HVAC Fans and Ductwork: Sizing and Selection
In HVAC Fans and Ductwork: Sizing and Selection, you'll learn ...
- The many types of fans and their applications
- Calculation of ductwork friction, fitting losses, and application of the Bernoulli Equation
- Various methods of fan control and the control equipment and devices used
Overview
The Heating, Ventilating, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) system has been a mainstay of society since its invention in the early 1900’s. Without HVAC systems, most buildings would be cold in the winter, warm in the summer, suffer potentially dangerous indoor air quality issues, and be just plain unbearable. In fact, if not for the modern convenience of HVAC systems, many southern states would probably have populations near zero!
The heart of the HVAC system is the fan. A good fan selection can mean the difference between an energy efficient and quiet system that stealthily blends into the background or an expensive, noisy, unreliable maintenance headache generating frequent occupant complaints. To avoid the nightmare scenario, careful selection of fans by engineers designing HVAC systems is critical to overall HVAC system efficiency, performance, occupant comfort and productivity.
This course comprises three sections.
- Section 1 - Fans
- Section 2 - Ductwork
- Section 3 - Fan Control
Section 1 encompasses the engineering tools at our disposal to understand and document fan behavior as well as the many types of fans and their applications.
Section 2 explains calculation of ductwork friction, fitting losses, and application of the Bernoulli Equation. The student should understand that duct design is an involved subject that is beyond the scope of this course and is better offered as a separate discussion. Calculating duct losses, a subset of duct design, is included in this course to facilitate fan sizing since the resistance “felt” by a fan must be measured or calculated before the proper fan can be selected.
Section 3 illustrates the various methods of fan control and the control equipment and devices used. After all, a perfectly sized fan in the right application can still be problematic with a poorly operating control system. And finally, example problems are provided throughout the course to reinforce the concepts learned.
Mechanical and controls engineers working in HVAC design or operations and maintenance in the commercial or industrial market will benefit from this course. The concepts introduced will not only provide a solid foundation of knowledge, but also arm the student with the tools necessary to specify the right fan for new installations as well as troubleshoot any type of existing fan issue encountered.
Specific Knowledge or Skill Obtained
This course teaches the following specific knowledge and skills:
- Mass flow versus volumetric flow
- Total, static, and velocity pressure
- Continuity and incompressibility
- Fan curves
- Fan laws
- Types of fans
- Stall and surge
- Calculating duct friction and fitting losses
- Application of the Bernoulli Equation
- Fan control
Certificate of Completion
You will be able to immediately print a certificate of completion after passing a multiple-choice quiz consisting of 14 questions. PDH credits are not awarded until the course is completed and quiz is passed.
This course is applicable to professional engineers in: | ||
Alabama (P.E.) | Alaska (P.E.) | Arkansas (P.E.) |
Delaware (P.E.) | District of Columbia (P.E.) | Florida (P.E. Area of Practice) |
Georgia (P.E.) | Idaho (P.E.) | Illinois (P.E.) |
Illinois (S.E.) | Indiana (P.E.) | Iowa (P.E.) |
Kansas (P.E.) | Kentucky (P.E.) | Louisiana (P.E.) |
Maine (P.E.) | Maryland (P.E.) | Michigan (P.E.) |
Minnesota (P.E.) | Mississippi (P.E.) | Missouri (P.E.) |
Montana (P.E.) | Nebraska (P.E.) | Nevada (P.E.) |
New Hampshire (P.E.) | New Jersey (P.E.) | New Mexico (P.E.) |
New York (P.E.) | North Carolina (P.E.) | North Dakota (P.E.) |
Ohio (P.E. Self-Paced) | Oklahoma (P.E.) | Oregon (P.E.) |
Pennsylvania (P.E.) | South Carolina (P.E.) | South Dakota (P.E.) |
Tennessee (P.E.) | Texas (P.E.) | Utah (P.E.) |
Vermont (P.E.) | Virginia (P.E.) | West Virginia (P.E.) |
Wisconsin (P.E.) | Wyoming (P.E.) |