folder.
6. After clicking “OK”, “FluidProp Add-In 3.x.x.x” appears in the dialog box showing the available Add-Ins.
7. Click OK to close this dialog box as well.

Now a FluidProp category appears every time you use the Excel Function Wizard (Insert Function button). If you select this category, you can use all the FluidProp functions from Excel.

These procedures have been illustrated with screen shots in the FluidProp help file. The help file can be found in the FluidProp folder.

Minimum hardware and software requirements for use of Cycle-Tempo are:

• Windows 7,  Windows 8, Windows 10, or Windows 11.
• An Intel Pentium II Processor or equivalent, 300 MHz or faster
• 64 MB of available random-access memory (RAM)
• 50 MB of available disk space
• A 256-color monitor capable of 800 x 600 pixel resolution (1024 x 768 pixel resolution recommended)

A list of selected publications on Cycle-Tempo can be found under Cycle-Tempo Applications.

Cycle-Tempo uses the FluidProp library for the computation of thermodynamic models. The standard version of FluidProp that comes with Cycle-Tempo includes the following fluid models:

• GasMix: ideal gas model
• IF97: thermodynamic and transport properties of water and steam according to the IAPWS
• freeStanMix: PRSV cubic equation of state
• TPSI: models as described in W.C. Reynolds “Thermodynamic Properties in S.I.”, Dept of Mech.Eng, Stanford University, Stanford CA, 1979

Add-ons are available for RefProp, for the iPRSV, and for PCP-SAFT models

An extensive list of model examples can be found here.

The license options are listed here.

Yes. Cycle-Tempo consists of a front-end, which lets you build your model through a graphical user interface (GUI) and a backend that performs the actual calculations. This back-end can be run apart from the GUI. This allows you to use Cycle-Tempo as a component in an optimization loop or as part of a larger application. Feel free to contact us for more information.

Yes. Cycle-Tempo has a built-in optimizer. But more powerful is the option to integrate the computational core of Cycle-Tempo in external optimization frameworks. Just contact us if you want to know more about the options.

Strictly speaking, Cycle-Tempo does not do dynamic simulation. But if changes in the system boundary conditions are slow compared to the response/intertia of the system, then a sequence of static computations can be used to simulate the dynamic behavior. Cycle-Tempo can be used to compute a sequence of static computations in this way. Contact us for more information.

The Cycle-Tempo installer will ask for a license file during the installation process, but you can also manually install a license file by copying it to the directory in which you installed Cycle-Tempo. Always make sure there is only one license file (.lic) in the installation directory. This ensures that the program will use the correct license file.

License files are valid for a limited time. The end date of a license file is displayed in the file name in the format YYYYMMDD. The order number that the license file corresponds to is displayed after the end date.

If you have purchased a product with a permanent license, you can download new license files whenever you want. These license files will always be valid for one year, starting from the day you downloaded the license file.

If you have purchased a product with a limited time license, the license file will be valid for a limited time, starting from the day your order status was set to complete.