Objectives
FAN APPLICATIONS AND SYSTEMS
CONTEXT
To force air and gas to flow by means of fans, blowers and compressors, roughly 25% of the total produced electrical power is needed (figure valid for Europe). To make it even more clear: every fourth power plant serves solely to rotate shafts of fans, blowers and compressors. Now why do we need air and gas to flow? Our modern world depend on process functions such as heating, cooling, drying, ventilation, gas transport and other fan applications. For those applicants the fan is one entity of the system besides throttle, reactor, ducts and so on. The fan is the systems engine pushing the system. On the one hand, an old diesel in a Ferrari chassis does not make sense. On the other hand, it is also true: an oversized turbo charged engine would not save a small vintage nearly ragged vehicle from breaking apart.
Fan user, system designer and fan manufacture should be interested in the track gaining benefit from the presentations and discussion.
The track considers system design, system effects, fan selection, efficiency scaling, fan operation and maintenance. It covers also developments in motors and drives and last but not least gives a forum to discuss legislation and market surveillance.
TOPICS
Compliance with Legislation & Regulations
Legislative and regulatory pressures are significantly higher at this time than has been the historic norm within the fan industry, and a driver for development of new technology within the fan industry.
Harmonization of Fan Standards Worldwide
Different countries or regions have different standards for fan testing or fan applications. A harmonization of these standards can increase their acceptance and a more efficient use.
Operation and Maintenance Considerations
A shift to maintenance-on-demand in a quest to minimize plant down-time and in so doing maximize availability has resulted in a shift towards more design-for-maintenance and increasingly sophisticates condition monitoring systems.
Motors & Drive
Efficiency, affordability and reliability of the motors used to drive fans are critical, with motors the subject of efficiency legislation and drives becoming more effective as the technology they employ matures.
Specialized Fans for different applications
Extremely hot or cold environments need fans with special materials. Some fans transport abrasive media, too. These fans have special shapes and coatings to withstand the additional forces.
Retrofit and Upgrading existing fan installations
The enhancement and upgrading of existing plant and equipment, at least partly driven by constantly evolving legislative and regulatory requirements presents its own unique set of challenges, associated with working within the constraints of an existing system.
Fan System Effect
As the performance of fans and their associated systems is improved, their susceptibility to the effects associated with the systems within which they are installed increases. The method by which system effect on fans may be assessed and minimized is a distinct area of competence that had developed rapidly over recent years.
Energy related topics (e.g. air curtain effectiveness)
An air curtain is an example of an energy related product including a fan as a main component. Only the combination of the fan, the system and the environment together can work as a good energy related product.
Case studies (e.g. tunnel ventilation)
The planning and designing process of ventilation systems in tunnels, buildings, mines, wind tunnels etc. is risky. The identification of drawbacks and uncertainties in the design is necessary to find simple and robust solutions.
Improving Fan Sizing/Selection
Improved design tools give a selection of fan type and size for a specific load as well as advantageous layouts.
Fan Retrofits and Replacements for Efficiency
Old fans are less efficient than newer ones. A better aerodynamic design combined with an adjusted control system can increase the overall system efficiency
Structural mechanical aspects (vibration, fatigue and flutter, preventive maintenance, condition monitoring)
Vibrations can cause fatigue and noise during fan operation. The monitoring of vibrations or phenomena like flutter are important for prevention actions and maintenance ranges.
Transient phenomena
Phenomena, which appear and disappear can cause noise or influence the aerodynamics of the fan. The transient phenomena are difficult to measure or simulate. Due to the design of circumferential fans or axial fans with dissymmetric inflow characteristics, these phenomena cannot be avoided.
Lessons learnt
The combination of different fans in a system can cause unwanted interactions, which influence the efficiency, volume flow or fatigue. Strategies and actions can help to avoid or deal with these problems.
Scaling methods
Huge fans like wind tunnels, mines and tunnel fans are too large to allow a direct efficiency measurement. The efficiency gap between model and prototype of axial as well as centrifugal fans are predicted with scaling or prediction methods which determine changes in relative roughness, Reynolds number etc.
Market surveillance
The introduction of a worldwide market surveillance can guarantee that products, which are placed on the market, are monitored. The authoritiers have the necessary powers, resources and knowledge to perform their functions, which are reviewed and assessed periodically. A best practice example of market surveillance is the pump industry.
