An
air door, sometimes called an air curtain,
employs a controlled stream of air aimed across an opening to
create an air seal. This seal separates different environments,
while allowing a smooth, unhindered flow of traffic and unobstructed
vision through the opening. Because air
curtains help to contain heated or air conditioned air, they
provide sizeable energy savings and personal comfort when applied
in industrial or commercial settings (stores, supermarkets, banks,
restaurants, depots, factories, warehouses ,hospitals,airports,
and so on). Air curtains can also be
used to stop the infiltration of flying insects,dusts,smokes and
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As a non-recirculating
air curtains is put into operation, air is brought into the
unit through the intake, enters the fan housing, and is accelerated
by the fan. This fast moving air goes into a plenum, which allows
for an even distribution of air along the full length of the
discharge nozzle. Aerofoil shaped vanes in the nozzle create
a uniform air stream with a minimum of turbulence. The air discharged
through the nozzle creates a jet stream to the floorn and creates
an invisible door.
Commercial Environmental Application
Commercial
air curtains are becoming widely used in building entrances
to reduce energy consumption and provide comfort. In the winter,
they retain warm inside air and prevent the influx of cold air.Commercial
air curtains can also supply additional heat in the door
area using optional electric, steam, or hot water heaters. In
the summer, air doors keep hot humid air out and prevent the
escape of air conditioning. The working principle of Commercial
Entrance air doors is to provide the most effective air screen
possible without blowing so hard that it is objectionable to
people passing through.
Commercial
air curtains are ideal for application on high-traffic
doorways in commercial establishments such as stores, restaurants,
and banks, and in public buildings such as hospitals, terminals,
and schools. In many cases, where a vestibule was installed
or planned to reduce the inflow of outside air, an air door
is a better approach. This is particularly true for high-traffic
entrances where both doors are frequently open at the same time,
defeating the purpose of the vestibule. A continuously operating
air curtains allows the vestibule to be dispensed with,
resulting in large savings-both in initial cost and operating
cost-and increasing the usable floor area.
In addition to providing comfort through the
elimination of cold drafts and the addition of heat to door
areas, Commercial
air curtains have many other benefits. For example,
they can decrease door maintenance costs since doors need to
be opened and closed less often. In restaurants, they stop uncomfortable
cold drafts at customers¡¯ feet. Many schools purchase air
curtains to save energy and find that as an additional benefit
they keep floors dry and safe and hallways warm during winter
months. In buildings with high ceilings, the air curtains recirculates
the warm stratified air that rises to the ceiling.
, Commercial
air curtains are quiet and compact and pay for themselves
in a very short time. Most units may be used all year round,
and are adjustable for seasonal conditions using a multi-speed
motor.
Industrial Environmental
Application
The primary purpose of the industrial
air curtains is to prevent the influx of outside air through
an opening into a heated or cooled area. Openings where an air
curtains would typically be used are exterior shipping and
receiving doors to plants and warehouses, and interior doors
between plant areas of different temperatures.
Several engineering research studies done
in various parts of the world have demonstrated the capabilities
of air curtains to stop drafts. The
findings of theses studies are similar, and are perhaps best
summarized in the work done at the University of Illinois by
Dr. Stoecker and Dr. Hayes and published in the ASHRAE Transaction
1969, Volume 75, Part 2. Based on the results of this study,
VAC International and some other air
curtains manufacturers publish ratings on their air
curtains ¡¯ abilities to stop drafts. The VAC International
ratings have been verified by actual field test installations
on door openings to pressurized rooms in which the pressure
has been uniform and measurable.
To control climate, an air
curtains emits an air stream with enough velocity to meet
the floor, creating an air seal in the door area. The strength
of this seal is controlled by both velocity at the nozzle and
the width of the nozzle. For different door sizes and different
wind conditions, different air velocities at the nozzle are
required.
Air curtains are
cost effective when installed on any door that is in use over
10% of the day. The fuel savings payback is tremendous if the
door is open a complete working day. In addition to saving energy,
air curtains provide faster traffic flow and lessen the maintenance
costs for doors that formerly were being opened and closed many
times a day. Calculate your energy savings >
Negative Pressure
Negative pressure in a building can be caused by the exhausting
of air due to production requirements, the use of plant air
for combustion, or the chimney effect in extremely high ceilings
or multi-story buildings. In some large buildings where the
negative pressure is not too great, it can be equalized through
openings in other parts of the building. However, in most cases
the negative pressure will cause a draft through the doorway
which prevents the effective operations of an air curtains,
and must be rectified. One way to do this is by providing make-up
air to the building. An air curtain
which takes in outside air, rather than plant air, can be used
to supply make-up air. During periods when the door is closed
the air curtains takes in outside air, heats it when necessary
using a direct-fired gas heater or a steam heater, and discharges
it to the inside through the nozzle. When the door is open,
the air curtains continues to provide
heated make-up air while simultaneously preventing the entry
of cold outside air.
For single-story buildings, negative
pressure can be alleviated using louvers at a level above the
work area. Another option is to move the
air curtains away from the doorway and allow the air to
go up over the top of the unit. Side shields, the height of
the door and the width of the air door, have to be located between
the wall and the backside of the air
curtains . It is also recommended to deflect the air above
the air door towards the ceiling, to prevent the outside air
from being drawn into the air door inlet.
*FUNCTION OF COMPENSATION OF AIR
CONDITIONING
The prevention of the cool (hot) air current and the saving
of the electricity.
The constant formations of the air curtain
is able to effectively prevent the leakage of cool (hot) air
in order to maintain the constant temperature in room. It thoroughly
improves the long time operation of air-conditioned and working
environment by circulating and regulating its temperature to
achieve the saving of energy.
*EFFICIENCY IN DUSTPROOF PRACTICE.
High efficiency in wind volume's design
and effective withstanding against the intrusion of dusts from
the out side, protection of clothes, decorations, stationery,
and the operational area of computers and supermarket etc. from
the deposits of dusts.
*EFFECTS IN PREVENTION OF SMOKES
AND ODOR.
The fan blades are design in the horizontal
air current type to fully develop the rotating type of wind
volume to reach every corner of the area. It strongly prevents
and insulates against the spread of oily smell and smoke from
kitchen, and the industrial waste vapor and exhausts of automobile
motorcycle will not come into the room with it.
*EFFECT IN DRIVING INSECTS OFF
The strong and forceful wind pressure
interrupts the penetration of the mosquitoes and insects. The
food processing factory, large kitchen, restaurant and dinning
hall shall be safe against those vermin.
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The
proper size, power rating, and features needed for a particular
air curtains application should be selected
according to the following considerations. The physical
dimensions of the opening, including height, width, and space available
for installation.
The type of door being used.
Type of Opening ¨C customer entry, service entry, dock door etc.
The need for a heated air door to create a comfortable environment
Prevailing winds and temperatures on outside openings.
The existence of any drafts due to pressure differences at the opening.
Air Curtain Size Selection
The correct size selection for an air
curtain is determined by three factors: the amount of wind
exposure, the distance the air curtains
must blow, and the pressure balance in the building. The prevailing
winds in the area which can be obtained from the local weather
bureau. In addition, measuring of the actual velocity through
the door at the top and bottom is recommended. When measuring
in the warmer seasons (summer and fall), all openings that would
normally be closed in the winter should be closed.
Once the wind or through draft which the air
curtains must stop has been determined, the second factor
to consider is the distance the air door must flow. In the case
of a horizontally mounted air door, this distance is the height
of the doorway. For a vertically mounted unit, it is the door
width; or, if two vertically mounted units are used on either
side, half of the width.
The third factor to consider is building pressure.
Negative pressure in a building can be caused by the exhausting
of air due to production requirements, the use of plant air for
combustion, or the chimney effect in extremely high ceilings or
multi-story buildings. In some large buildings where the negative
pressure is not too great, it can be equalized through openings
in other parts of the building. However, in most cases the negative
pressure will cause a draft through the doorway which prevents
the effective operations of an air curtains
, and must be rectified. One way to do this is by providing make-up
air to the building. An air curtain which
takes in outside air, rather than plant air, can be used to supply
make-up air. During periods when the door is closed the air door
takes in outside air, heats it when necessary using a direct-fired
gas heater or a steam heater, and discharges it to the inside
through the nozzle. When the door is open, the air door continues
to provide heated make-up air while simultaneously preventing
the entry of cold outside air.
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Installation height is mainly
decided by wind speed(m/s) produced by air curtains:

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Air Curtain can be mounted above, on one
side, or on both sides of a door. The most common way is to mount
the Air Curtain above the door. The feature with this is that
the unit is out of the way and is not likely to be damaged by,
for example, forklifts. It is also the most economical way of
installing an Air Curtain. The drawback is that a small amount
of air at the extreme bottom of the doorway may enter due to the
height of Air Curtain.
The Air Curtains
can also be mounted vertically on one side of the door. There
are some disadvantages to this however. If, for example, a truck
is parked in the door way then the entire doorway is unprotected
because the truck will break the air stream. With the unit mounted
on one side of the door it is more likely to be damaged. Also,
if there is no equal force on the other side of the door to stop
the stream then the flow will follow the wall for some distance
and may disturb people who are standing in the air stream.
The final way of mounting an Air Curtain
is on both side of the door with the air stream flowing towards
each other. This is the most comfortable way of installing an
Air Curtain as it eliminates the above drawbacks, except the damage.
In order to enhance efficiency of air curtains, following items
have to be considerated.
Choose the location with the minimal outdoor
and indoor airflow.
Indoor cool(hot) airflow is sufficient and even.
Depth of building is greater than width.
Width of air curtain unit is equal to or slightly greater than
the width of entrance or exit.
No interval is between the wall surface and the air curtain unit
.
All exits or entrances of the building are installed with air
curtains.
In the location where exhaust fan is used,the supplementary fan
shall be set to achieve balance of positive and negative pressure,so
that convection that will reduce the performance of the air curtains
will be avoided.
Commercial Environmental Installation
Commercial Entrance Air curtains are
normally mounted horizontally above the door, which keeps the
unit out of the way and practically eliminates any chance of damage
and accidents. During the heating season, the air stream should
be directed slightly toward the outside and should never be obstructed
by door operators or the door header.
It is preferable to control the heater in heated
units with a built-in or wall-mounted thermostat, in order to
maintain a constant comfortable temperature in the entrance area.
Industrial Environmental Installation
To prevent the entry of outside winds,
the discharge nozzle is angled outward so that the air leaving
it meets the wind trying to enter. The wind will meet or strike
the air curtains stream which has to
be strong enough to reach the ground and split just in the doorway.
When the vector representing the wind equalize, they form a resultant
which should meet the floor in the door plane for maximum efficiency.
In studies, air curtains
have shown a 70 to 75% efficiency in controlling the temperature
transfer when properly selected and installed. The 25 to 30% loss
in efficiency is due to the entrainment of the outside air into
the air stream and into the building, and to the slight discharge
of inside air to the outside. This discharge of air to the outside
can be minimized by adjusting the nozzle angle to optimize the
location of the air stream split at the floor level. Adjusting
the nozzle angle back toward the 90¡ã vertical reduces the loss
of inside air, but it also reduces the air door¡¯s wind stopping
capability.
Air curtains can
be mounted horizontally on top of the door blowing downward, or
vertically on either one or both sides of the door. Horizontal
mounting is generally preferable since it makes the unit less
susceptible to damage. However, it may be necessary to mount air
doors vertically on both sides of a large door to obtain proper
through draft protection. Railroad type doors, which are usually
22 feet high, require either a high velocity and high volume unit
mounted horizontally or high velocity and lower volume air doors
mounted vertically on one or both sides of the door. Measures
should be taken to protect vertically mounted
air curtains against damage from moving equipment.
In many buildings with high ceilings, the air
tends to stratify into a warmer layer at the ceiling and a considerably
cooler one at the floor. For such buildings, it is recommended
that the air door be mounted across the top of the doorway opening
and that it be provided with a top intake connected to a duct
extending up to the ceiling. The warm air will then be drawn down
into the air door and blown to the floor putting otherwise wasted
heat to use. This warmer air also helps to reduce the wind chill
of the moving air.
Cooler / Freezer Installation
Installed on the warm side of the doorway,
the air curtain emits an air stream
which reaches the floor at an angle and splits into two separate
air streams. By properly adjusting the velocity of air and the
angle of the nozzle, one air stream is made to balance against
the air which is trying to leave the cooler / freezer, while the
other counteracts the warm air trying to enter. The correct air
door sizing and adjustment must be made for each specific application,
so that a stream of air is projected over the entire opening creating
a sufficient door of air. Built-in variable velocity control and
adjustable vanes, that lock in place.
The angle of the air stream in reference
to the doorway should be approximately 20¡ã. At this angle, the
air separates into two sectors in front of the doorway threshold
as it hits the floor. One sector moves away from the doorway.
The other moves toward it, and should be at such a velocity that
the velocity pressure equals the specific gravity pressure of
air in the freezer or cooler. This equality results in an air
pocket which circles within the doorway, creating the air door.
In addition to the discharge angle, the volume of air entering
the air door and the position of the vanes in the nozzle must
also be carefully adjusted. (The cooler / freezer should be at
normal operating temperature before proceeding with adjustment.
Future adjustments may be made seasonably when marked changes
in the temperature difference between the two sides of the doorway
occur). When the air curtains is properly
balanced, a handkerchief can be used to show that no air is flowing
into or out of the cold room.
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