• Journal of KSNVE
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• v.6 no.5
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• pp.661-669
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• 1996

Proposed is an aero-acoustic performance prediction method of axial fan. The fan aerodynamic performance is predicted by combining pitch-averaged quasi 3-D flow analysis with pressure loss models for blade boundary layer and wake, secondary flow, endwall boundary layer and tip leakage flows. Fan noise is assumed to be radiated as dipole distribution type, and its generation is assumed to be mainly due to the vortex street shed from blade trailing edge. The fluctuating pressure and lift on the blade surface are analyzed by incorporating the wake vortex stree shed from blade trailing edge. The fluctuating pressure and lift on the blade surface are analyzed by incorporating the wake vortex street model with thin airfoil theory. The aero-acoustic performance prediction results by the present method are in good agreement with the measured results of several axial fans. With the present prediction method, parametric studies are carried out to investigate the effects of blade chord length and spacing on the efficiency and the noise level of fan. In the case of lightly loaded fan, both efficiency improvement and noise reduction can be achieved by decreasing chord length or by increasing blade specing. However, when fan is designed at highly loaded condition, the noise reduction by increasing blade spacing penalizes the attaninable efficiency of fan.