Air flow characteristics of a room with air vortex diffuser

Abstract

The air diffuser is a very important component of any ventilation system, and the comfort level of ventilated space occupants depend among many other factors on properly designed and choice of diffusers. At present a large number of diffusers are produced to meet a different kind of requirements. One of the most efficient and very popular types of the diffuser is the vortex diffuser in which air flow has angular as well as translational velocity components. This paper investigates experimentally airflow characteristics of vortex ceiling diffuser and its effect on airflow in a ventilated space. Two thermal comfort criteria namely: mean age of the air and ventilation effectiveness have been used to predict the comfort zone inside the room. Effect of supply air velocity on the flow field is investigated and hence the on comfort and energy consumption. The results show that significant amount of energy can be saved by using vortex diffuser in reference to the other diffusers type. The values of the velocity decay coefficient were compared for different diameters of vortex diffuser.