New Test Standard

for Dilution Blowers

How AMCA Standard 260-07 quantifies discharge performance

or reasons of safety and health, not to systemused to measure fan discharge airflow.
mention litigation, consulting and facility
Free outlet, ducted inlet, variable-supply
engineers long have insisted on independent systemused to measure fan inlet airflow.
performance verification for fans and blowers
Fan discharge airflow minus fan inlet airflow
used in general HVAC, as well as more-critical equals the entrained airflow through a blowers
applications. With their unique
wind band, assuming both tests
By ANTHONY J. ROSSI
discharge design, however, highare performed under the same
Greenheck Fan Corp.
plume dilution blowersused
conditions.
Schofield, Wis.
to dilute hazardous laboratory
Total outlet discharge flow is
exhaust and disperse it high into
the sum of fan flow (exhaust
the atmosphere, away from possible re-entrainment from a laboratory) and entrained dilution airflow
zonesfell outside the scope of Air Movement (Figure 1). With high-plume-dilution-blower
and Control Association (AMCA) International assemblies designed to be installed on rooftops and
performance certification. That changed with the discharge to the atmosphere, where static pressure
recent publication of AMCA Standard 260-07, is zero, total outlet discharge flow is measured
Laboratory Methods of
by maintaining back
Testing Induced Flow
pressure at the windLab exhaust plus added
Fans for Rating.
band exit of a dilution
ambient dilution air
This article will discuss
blower at zero using an
the basis of this new stan- Wind band
adjustable-performance
dard.
fan (variable-exhaust
system) on the leaving
Blower housing with or exit side of an airENTRAINED-AIR TESTING
Entrained
high-velocity nozzle
The most reliable way ambient
flow-measuring chamber
dilution air
to verify high-plume(Figure 2).
dilution-blower perforPhoto A shows the
mance is with an industrymeasurement of the
Lab exhaust air
accepted test of entrained
total flow leaving a
air performed by an
single-width, single-inlet
independent third party
centrifugal high-plume
in an accredited (certified) FIGURE 1. Inline mixed-flow high-plume dilution blower. dilution blower. The
laboratory. ANSI/AMCA
blower is mounted on
Standard 210-99, Laboratory Methods of Testing the inlet of a test chamber.
Fans for Aerodynamic Performance Rating, describes
(AMCA Standard 260 includes a variabletwo fan-test arrangements that can be used in resistance box, or throttling device, on the fan
determining the flow of entrained air through a inlet for the fan-discharge-airflow test. This allows
high-plume dilution blowers wind band:
discharge performance to be determined at various
Free inlet, ducted outlet, variable-exhaust exhaust-system static pressures.)
The director of laboratory exhaust systems for Greenheck Fan Corp., Anthony J. Rossi has more than 30 years of
experience in industrial ventilation. He can be contacted at tony.rossi@greenheck.com.

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Entrained
ow
AMCA-certied air chamber

Fan ow

Flow direction
Ps = 0 in. wc

Total ow

Variable
exhaust
system

Entrained
ow

FIGURE 2. Measuring dilution-blower-outlet airflow using ANSI/AMCA Standard 210-99.

Figure 3 illustrates the measurement

of exhaust airflow from a high-plume
dilution blower mounted on the outlet of a test chamber. With a variablesupply system, static pressure at the fan
inlet upstream of the dilution-blower
inlet is maintained at zero (free inlet).
Photo B shows a single-width,
single-inlet centrifugal high-plume
dilution blower mounted on the outlet
of a test chamber.
Photo C shows a variable-supply
and exhaust system.

PHOTO A. High-plume dilution blower

mounted on the inlet of a test chamber in
an AMCA-accredited laboratory.

PHOTO B. High-plume dilution blower

mounted on the outlet of a test chamber in
an AMCA-accredited laboratory.

PHOTO C. Variable-supply and exhaust

system used in an ANSI/AMCA Standard
210-99 test.
Entrained
ow

CONCLUSION

With AMCA Standard 260-07,

specifying, consulting, and facility
engineers finally can take advantage of
AMCA-verified performance testing
for high-plume dilution blowers.

AMCA-certied air chamber

Fan ow

Flow direction

Variable
supply
system

Total ow
Ps = 0 in. wc
Entrained
ow

FIGURE 3. Measuring dilution-blower-inlet airflow using ANSI/AMCA Standard 210-99.

Copyright 2007 by Peton Media, Inc.

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