Experimental Investigation of Air Distribution in the Occupied Zones of an Air Curtain Ventilated Enclosure

This paper focuses on the performance of a new air curtain ventilation system. Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) is used to visualize and investigate the airflow characteristic of an air curtain in an enclosure and the airflow pattern and temperature fields are measured and analyzed in detail. The air supply velocity and the slot inlet location were varied during the experimental process. The current results show that with the increase of air supply velocity the cooling effect in the occupied zone is further strengthened. When the air supply velocity ranges from 0.3 to1.5 m/s, the minimum mean temperature difference in the occupied zone is nearly 0.4 °C. Additionally, it was found that, for the air curtain ventilation model, the effective distance from the slot location to the sidewall is 0 to140 mm. When the distance is greater than about 150 mm, the air curtain ventilation will turn into mixing ventilation. The current experimental study and its results are helpful in understanding a new air distribution method i.e. an air curtain used for room ventilation.