Design of High Efficiency Blowers for Future Aerosol Applications

High efficiency air blowers to meet future portable aerosol sampling applications were designed, fabricated, and their performance evaluated. A preliminary blower design based on specific speed was selected, modeled in CFD, and the flow field simulated. This preliminary blower size was scaled in planar and axial directions, at different rpm values, to set the Best Efficiency Point (BEP) at a flow rate of 100 L/min (1.67×10⁻³ m³/s @ room conditions) and a pressure rise of 1000 Pa (4^″ WC). Characteristic curves for static pressure rise versus air flow rate through the impeller were generated. Experimentally measured motor/blower combination efficiency (η_EXP) for the preliminary design was around 10%. The low value was attributed to the low efficiency of the D.C. motor used (Chadha, 2005). CFD simulations using the κ–ε turbulent model and standard wall function (non-equilibrium wall functions) approach overpredicted the head values. Enhanced wall treatment under-predicted the head rise but provided better agreement with experimental results. The static pressure rise across the final blower is 1021 Pa at the design flow rate of 100 L/min. Efficiency value based on measured static pressure rise value and the electrical energy input to the motor (η_EXP) is 26.5%, a 160% improvement over the preliminary design.