Modern Cooling System Theory

Summary
The demands on engine cooling systems have risen dramatically over the past two decades. Factors that have driven
this rising demand are an increase in the number of fluids that need cooling, a push for higher power output, and the
implementation of stricter emissions regulations.
As both initial capital costs and operating costs continue to increase for cooling systems, so has the awareness of the
importance of properly optimizing these systems. Cooling system designers must ensure that engines do not overheat
during peak ambient conditions when running at full power, while considering the cost and parasitic power lost to the
cooling system.
Flexxaire produces variable pitch fan systems that provide total airflow control, allowing cooling system designers to
meet the cooling requirements of peak ambient conditions in addition to minimizing the parasitic losses inherent to
standard cooling fans.

Heat Transfer Fundamentals

The science of heat transfer provides the basis for cooling system design. The basic formula of heat transfer is written
as:

q = m T C p
Where:
q = heat transferred
m = mass
T = difference in temperature
C p = specific heat
A fundamental implication of the above formula is that the amount of heat that can be transferred from one thing to
another is directly proportional to the difference in temperature between the two things ( T ). For radiators, as the
difference between ambient air and engine coolant temperatures increases, the volume of air required to cool the fluid
decreases.
This law has a dramatic effect on airflow requirements as the temperature of the air approaches the temperature of the
fluids being cooled by the radiator. The heat transfer formula from above can be re-written to apply directly to a radiator
as:

Where:

Q
T

cfmr = the required airflow generated by the cooling fan

Q = the required amount of heat rejected into the air to
maintain proper engine temperature

T = Tcoolant Tambient
Figure 1 illustrates the relationship between A and T . As the
ambient temperature approaches the coolant temperature, T
decreases and airflow requirements increase.

Required Airflow (cfm)

cfmr =

0
0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

Delta T (F)

Figure 1: Relationship between

cfmr and T

Mechanics of Airflow
Heat transfer considerations help to determine what the airflow requirements are. Now, the impact that air velocity and
air volume have on power consumption will be discussed.
The energy required to move something varies with the square of the speed with which it moves. The formula that
describes this relationship can be written as:

E=

1
m v2
2

Where:
E = energy
m = mass
v = velocity
The implications of this relationship on airflow through a radiator are straightforward. If it is necessary to move more air
through a radiator, it is necessary to increase the speed of the air since the effective area of the radiator remains static.

Power Requirements of Airflow

The empirical relationship between airflow and the power required to generate that airflow is displayed by a well-known
Fan Law, written below as:

cfm2
hp 2 = hp1
cfm1

Where:

The implications of the above formula are far-reaching. The

power draw related to an increase in airflow is directly
proportional to the cube of the ratio of airflow increase.
Therefore, in order to increase the airflow through a radiator
by 2 times, an increase in power of 8 times will be required.

1.2

% of Max Fan Power Draw

hp1 = power draw of the existing airflow

hp 2 = power draw of the desired airflow
cfm1 = the existing airflow
cfm2 = the desired airflow

0.8

0.6

0.4

0.2

Figure 2 illustrates the relationship between the power draw

of a cooling fan and the airflow generated by the fan.

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1.2

% of Max Airflow
Figure 2: Relationship between Power and Airflow

Cooling Package Design Strategies

Cooling package design often starts with the selection of a Limiting Ambient Temperature (LAT). An LAT is the
maximum ambient temperature that the cooling package can operate in and still provide the heat rejection that the
application requires. From the selection of an appropriate LAT, it is possible to determine the design T and
corresponding airflow requirement. As higher LATs are selected, the design T decreases and airflow requirements
increase.
The following considerations will assist in the design of optimized cooling packages:
Select an appropriate LAT

If the chosen LAT is too low, machines may overheat during peak ambient temperature conditions which is
unacceptable to customers. However, to over design by selecting an excessively high LAT can cause significant
power, fuel and performance penalties. Therefore it is important to select the correct LAT and then test the
cooling package for both adequacy and over-design.

Minimize all cooling loads

Identify and remove all unnecessary parasitic power losses that increase the cooling load. Such parasitic power
losses generally come from inefficiencies. See below for an example of this.
o

A hydraulic fan drive system will generally have efficiencies in the 75-85% range. This means that 1525% of the input energy is transferred into heat in the hydraulic oil. This heat must be removed from the
cooling system by the fan itself. Hydraulically driven fan systems often account for 5-7% of the overall
cooling load during peak conditions. This results in peak fan horsepower requirements increasing by 1622% in order to provide the extra cooling required by the fan system, plus the initial 15-25% inefficiency
for a total of 31-47% more peak fan horsepower than required.

Aside: Belt drive systems are typically 93-98% efficient and add no cooling load.
Use Variable Airflow systems

This is the best strategy. Variable airflow systems allow cooling packages to have high LATs without the
associated power penalties. The two most common methods of achieving variable airflow are variable speed
and variable pitch fan systems.

Impact of Fan Diameter

By increasing the diameter of the cooling fan, the same amount of airflow can be generated at a lower velocity. Since
area varies with the square of diameter, velocity varies with the square of diameter, and as earlier stated, energy varies
with the square of velocity. Therefore, it follows that the fan power varies inversely with the diameter to the fourth power.
This relationship is expressed as:

hp 2 = hp1 1
2

Where:

hp1 = power draw of the existing fan

hp 2 = power draw of the desired fan
1 = the diameter of the existing fan
2 = the diameter of the desired fan
This means a 10% larger fan/radiator will use 32% less horsepower to move the same volume of air. It is important to
use the largest radiator and fan arrangement that design constraints will allow.

Using a Variable Pitch Fan to Optimize a Cooling System

120%

Figure 3 shows the relationship between percent of

max airflow as a function of ambient temperature for an
air-to-air heat exchanger.
This design data was supplied by a radiator
manufacturer. The cooling package used for this
example had an LAT of 110F (43C).

% of Max Airflow (sCFM)

The following example is based on real test data and

takes into account system inefficiencies.

100%

80%

60%

40%

20%

Figure 4 provides operating info for a 34 Flexxaire

fan running at 1850 rpm and various pitches.

0%
0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Ambient Temp (F)

There are three sets of curves in Figure 2:

By combining Figures 3 and 4, a graph that displays

the fan power requirements as a function of ambient
temperature can be created.
This is shown in Figure 5.

Implications of Figure 5
The power draw requirements of a fan reduce quickly
as ambient temperature drops. With an ambient
temperature just 30F (17C) below the peak design
temperature, the power draw has dropped more than
50%. This means that even in relatively warm weather
(80F, 27C) a variable pitch fan can save over 50% of
the parasitic fan power load.

10

60

40

20

Power (HP)

Static Pressure (inH20)

A fan curve describes the relationship between airflow

through a radiator and static pressure; as the static
pressure increases, the airflow decreases. Fan power
curves show the relationship between airflow and power
draw for various fan blade pitches. A system curve
describes the amount of air that will flow through a
radiator; as more air is pushed through the radiator,
more pressure is required. Overlaying a system curve
with a fan curve allows for the determination of Operating
Points. Such Operating Points are indications of the
airflow and pressure that a specific fan and radiator
arrangement will provide.

-20

5
-40

-60

3
2

-80

-100

10
20
30
40
Restriction
10 O.P.
20 O.P.
30 O.P.
40 O.P.

-120
0

5000

10000

15000

20000

25000

30000

35000

40000

Airflow (sCFM)

Figure 4: Flexxaire fan operating info

1.2

% of Max Fan Power

1) Airflow as a function of static pressure for various fan

blade pitches.
2) Horsepower as a function of static pressure for the
same fan blade pitches.
3) A system restriction curve.

Figure 3: % Max Airflow vs. Ambient temp

0.8

0.6

0.4

0.2

0
50

60

70

80

90

100

110

120

Ambient Temperature (F)

Figure 5: % of Max Fan power vs. Ambient temp