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Large Axial Fan Stall Protection
Large Axial Fan Stall Protection
In the case of the fan blades, severe separation of the flow lines along the profile of the blade
occurs, and this induces a strong decrease in the increasing pressure given by the fan,
impacting negatively on fan efficiency and radiated noise.
The fan stalling is a situation that should always be avoided.
Below there is a list of some of the main problems created by fan stalling:
-
performance,
air
flow
and
pressure
In some severe cases, stall operation for any prolonged time may result in fan blade rupture
due to metal fatigue, and consequently in the damage of the major parts of the fan.
On the other hand, we should be aware that ideal situations are not always the reality, and
therefore we should take into account in our designs that fans could face this problem during
their operational life.
The air flow delivered by the fan will be determined by the intersection of the fan
performance curve with the system resistance curve.
In order to know the maximum system resistance that the fan will be able to deal with, a real
test at full power and nominal speed prior to the fan installation on site is totally necessary.
The factory acceptance test in a proper test bench then becomes one of the first steps to avoid
further stall problems on site. By testing the stalling point in the factory the real margins to
the fan stall limit will be known.
One fan performance curve will be obtained for each impeller pitch angle, and as shown in
figure 4, as the system curve increases the fan air flow delivered by the fan will decrease.
It would be nice if system calculations were always accurate, but sometimes wrong
calculations or unexpected changes in the system resistance could make the fan operate in the
stall zone.
The main advantage of using CFD simulation is that real accuracy of the air flow performance
in the system can be determined, and therefore the most suitable fan with enough margin to
the stall region can be selected.
Although the CFD tool is very useful for the ventilation designers, care should be taken when
using this software, the right choice of the input parameters and boundary conditions being of
critical importance. The validation of the CFD simulation then becomes necessary to improve
the accuracy of the results obtained.
In this sense, ZITRON is the company with the largest number of validated CFD
simulations; all the CFD simulations carried out by ZITRON are later validated during
the ventilation system commissioning, adjusting the software theoretical values to the
real ones obtained in the tunnels.
2st step: Factory fan performance test at nominal speed
Once the fan is selected, designed and manufactured, a real test at full power and nominal
speed should be carried out prior to site delivery.
During the test, the fan performance curve and the exact stalling region are determined, and
therefore the real fan limits are known.
In order to find out the maximum pressure drop that the fan will be able to generate before
stalling, the test should be carried out in a proper laboratory which is able to run the fan at full
power.
The ZITRON test bench is an AMCA accredited laboratory (see Figure 6 certificate), and is
ready for the testing of fans of up to 4 m diameter and 1600 Kw motor rated power.
The test is carried out by generating several system resistance curves and then by measuring
the air flow and pressure delivered by the fan all over the selected impeller pitch angle curve.
In addition to the air flow and pressure, the motor power consumption is also measured, so
real fan efficiency for each operation point
is obtained.
damper with continuous adjustable blade angle, all kinds of possible circuit resistances are
generated, and all the fan performance curve points are tested.
When the damper is closed enough, the tested fan will start to operate in stall, making it
possible to record the real performance delivered under this situation, such as air flow,
pressure, efficiency, vibrations, noise
With the ZITRON test bench it is possible to analyse in detail the fan stall behaviour
before delivering the fans to site, knowing in advance the real risks and possible
solutions.
As shown in the below image (figure 8), the complete fan performance curve is obtained and
the real margin from the design duty point up to the stall limit can be observed.
The example on the next page is for a ZITRON 100% reversible fan, where both directions of
impeller rotation are tested, forward (blue line) and reverse (red line).
The pressure variations occurring in the stalling zone express themselves by creating one or
more zones in which the airflow through the vane channels is blocked or goes in the opposite
direction.
The Petermann probe uses the above phenomenon to detect the stall condition of an axial flow
fan by measuring the pressure difference between the total air pressure acting in a direction
opposite to the direction of rotation of the fan impeller (with of a hook-shaped tubular
measuring probe) and a reference pressure corresponding substantially to the static pressure at
the wall of the air duct in the same radial measuring plane immediately in front of the fan
blades, upstream.
This pressure difference will be approximately zero in the stable working range of the fan, but
increases considerably at a point corresponding to the inflection of the pressure difference
characteristic when the fan enters in stall condition. Thus, by means of a simple differential
pressure transmitter it is possible to know when the fan is in the stall condition.
Figure 10 represents the pressure difference between both pressure probes depending on the
air flow delivered by the fan.
In this curve it is possible to see the characteristic change at the junction between the stable
working range and the unstable range in the fan characteristic.
The Petermann probe system is used for stall-detecting purposes, warning the ventilation
system operators when the fan is operating at stall and making a signal which can be treated
as trip or alarm.
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4th step: System evaluation for additional pressure loss sources removal
Once the stall is detected, the circuit where the fan is installed must be analysed looking for
the reason of such stall operation.
Although numerical calculations can be used to determine the reason of the stall problem,
again CFD simulations can be very useful to detect the problem as well as to solve it.
The major part of the pressure drop in the ventilation system occurs in the sudden changes of
flow velocity.
Figure 11 shows a real example of how it was possible to decrease by almost 40% the
pressure drop generated by a 90 elbow, by installing guide vanes.
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CONCLUSIONS
Stall is one the main problems that the fans could suffer. In order to avoid this kind of
problem, there are five main steps that should be taken into account:
-
The most frequent reason for fan stall is the underestimation of the system pressure drop;
CFD tools are very helpful to calculate the real system pressure drop.
Stall problems due to wrong pressure drop calculations or any unexpected change of the
circuit geometry should always be investigated and solved.
It should be noticed that anti-stall rings does reduce the risk of blade rupture due to fatigue,
but does not eliminate the risk. Even if the fan is not suffering from rupture problems, a fan
operating in stall by means of anti-stall rings is never the best solution.
When the fan is in stall, the air flow delivered is lower than originally specified and this
means that the safety level of the system is lower than required.
One of the risks of the use of anti-stall rings is that the stall may not be detected, and hence
the fan will remain working on its unstable region for long periods of time without looking for
the solution to the reason that has induced the stall.
In addition to the reduced air flow delivered by the fans, it should be noted that the fan power
requirements are directly related to the fan efficiency, and anti-stall rings will produce a
negative impact on fan efficiency.
An alternative method such as automatic blade pitch angle adjustment, which is reliable and
energy-friendly, should always be considered before choosing poor efficiency anti-stall
systems.
It could be said that nobody would drive their car continuously with the handbrake on,
because it would be necessary to stop at some point, and thats really what is occurring when
energy is continuously wasted with anti-stall rings.
REFERENCES
EUROVENT 1/11, published 2007.
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