Air Flow Bench

Presented By:
Saket Karajgikar & Nikhil Lakhkar
Advisor: Prof. Dereje Agonafer

Air Flow Experimental Bench

Reference: www.fantester.com

Air flow bench Configuration

Reference: www.fantester.com

Experimental Bench Contd

The chambers are designed in accordance
with AMCA 210-99/ASHRAE 51-1999 and
have been sized for convenient flow ranges
The chamber diameter is determined by the
size of the axial flow fan to be tested and the
maximum flow range desired
Lower flow ranges may be achieved by
utilizing smaller nozzles in the nozzle array

Experimental Bench Contd

They are positioned on
the plate so that they may
be used in parallel to
achieve higher flow
ranges.
Stoppers are provided to
block off nozzles not in
use and are easily
removed for different
ranges of testing.

Reference: www.fantester.com

Experimental Bench Contd

The chamber has flow
straightening screens
installed upstream and
downstream of the nozzle
array.
The screens break up
turbulence in the air
stream and provide a
uniform flow approaching
the nozzle array.

Reference: www.fantester.com

Experimental Bench Contd

The flow through the
chamber is controlled
with a sliding gate valve
called a blast gate.
By opening the blast
gate, the flow is varied
through the chamber to
provide test data from
shut off (no flow) to free
delivery (no back
pressure) for fan
performance evaluation.
Reference: www.fantester.com

Applications of Air Flow Bench

Air Flow Bench is used for:
To calculate the Air Flow Rate
Fan Performance Curve Measurement
Thermal Resistance

Air Flow Rate

Q = 60 x A x V
where,
Q = Air Flow Rate (m3/min)
A = Nozzle Sectional Area (m2)
V = Average Flow Velocity through nozzle (m 2/sec)

V= ( 2 g Pn / r)1/2
where,
g = gravitational acceleration 9.8 m/s2
Pn = Differential Pressure
r = Specific Gravity of Air (1.2 kg/M3 at 20oC, 1atm)

Fan Performance Curve

Afanperformancecurvecharacterizestheability
ofthefantodriveairagainstaflowresistance
Itisplottedasstaticpressuredropininchesof
watergaugepressure(iwg)againstairflowin
cubicfeetperminute(cfm)
Themeasurementstartswiththeairflowchamber
blockedsonoflowoccurs(i.e.0cfm)andproceeds
withgreaterandgreaterflowratesuntilthestatic
pressurehasdroppedtozerorepresentingthe"free
delivery"condition

Fan Performance Testing

The purpose of this test is to determine the
aerodynamic characteristics of the fan under test
Data is taken from no flow (shut off) to free flow
(free delivery)
Curve is plot using these data points

Fan Performance Testing

Experimental Set-up
Nozzle is selected based on required flow range
Nozzles should always point downstream
Fan to be tested is mounted on the front plate of
the chamber
Fan should be sealed adequately to prevent
leakage

Fan Performance Testing

Experimental Procedure
First data point is considered at no flow or
shut off condition
At this point differential pressure is zero
Start the counter blower at low speed
Slowly open the blast gate until 0.1 inches
w.g. is measured for the differential pressure
Allow the fan to stabilize and record the data

Fan Performance Testing

Experimental Procedure (Contd)
Record the data points for different Blast gate
opening
As the experiment proceeds, differential
pressure increases and static pressure
decreases
Continue taking data points till free delivery is
reached (I.e zero static pressure)
Shut off the counter blower and plot the data
Data points fully define the fan performance
curve

Typical Performance Curve

Reference: www.fantester.com

System Impedance Testing

Purpose for this test is to determine the pressure
required to move the appropriate amount of
volume flow through the system
For the impedance test, the air is forced through
the unit to be tested and the pressure drops are
measured for various flow points

System Impedance Testing

Experimental Procedure
Open the blast gate completely
Start the counter blower and blow air through the
unit to be tested
The first data point should be a minimum of 0.1
inches w.g. differential pressure
Take 5 to 6 data by increasing the counter
blower speed

Typical System Resistance Curve

Reference: www.fantester.com

Theoretical Operating Point

Theoretical operating point

Superimpose Performance curve on

Impedance Curve.
Intersection of the two curves represents
theoretical operating point of the fan.
Reference: www.fantester.com

Thermal Resistance
With the evolution of the personal computer, the
cooling of high power components has moved to the
forefront of system design
Over the years the power dissipation in the PC s
microprocessor has been increasing steadily
For this reason, the use of heat sinks in computers
has become more common
By measuring thermal resistance as a function of
free stream velocity, thermal designers can predict
the performance of heat sinks in their system and
predict the temperature of components

Calculation of thermal
resistance
The airflow chamber is used as the air source for the system
For a given volume of air drawn through the system
temperatures are measured
Thermal resistance is calculated by:

where,

*T
=
T
+
P
x
R
component
ambient
component
thermal
Tcomponent = Case temperature of component
Tambient = Ambient temperature upstream of the heat sink
Pcomponent = Power dissipation of component
Rthermal = Thermal Resistance

Calculation of thermal resistance

(Contd..)
*Graph of Thermal
Resistance Vs.
Approach velocity is
plotted

* Reference: Standardizing heat sink characterization for forced convection by Christian Belady

Thank You!