FA N S ACFM & SCFM

ACFM and SCFM are related by the ratio of the densities of the gas / air stream to standard conditions. ACFM = SCFM x (.075) / (density)

SCFM Definition

Standard air is defined as: Sea Level 70 .075 Density-Industry Standard 1200 SCFM, 6 SP, 70 F, Sea Level

ACFM Definition

Actual CFM sized for actual conditions Example: 350 at 4000 ft. altitude 1200 SCFM = .075 / .0423 = 1.77 x 1200 SCFM = 2,128 ACFM 6 SP @ 70 = .0423 / .075 = 3.384 ESP @ 350 If you actually need 6 SP at 350, 4000: 6 SP @ 350 = .075 / .0423 = 10.63 ESP @ 70

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FA N S Pressure

Measured from inlet to discharge

If you stick your hand out the window of a speeding car, you can feel the force of air. Air has mass and weight (dry air weighs 0.075 lbs. /cu. ft.) and like mass, it resists movement. To demonstrate if you blow hard into a garden hose, you will find it easy to move air through it. If you blow hard into a straw your cheeks will puff out and you will find it difficult to move air through the relatively small opening. This is because the small tube offers more resistance to a lot of air moving through it than the large hose. You need a lot of push to get air through a system of ducts and pipes. We call the push PRESSURE. The pressure in a fan system is small when related to the pressure in a tire. An automobile tire is usually inflated to about 30 psi (pounds per square inch of pressure). Using the same base, a medium pressure fan would produce only psi. For convenience, the fan industry has adopted the inches water gauge base to measure pressure. Inches water gauge relates to the rise in the water level in a tube, which is open at the top, caused by pressure being introduced at the bottom. If pressure is applied to the column of water, causing it to rise 1 in the tube, the pressure is said to equal 1 Water Gauge (1 wg.) In physics, Pressure is a force exerted against an opposing body; the thrust distributed over a surface. Pressure in a system of moving air is made up of two component parts which are usually discussed separately but coexist. The components STATIC PRESSURE and VELOCITY PRESSURE. Together they make up TOTAL PRESSURE. TP =SP + VP where: TP = Total Pressure SP = Static Pressure VP = Velocity Pressure

Static Pressure

STATIC PRESSURE (SP) is a form of potential energy which exists by virtue of the gas density and its degree of compression alone. It is a force equal in all directions like the pressure in a tire or balloon. It is this pressure that forces the air to flow towards the path of least resistance, downstream from the fan (or out a hole in the tire or balloon). STATIC PRESSURE is that pressure which tends to collapse or burst the duct, and is used in part to overcome the frictional resistance of the air against the duct surfaces as well as the resistance offered by such obstructions as coils, filters, dust collectors, duct elbows, etc. STATIC PRESSURE can be either positive or negative in value depending on where the reading is taken. STATIC PRESSURE in a fan system is most easily understood when the fan is running into a blocked tight duct.

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FA N S Pressure
Static Pressure

Damper Closed

The fan shown above is trying to blow air down the duct but the outlet is closed. The duct is filled with air and the fan is trying to shovel more into it resulting in pressure within the duct. This pressure would tend to burst the duct if the duct were weak. No air is moving inside the duct and the pressure is equal throughout. The air is in a state of potential energy.

Damper Closed

At the other extreme, we remove the plate completely so The air flow is unrestrictedalmost. We can say almost because as soon as the air begins to move in the duct, it Creates frictional resistance against the duct surfaces that Causes a measurable static pressure.

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FA N S Pressure
Velocity Pressure

VELOCITY PRESSURE (VP) is a form of kinetic energy which exists by virtue of the gas density and its velocity alone. It is this pressure that causes the air to move at a given speed (Velocity). VELOCITY PRESSURE is always positive in value regardless of where the reading is taken. VELOCITY PRESSURE in a fan system is most easily understood when the fan is running into a wide open duct. As shown in the test set up at the end of the discussion on Static Pressure, there is little static pressure present and the fan is running practically wide open and would be producing all the volume (CFM) possible. At maximum CFM, the velocity through the duct would be maximum (CFM/A). The force of the mass of air (0.75 lbs. per cu. ft. if standard) moving a great speed would cause quite an impact force against anything in the air-stream. This force is VELOCITY PRESSURE. Velocity Pressure can be calculated if the velocity is known. VP = (V/4005)2 VP = Velocity Pressure V = Velocity

Total Pressure

TOTAL PRESSURE (TP) is equivalent to the kinetic and potential energy that exists by virtue of the gas density, velocity and degree of compression. As the name total implies, it is the mathematical sum of the two parts i.e. SP + VP Total pressure is often called HEAD from a fluid physics term. It is the sum of the energy that causes fluid to flow from a high pressure to a low pressure area. At block tight conditions, where velocity pressure is zero, TP = SP. At wide open conditions, where static pressure is zero, TP = VP.

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FA N S Pressure
System Losses

Losses in system are due to resistance of airflow. This resistance is a combination of friction loss and velocity loss. To allow the proper airflow through the system, sufficient pressure must be applied to airflow to over come the losses. This results in the common mixing of the terms loss and pressure. As an example, we may wish to move 10,000 CFM through a network of ducts. To move 10,000 CFM we might calculate the resistance to that flow and find that it is 3 of SP. This would be better said in the statement that We need 3 of static pressure behind the air to get 10,000 CFM of it through the network of ducts. In the industry abbreviated jargon, we simply say that the network of ducts (system) is 10,000 CFM @ 3 SP. Losses are calculated from data available in many handbooks & the ASHRAE guide. To repeat, losses are expressed in amounts of friction loss and velocity change losses.

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