Duct Design using equal friction method & CFD

Raviraj Gurav 1 Sanjay Gaikwad 2 Pritee Purohit 3

1,2,3 Assistant Professor ,Army Institute of Technology, Pune-15
1.guravraviraj1@gmail.com
2.gaikwads_sanjay@rediffmail.com
3. priteepurohit@gmail.com

ABSTRACT:
Earlier the use of air-conditioning for comfort
purpose was considered a luxurious but now-a-day, it
has been a necessity in extreme climatic conditions,
such as extreme cold and hot in western countries.
Window air conditioners are preferred for office
rooms while large centralized units are installed for
conditioning the auditorium, hospitals etc. The
correct estimation of cooling load of an auditorium is
very complicated due to many factors such as
outdoor temperature, humidity, air leakage into the
conditioned space, occupants, quantity of fresh air
taken in and solar load etc. The authors have
calculated cooling load, quantity of supply air (in
cmm) of an auditorium using CLTD method which is
more accurate. Equal friction method is adopted to
design the duct which is simple as compared with the
other duct design methods . Using CFD software,
analysis of air flow considering velocity and pressure
is done in main duct and in elbow. The authors
concluded that the combine effect of proper duct
design method & CFD could be used to achieve
proper air distribution inside the auditorium with
minimum pressure loss, running cost & energy
consumption have calculated cooling load, quantity
of supply air (in cmm) of an auditorium using CLTD
method which is more accurate. Equal friction
method is adopted to design the duct which is simple
as compared with the other duct design methods .
Using CFD software, analysis of air flow considering
velocity and pressure is done in main duct and in
elbow. The authors concluded that the combine effect
of proper duct design method & CFD could be used
to achieve proper air distribution inside the
auditorium with minimum pressure loss, running cost
& energy consumption
Keywords- duct ,equal friction, CLTD,Cooling Load,CFD

INTRODUCTION
Without A/C system, person working in industry is
feeling unhealthy, uncomfortable and inefficient. In
order to achieve required cooling load, proper
method is required. Proper air distribution is achieved
with proper duct design which leads minimum losses
in the system, suitable selection of fan with high
efficiency, optimum air velocity in duct, inlet and
outlet of fan. Today some softwares are available to
estimate cooling load, to design the duct, to select the

fan etc. Life has become easier due to AUTOCAD

software to draw plant layout. CFD as a analysis tool
has the ability to establish firm quantitative data
regarding air motion and can predict fluid
characteristics and pressure differentials to a very low
level that are experimentally impossible during
experimentation. Analysis of air flow in duct with
static pressure and velocity pressure is made easier
and faster in Fluent software. The requirement of air
conditioner is that it must provide adequate cooling
to the occupants in the conditioned space under a
wide variety of ambient conditions. A normal healthy
person feels comfortable at 25C DBT, 50% RH with
9 to 12m/min air velocity. Human comfort is
influenced with the physiological conditions
determined by the internal heat generation.
Large number of researchers have worked on duct
design with various methods. The contribution of
various researchers on the topics is briefed as
follows.
1. design for high velocity duct system is done by
determining the pressure losses, calculating the noise
level, determining the out of balance pressures &
optimizing this against the total cost of the system.
2. VAV optimization procedure was applied to the
three VAV duct systems to investigate the impact of
varying airflow rates on the sizing of duct systems.
For comparison purposes, other duct design methods,
such as, equal friction, static regain, and the TMethod, were also applied to the duct systems.
3. Design optimization of industrial ducts is achieved
with CFD. The CFD analysis has offered a
comprehensive range of output including velocity
distribution, pressure profiles and turbulence levels
The main purpose of this paper is make proper
calculation of cooling load, supply air quantity using
proper method , decide size of main duct & elbow
using proper duct design method so person seating in
the auditorium can feel comfortable .
THEORY
Cooling Load Temperature Differential
(CLTD) / Cooling Load Factors (CLF) / Solar
Cooling Load (SCL) is used to calculate the cooling
load of an auditorium. It was an attempt to simplify
two steps TFM & TETD /TA methods into a single
step technique that allowed proceeding directly from
raw data to cooling load. A series of factors were

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taken from cooling load calculation results as

Equivalent Temperature Difference for use in
traditional condition ( q = UA dT) equation. The
conditioned air (cooled or heated) from the air
conditioning equipment must be properly distributed
to rooms or spaces to be conditioned in order to
provide comfort conditions. When the conditioned
air cannot be supplied directly from the air
conditioning equipment to the spaces to be
conditioned, then the ducts are installed. The duct
systems convey the conditioned air from air
Duct material is usually made from galvanized iron
sheet metal, Al sheet metal or black steel. But now a
day, the use of non-metal ducts has increased. The
resin bonded glass fiber ducts are used because they
are quite strong and easy to manufacture according to
desired shape and size. They are used in low velocity
applications less than 600m/min and for static
pressures below 5mm of water gauge.
It may be made in circular, rectangular or
square shapes. From an economical point of view, the
circular ducts are preferred because the circular shape
can carry more air in less space. This means that, less
duct material, less duct surface friction and less
insulation is needed. For rectangular duct, shape is
determined considering minimum aspect ratio.
Calculation of static pressure, dynamic pressure &
total pressure in duct is important. The pressure in
duct is usually expressed in mm of water. Rise in
pressure in fan is known as fan total pressure( FTP).
FTP & supply air flow rate (in cmm) are used to
select the fan. Here the pressure is lost due to friction
between the moving particles of fluid (i.e. air) and
interior surface of duct. When the pressure loss
occurs in a straight duct, it is usually termed as
friction loss. The pressure is also lost dynamically at
the changes of direction such as in bends, elbows etc.
and the changes of cross section of duct; this type of
pressure loss is usually termed as dynamic loss.
GENERAL RULES USED TO DESIGN AIRDUCT:
i) Air should be conveyed as directly as possible to
economize on power, material and space.
ii) Sudden changes in direction should be avoided.
When bends are essential, turning vanes should be
used to minimize pressure loss.
iii) Air velocities in ducts should be within
permissible limits to minimize noise.
iv) Diverging sections should be made gradual. The
angle of divergence should not exceed 200.
v) Rectangular ducts should be made as nearly
square as possible. This will insure minimum duct
surface, and hence cost, for the same air carrying
capacity. Dampers should be provided in each branch
outlet for balancing the system.
vi) Avoid duct obstructions
METHODS OF DUCT DESIGN:
i) Equal Friction Method

conditioning equipment to proper air distribution

points or air supply outlets in the room and carry the
return air from the room back to the air conditioning
equipment for reconditioning and recirculation. The
conditioned air (cooled or heated) from the air
conditioning equipment must be properly distributed
to rooms or spaces to be conditioned in order to
provide comfort conditions. It may be noted that
duct system for proper distribution of conditioned air
cost nearly 20 to 30 % of total cost of equipments
required
ii) Velocity Reduction Method
iii) Static Regain Method
In Equal Friction Method the frictional pressure drop
per unit length of the duct is maintained constant
throughout the duct system. Due to its simplicity, this
method is used in the thesis to design the duct.
Cooling Load Calculation for an Auditorium:
Data collected for an existing auditorium, Pune

1.

No. of doors

2. No. of windows

: 9
1

Entry and exit.

Back stage.

: 8

3. No. of Chairs:

Dress circle
704
Balcony
202
Total
906
4. Equipments : Total item having 11.78 KW
DESIGN CONDITIONS
1. Latitude of Pune
: 186 North.
2. Design Day
: 25th May.
(Max. temperature during last week of may, from last
5 years data.)
3. Outside conditions
: DBT = 38 C
(Outdoor)
RH= 50%
4. Indoor conditions
: DBT = 22
RH= 55%
5. Daily range (DR)
: 10
6. Time
: 4:00 pm
7. Average outside temperature on design day
Ta= To - (DR/2)= 38 - (10/2) = 91.6 F
TOTAL COOLING LOAD
Total = QS + QL = 2.55 + 4.54 = 7.09 kW
Total sensible load on cooling coil = 248132.64 W
Total latent load on cooling coil = 276989.83 W
Therefore, Total cooling coil load = 525122.47 W
Therefore,Refrigeration load =525.122/3.516=150TR
Safety factor of 5% due to duct heat gain
Therefore,
Cooling load = 157.5 TR 160 TR

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Fig.1 Air distribution system & air flow rate

Assuming by-pass factor (BPF) 0.15 , mass flow rate

is calculated. Mass flow rate of air, ms = 19.28 kg/s
(cmm)s = 1288.88 1290
CALCULATION OF FRICTION LOSS IN
DUCT & DUCT DIAMETER
Rearranging fanning equation, Colebrook-White
relation & Fritzsche relation
Pf = ( 0 .01422 C 1.852 L ) / D 1.269
Pf = (0.002268 Qv1.852 L) / D4.973 mm of H20
Pf = (0.012199 C 2.4865 L) / Qv0.6343 N/m2
Recommended velocity in duct for auditorium, C =
6.5 m/ s or 390 mpm
.So, Pf / L = 0.36629 N/m2 /m
= 0.03669 mmH2O /m 0.04 mmH2O/m
0.04 in w. /100 ft
(In industry standard value for pressure loss = 0.1
in.w./100 ft. = 0.846 N/m2 /m)
Circular Duct Diameter = 1.187 m
For rectangular duct dimension, minimum aspect
ratio 1.3 is taken. a/b = 1.3 ( a= width, b= height)
( it should be kept as low as possible to keep friction
losses reasonably low and thereby avoid excess
energy consumption.)
D = 1.265 (a * b) 0.6 / (a + b) 0.2
Large dimension(a)=1.24 m & small dimension(b) =
0.9543 m

Fig.2 : Pressure variation in a Duct System:

Fan Total Pressure = 45.47 mm H2O = 446 N / m2

Fan Static Pressure= 359.49 N / m2 = 1.42 H2O
DUCT DESIGN USING EQUAL FRICTION
METHOD
First measurement of all dimensions are done for
auditorium and with AUTOCAD software, drawings
are made (front view and top view). It is shown
below
In the equal friction method, the frictional
pressure drop per unit length of the duct is
maintained constant throughout the duct system. The
procedure is to select a suitable velocity in the main
duct from sound level considerations. Knowing the
air flow rate and the velocity in the main duct, the
size and friction loss are determined from the friction
chart. The remaining ducts are then sized maintaining
the friction loss per unit length at this value for their
respective air-flow rates.
Due to 3 fans in the system, there will be 3 main
supply ducts. The air supply from three main ducts
goes to three different areas
i) First main duct balcony and remaining area
(excluding stage) of one side
ii) Second main duct - balcony and remaining area
(excluding stage) of other side
iii) Third main duct - stage

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Layout of First Main Duct (Supply Duct)

Flow rate = 15524 CFM = 7.2 m3 / s,
Pf = 0.04 mm H2O /m = 0.4 N /m2/m

Fig. 3: Layout of First Main Duct (Supply Duct)

Fig.6: Analysis of Elbow considering inlet Velocity

Fig 4: Layout of Branch A of First Main Duct (Supply

Duct)

Branch A
From main duct to first supply outlet, Flow rate = 2.5
m3 / s = 5390 CFM
Pf = 0.04 mm H2O /m = 0.4 N /m2/m
Recommended branch duct Velocity = 4.5 m/s
So from friction chart of duct
Diameter of duct = D = 32" = 0.8128 m
For rectangular duct, a / b = 1.3
D=1.3(a*b)0.625/(a+b)0.25
From this equation, we get a = 0.85 m b= 0.65 m
CFD Analysis:
Duct design is done using equal friction method.
For CFD analysis, Fluent 6.1 software is used.
Gambit 2.0 is used for modeling the main duct and
elbow. Geometry and meshing is carefully done in
Gambit. Pressure and velocity variations are observed
in this analysis. Eddies observed in elbow are due to
improper shape and velocity. All figures from
geometry, boundary condition to eddy are given here.
This CFD tool can be used for a whole building to
analyze air pressure and velocity fluctuation in all
ducts

Fig.5:Analysis of Duct considering Inlet Velocity

RESULT ANALYSIS
The result analysis is based on duct design of
auditorium and existing plant. Comparison among
these plants can be made with some points.
I) Duct size: To design the duct in an auditorium
calculation of cooling load and air flow rate is done.
By assuming suitable air velocity (from 1967 systems
and equipment ASHRAE Handbook) considering
noise factor, calculation of main duct is done. Then
size of rectangular duct is calculated considering
minimum aspect ratio.
So maximum care is taken to apply standard rules to
design the system. Variation occurred in some points
are given below
Sr. Points
No.
1

Capacity
of plant
Ducts

Plant 1

Plant 2

Auditorium

100 TR

100 TR

160 TR

Three main

One main

Three main

ducts

ducts

ducts
1.24m *

Main

1.2 m* 0.9

1.62 m *

Duct size

1.21m

0.95m

II) Branch ducting:

Branch connection with low pressure are used.
III) Equal friction method is used in industry or in
existing design or in an auditorium. But equal
frictional pressure drop used in industry is 0.1
in.w./100ft. or 0.846 N/m2/m. while designing of an
auditorium, 0.04 in. w / 100 ft. or 0.4 N/m2/m is used.
Practical knowledge is very important to study and
make some conclusion about this point.
IV) Aspect Ratio: It is kept minimum in each design
V) CFD Analysis: It is a new tool which is applied to
observe air motion through straight duct and elbow.
Also it can be applied for all ducting in a building.
Due to improper shape and velocity, eddies are
observed in elbow with CFD analysis. so by proper
shape , eddies are minimized. Analysis of all ducting

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and fan will reduce pressure loss, noise and obviously

It saves time and cost. So CFD is best tool for HVAC
system
CONCLUSION:
The following conclusions summarize
experimental results presented in this paper

the

1)The cooling load calculation of an auditorium is

done, applying CLTD method and duct design is
carried out by equal friction method. All results are
comparable with existing plant.
1)

3)

2)The calculated value of frictional pressure drop is

less as compared to existing plant or value used in
industry. Due to less value, duct diameter is
increased but loss in static pressure, velocity pressure
can be avoided. Smaller diameter of duct would
increase noise level. So requirement of sound
attenuating devices may need. Also probability of
dampers is decreased with increasing diameter. But
first cost is increased with increasing duct diameter.
2) Due to proper branching (with elbow) of ducts, loss
is minimized in this design. But in existing plant,
there is straight branching in so many locations,
which may increase the pressure loss.
Aspect ratio is kept minimum in this design. So
friction loss and excess energy consumption is
decreased
4) Pressure loss in duct fitting is kept minimum by
using elbow with proper shape considering very less
pressure loss coefficient.
6)CFD software is used to analyze the air flow in
straight duct and in elbow. Eddies are observed due
to incorrect shape of elbow. So proper shape of
elbow and correct velocity are estimated to minimize
the eddies as well as pressure loss.
7)CFD can be used to study pressure and velocity
fluctuation for a whole building. So it is a better tool
which can be used in HVAC system to save time and
cost
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Valuable information & layout of plant 1& 2 is
taken from existing central air-conditioning plant in
Pune.
REFERENCES
1. Signato,J.J.W., A High Velocity, Low Pressure
Air System, ASHRAE Transactions ,1980, Part I ,
PP.180-200
2 Kim, Taecheol.,and Spitler, J.D.,Optimization of
VAV Duct System, ASHRAE transactions 2002,
vol.108, part-I, pp. 96-104.
3 Small,Mauro.,Non-Iterative
Technique
for
Balancing an Air Distribution System Thesis of
Master of Science, Feb.2002 ,pp.1-40.
4 Dr. Ghate., K,Sudhakar., and Majumdar,P.M., 3D Duct Design Using Variable Fidelity Method
CASDE, Powai , Mumbai, pp.1-11.

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