Preliminary Design Guidelines for Considering the Vibration and Noise of Low-Speed Axial Fans Due to Profile Vortex Shedding

This paper presents a critical overview on worst-case design scenarios for which low-speed axial flow fans may exhibit an increased risk of blade resonance due to profile vortex shedding. To set up a design example, a circular-arc-cambered plate of 8% relative curvature is investigated in twofold approaches of blade mechanics and aerodynamics. For these purposes, the frequency of the first bending mode of a plate of arbitrary circular camber is expressed by modeling the fan blade as a cantilever beam. Furthermore, an iterative blade design method is developed for checking the risky scenarios for which spanwise and spatially coherent shed vortices, stimulating pronounced vibration and noise, may occur. Coupling these two approaches, cases for vortex-induced blade resonance are set up. Opposing this basis, design guidelines are elaborated upon for avoiding such resonance. Based on the approach presented herein, guidelines are also developed for moderating the annoyance due to the vortex shedding noise.

Assessment of the efficiency of the use of activating turbulent jets to eliminate the risk of the formation of unventilated zones in large premises

Strict requirements for microclimate parameters are imposed on food storage premises, which are equipped with artificial cooling systems. The experience of operating the refrigerated premises revealed the following disadvantages: uneven distribution and significant fluctuations in temperature and relative humidity; periodic precipitation of condensate in low-temperature sections. Elimination of the noted disadvantages is effectively achieved by using axial fans that form a swirling air stream that induces the ambient air. Swirling jets used to intensify the process of air circulation in a room in order to eliminate unventilated zones will be called activating jets. To assess the efficiency of the application of activating turbulent jets, an integral method based on the energy balance was used. Using the example of a representative object, it is shown that the distance of the effective application of an activating turbulent jet should be calculated taking into account the influence of environmental turbulence, which is determined by the amount of energy introduced and dissipated in the room.

Improving the performance of the air-cooling unit in the cooling system of a radar

The article discusses the issues of reducing the size of the cooling unit of the antenna of a radar station by improving the gas-dynamic processes occurring in the air-cooling unit. The results of the experimental studies of the gas flow in a plate-fin heat exchanger, being blown by one axial fan are presented. The feasibility of changing the number of axial fans for organizing a more uniform flow around the heat-exchange surfaces has been determined by calculation and theoretical methods. The calculation results are confirmed by experimental studies of the air flow in the segment of the heat exchanger, which is provided by a smaller fan.

Improvement of the Parallel Compressor Model and Application to Inlet Flow Distortion

This paper introduces a semi-analytical approach which enables one to deal with distorted inflow in axial fans or compressors. It is inspired by the classical parallel compressor (PC) theory but relies on a local flow-loading coefficient formalism. It is applied to non-uniform flow conditions to study the aerodynamic behavior of a low-speed fan in response to upstream flow distortion. Experimental measurements and 3D RANS simulations are used to evaluate the prediction of fan performance obtained with the local PC method. The comparison proves that, despite its simplicity, the present approach enables to correctly capture first order phenomena, offering interesting perspectives for an early design phase if different fan geometries are to be tested and if the upstream distortion maps are available.

Recent Developments in Air Pumps for Thermal Management of Electronics

For electronics, poor thermal management could cause severe mechanical and electrical failures. Forced convective air cooling, i.e., flowing air over a hot surface, is one of the most efficient and economical solutions to manage thermal issues of electronics. Air pump is used to initiate and sustain airflow required in forced convection. This paper reviews both the mechanical and the nonmechanical air pumps that have been using widely in current electronics or have a great potential in future electronics. The mechanical pumps include axial fans, blowers, beam fans, and diaphragm pumps, while the nonmechanical pump specifically focuses on electrohydrodynamic pumps. This paper presents the working principle first and then the recent developments, including the pump itself (design, characteristics, etc.) and the applications in thermal management (placement, integration, etc.). In the end, this paper conducts the strength analysis (flow rate, pressure, noise, flexibility, and reliability) among the reviewed five types of air pumps.