Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 29 (2004) 53–64

www.elsevier.com/locate/etfs

An experimental investigation of the flow field pattern within

the impeller of a cross-flow fan
Andrea Toffolo, Andrea Lazzaretto *, Antonio Dario Martegani
Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Padova, Via Venezia, 1, I-35131 Padova, Italy
Received 19 April 2003; accepted 13 February 2004

Abstract

Cross-flow fan performance is strongly influenced by the geometry of the casing, as the latter, in turn, affects the position and the
strength of the eccentric vortex that characterizes the operation of this category of fans. The paper presents a systematic experi-
mental investigation of the flow field within the impeller at different throttling conditions and for different geometries of the fan
casing. Both pressures and velocities are measured using a three-dimensional five-hole probe that is inserted in the flow. This study
helps determine the relationship between the design parameters of the casing and the flow field pattern, and it is part of an extensive
work, by the same research group, aimed at establishing a general theory on cross-flow fan operation and at outlining the design
guidelines for this particular type of turbomachines.

2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Cross-flow fan; Flow field; Pressure and velocity measurements; Aerodynamic probes

1. Introduction conditions. Fig. 2 shows three pictures of velocity vec-

Cross-flow fans are a unique type of turbomachinery,
since both suction and discharge occur radially. The
research in this field, which includes several theoretical
and experimental studies, has not led yet to an ultimate
set of criteria about the design, which is still based on
empirical methods deriving from previous applications.
The complexity of the flow field pattern (Fig. 1) is the
main obstacle that makes a general theory about the
operation more difficult to formulate than for other
categories of fans. In fact, the motion of the blades
forms an eccentric vortex within the impeller, the posi-
tion and strength of which considerably affect fan per-
formance and efficiency. The characteristics of the
vortex are influenced by the geometry of the impeller
and of the casing as well, since the latter mainly governs
the fluid-dynamic equilibrium between the throughput
flow and the recirculating flow. For a given geometrical
configuration and rotational speed, the flow field pattern
also significantly changes under different throttling
*
Corresponding author. Tel.: +39-049-827-6747; fax: +39-049-827-
6785.
E-mail address: andrea.lazzaretto@unipd.it (A. Lazzaretto).
0894-1777/$ - see front matter
2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.expthermflusci.2004.02.007
tors at low, intermediate and high flow rates, obtained
by a numerical simulation of a sample configuration (the
simulation was performed with the commercial CFD
code FLUENT, using the RNG k–e turbulence model
and a grid with about 100,000 cells). As flow rate in-
creases, the recirculation area around the vortex core is
progressively reduced and moves towards the internal
periphery of the impeller and in the direction of impeller
rotation, allowing more throughput streamlines to reach
the discharge section. At fully open operating condition,
the center of the vortex is close to one of the two casing
walls, which is named vortex wall, the other being called
rear wall.
This paper is part of an extensive work made by the
same group of authors, aiming at verifying the influence
of different design variables on cross-flow fan perfor-
mance and at obtaining experimental indications on fan
design. A systematic experimental test program was
carried out in [1] to understand the influence of Rey-
nolds number and size on cross-flow fan operation. Five
machine configurations having a similar shape but dif-
ferent sizes were tested at different rotational speeds.
The results showed that similarity laws can be applied
above critical Reynolds numbers that depend on casing
54 A. Toffolo et al. / Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 29 (2004) 53–64

Nomenclature

c blade chord [m] g ¼ DpQ=ðT xÞ efficiency [dimensionless]

D diameter [m] q density [kg/m3 ]
h height [m] l dynamic viscosity [kg/m s]
L axial length [m] U ¼ Q=ðLD2 u2 Þ flow coefficient [dimensionless]
p pressure [Pa] W ¼ Dp=ð0:5qu22 Þ pressure coefficient [dimensionless]
p0 inlet (ambient) pressure [Pa] f angular coordinate [deg]
Dp ¼ p
p0 pressure difference [Pa] x rotational speed [rad/s]
Q volumetric flow rate [m3 /s]
Subscripts
R radial coordinate [m]
1 internal
Rec ¼ u2 cq=l Reynolds number [dimensionless]
2 external
ReD ¼ u2 D2 q=l Reynolds number [dimensionless]
d discharge
s thickness [m]
s static
T shaft mechanical torque [N m]
t total
u ¼ xR peripheral speed [m/s]
V vortex wall
a log spiral angle [deg]
v vortex core
b blade angle [deg]

The present work is devoted to an experimental

Inflow arc
Impeller Vortex Wall
Discharge
Outflow arc section
Rear Wall
Eccentric Vortex
Fig. 1. A cross-flow fan configuration.
geometry, and no strong scale effect was observed. An
original effective criterion for the parameterization of
machine geometry was formalized in [2]. In particular, a
restricted number of independent design parameters was
used to describe the shape and position of the rear and
vortex walls. The fan configurations resulting from the
systematic variation of the selected parameters for both
the impeller and the casing were tested in [3]. The results
of these tests led to the identification of the most
important design parameters that affect fan performance
and efficiency.
investigation of the flow field pattern within the impeller
for the most significant cross-flow fan casing configura-
tions according to the results obtained in [3]. The con-
sidered configurations (see Section 4) are selected to
cover the ranges of the design parameters in which high
performances are obtained in terms of pressure rise,
efficiency and flow rate. These often conflicting design
objectives are fulfilled by quite different choices of the
main design parameters of the casing, which correspond
to different features of the flow field pattern within the
impeller. The aim of the paper is to highlight this close
link through the analysis of the results of an extensive
program of local flow measurements performed by a
three-dimensional five-hole probe, in which pressure and
velocity fields are reconstructed at different values of
the flow coefficient for each of the considered configu-
rations.
2. Theoretical and experimental studies of the flow field
pattern in the literature
From Mortier’s patent in 1891 to the years after
World War II, none of the researchers or inventors who

Fig. 2. Flow field pattern in a cross-flow fan at (a) low, (b) intermediate and (c) high flow rate.
 A. Toffolo et al. / Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 29 (2004) 53–64
studied or patented cross-flow fan configurations real-
ized the actual structure of the flow field. Eck [4] was the
first to discover in the ’50s the existence of the eccentric
vortex within the impeller by means of visualization
studies. He also understood that the vortex can act as an
aerodynamic seal to prevent the recirculation of the flow
from discharge to suction, and obtained much more
efficient and much less noisy fan configurations by
increasing the radial clearance between the vortex wall
and the impeller. Eck’s patented fan [5] features a small
radial width rear wall and a thick vortex wall with
decreasing values of the radial clearance in the direction
of rotation: at free blowing, the corresponding flow field
shows the vortex core near the inner periphery of the
blade row, while under throttling the vortex moves to-
ward the interior of the impeller, losing much of its
strength. In the following decades, Datwyler’s patent [6]
and then the study by Porter and Markland [7] dem-
onstrated that higher total pressure coefficients, but
quite low efficiencies, are achieved when a strong vortex
is free to move along the inner periphery of the impeller
at all flow rates: this flow field pattern is obtained when
the radial width of the rear wall is increased and a flat
thin vortex wall is used.
In the same years, several analytical models were
proposed to describe mathematically pressure and
velocity fields within and around the impeller, and then
to predict fan performance. However, they were all
based on over-simplified hypotheses: a simple potential
flow with a single vorticity source [4,8,9], a combined
solution consisting of a forced vortex flow inside the
core and a potential flow outside [10], the potential flow
resulting from a couple of equal vorticity sources, one
inside and the other outside the impeller [11], an actu-
ator disc model [12].
Yamafuji performed in [13] a very interesting series of
experiments on the formation of an asymmetrical flow
field in a geometrically symmetrical impeller. He showed
that the throughflow and the eccentric vortex arise for
any shape of the impeller blade profile (circular, circular
arc and radial profiles were tested) when the blade
Reynolds number is higher than 250. Among the other
experimental studies which have appeared in the litera-
ture, the one by Murata and Nishihara [14], aimed at
understanding the relation between the flow field and
the shape of the characteristic curve (total pressure
coefficient Wt vs. flow coefficient U), is by far the most
comprehensive and is conceptually similar to the anal-
ysis performed in the present work. Different casing
shapes, in which the vortex moved along the inner
periphery of the impeller at all throttling conditions,
were investigated to determine the influence on the flow
field of several geometric parameters. However, the
results of this analysis cannot be interpreted in a
straightforward manner, as the examined casing shapes
were not obtained using a set of independent design
55
inflow
(to suction)
suction
stalled arc
to jet
jet throughflow
throughflow
vortex wall
recirculation
core
discharge recirculation
arc
throughflow
separation
rear wall
Fig. 3. Regions of the flow field in a cross-flow fan (adapted from [15]).
variables, and therefore mixed effects due to the inter-
action among the considered variables can be observed.
Tuckey et al. [15] proposed to subdivide the suction,
interior and discharge regions of the flow field according
to the nature of the flow (Fig. 3), and described by
means of visualization studies how these zones changed
at different flow rates. Finally, Tsurusaki et al. [16]
performed an experimental analysis of the flow within
the machine through optical techniques (particle-track-
ing velocimetry) using a water model of a single fan
configuration. Their work mainly deals with the nature
of the eccentric vortex and the mechanisms by which
vorticity is supplied to it from the blades and is then
diffused from the recirculating region.
3. The experimental apparatus
The test facility (Fig. 4) is the same used in [3] to
determine fan performance, and was built following the
UNI 10531 standard [17] on industrial fans test methods
and acceptance conditions (equivalent to ISO 5801 [18]).
The suction of the tested fan is free, whereas the delivery
is connected to a plenum chamber. At the outlet of this
chamber the air passes through a Venturi nozzle for flow
rate measurement. An auxiliary fan is placed at the end
of the airway, after a honeycomb straightener duct, to
overcome the pressure losses generated by the flow
passage. Pressure measurements in the plenum chamber
and in the Venturi nozzle are performed using water
micromanometers having a 1/100 mm accuracy. The
tested fan is driven by a direct current motor, which
includes a tachimetric dynamo for rotational speed
measurements. Fan total efficiency is determined by
torque measurement, using a load cell connected to the
motor stator (range ±0.5 kg, sensitivity 16 mV/V and
accuracy ±1%). All tests are performed at a rotational
56 A. Toffolo et al. / Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 29 (2004) 53–64

Fig. 4. Schematic of the test rig used to determine fan performance and efficiency.

speed of 1000 rpm and with impellers having an external
diameter of 152.4 mm and an axial length of 228.6 mm
(the resulting Reynolds number, referred to the external
diameter and the peripheral speed, is ReD ffi 80; 000).
The estimated uncertainty for the total pressure coeffi-
cient is within 1.5%, whereas for total efficiency is within
3%, since more measured quantities are involved in its
calculation.
The measurements of flow field quantities within the
impeller are performed using a three-dimensional aero-
dynamic probe by United Sensor. If information on the
flow field are to be collected by means of both pressure
and velocity measurements, there is no alternative to this
methodology, because neither hot wire anemometers
nor LDV techniques are able to measure pressures.
A five-hole ‘‘cobra’’ probe is used (Fig. 5), having
the following characteristics:
• axial length: 16 in. ¼ 406.4 mm;
• probe diameter: 1/8 in. ¼ 3.175 mm;
• probe maximum radial size: 5/8 in. ¼ 15.9 mm.
The test facility has been modified to get a measure-
ment window out of the side wall opposite to the driving
shaft. The corresponding lateral disc of the impeller was
substituted with a ring that was adequately supported
with an external bearing system. A circular plate, which
can be rotated by hand around machine axis, was built
to seal the impeller (acting as the missing impeller disc)
and the measurement window as well. Four rectangular
holes were made on the cover at different radii to allow
the insertion of the probe head in the middle cross-
section of the impeller. This apparatus lets the probe
rotate around the impeller axis at a fixed radius, to
analyze flow quantities in different measurement points
on a circumference, and around its own axis, to be
manually oriented according to the yaw angle of the
flow. A sketch of the arrangement of the probe in the
test facility is provided in Fig. 5.
The probe is connected to four differential pressure
transducers (range ±1000 Pa, sensitivity 8 mV/V and
accuracy ±1%); the output signals of the transducers are
amplified to a range between )10 and +10 V and are
sent to the data acquisition card of a computer. A
LabViewTM virtual instrument automatically calculates
the actual total, static and dynamic pressures, according
to the calibration curves provided by the manufacturer
of the probe, and writes them on a spreadsheet.
The pressure signals at probe outlet are time-aver-
aged signals, since the time constant of probe capillary
tubes is too long to follow the high-frequency variation
of an unsteady flow field, such as the one inside the

Fig. 5. Sketch of the probe head and of the probe arrangement in the experimental apparatus.
 A. Toffolo et al. / Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 29 (2004) 53–64
impeller of a cross-flow fan. If the flow can be assumed
quasi-periodic in a generic location, with high-frequency
harmonics mainly due to blade passage, the uncertainty
on the final measurements are within ±2% for pressure
(total and static), within ±2.5% for velocity magnitude
and within ±1 for the yaw angle. However, if flow
behavior tends to be chaotic, with large time and length
scales (this happens in the stall zone, see Fig. 3 and
Section 5) the uncertainties may grow up to 8% for
pressure, ±10% for velocity magnitude and ±5 for the
yaw angle.
4. The test program
The program of the experimental investigations is
conceived to determine the flow field pattern of a set of
representative cross-flow fan configurations. These are
characterized by different values of the casing design
parameters that were identified in [3] as the most sig-
nificant, according to the influence on performance and
efficiency. These parameters are the angle a of the log-
arithmic spiral that controls the radial width of the rear
wall (i.e. the angle between the tangent to the rear wall
profile and the tangential direction), the height hd and
the thickness sV of the vortex wall (Fig. 6).
The choice of the configurations to be investigated is
driven by the indications obtained in [3]. All the three
classes of radial width are considered, since each of them
results in a different shape of the fan characteristic
curve: small, intermediate and large radial width corre-
spond to unstable, nearly flat and stable Wt –U curves,
respectively [3]. The three rear walls used in this work
are shown in Fig. 7 as:
• RE (small radial width Eck’s patented rear wall made
up of two circular arcs, one of which centered on
impeller axis),
Fig. 6. The most significant parameters affecting fan performance and
efficiency [2,3].
57
Fig. 7. The casing shapes selected for flow field investigation.
• R2r (intermediate radial width log spiral rear wall,
a ¼ 17:2) and
• R3r (large radial width log spiral rear wall,
a ¼ 23:6).
All the three rear walls are combined with the two
lower positions of the flat thin (sv =D2 ¼ 0:13) vortex
wall used in [3], for which high performance and effi-
ciencies are obtained. The two positions are indicated as
H1 (hd =D2 ¼ 0:185) and H2 (hd =D2 ¼ 0:316) in Fig. 7.
Moreover, the small radial width rear wall RE is also
matched with two thick vortex walls, the combination of
design parameters leading to the highest efficiency [3]: in
Fig. 7 the two thick vortex walls are shown as S3H1
(a modular vortex wall having sv =D2 ¼ 0:39 and
hd =D2 ¼ 0:185, see [3]) and VE (Eck’s patented vortex
wall). Although the highest efficiencies were obtained
with impellers having the external and internal blade
angles equal to 25 and 90 respectively [3], all the
selected casing shapes are matched with the impeller for
which the validity of the similarity laws has been verified
in [1], having b2 ¼ 38 and b1 ¼ 70 respectively. The
curves of the total pressure coefficient and the total
efficiency for the eight resulting fan configurations are
reported in Fig. 8.
For each of the considered configurations, the total
and static pressure fields and the velocity field are
measured at the flow rates corresponding to flow co-
efficients U equal to 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8 and 1.0, provided
that these values are lower than the flow coefficient at
free blowing. The investigation of the flow field within
the impeller for a given configuration and at a given flow
coefficient consists in a series of local measures to
determine the total and static pressures and the velocity
vector on a predefined grid of points which lie on cir-
cumferences of different radii at half of the impeller axial
length L. This grid is shown in Fig. 9 (in which the
reference angular coordinate f is defined as well), and
consists of:
• 6 points (at angular intervals of 60) on the circum-
ference of radius R ¼ 10 mm;
• 12 points (at angular intervals of 30) on the circum-
ference of radius R ¼ 20 mm;
58 A. Toffolo et al. / Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 29 (2004) 53–64

Ψt RE- S3H1 ηt% Ψt RE- VE ηt%

3.0 60 3.0 60

2.0 40 2.0 40

1.0 20 1.0 20

0.0 0 0.0 0
0.0 0.5 1.0 Φ 0.0 0.5 1.0 Φ

Ψt RE- H1 ηt% Ψt RE- H2 ηt%

3.0 60 3.0 60

2.0 40 2.0 40

1.0 20 1.0 20

0.0 0 0.0 0
0.0 0.5 1.0 Φ 0.0 0.5 1.0 Φ

Ψt R2r - H1 ηt% Ψt R2r - H2 ηt%

3.0 60 3.0 60

2.0 40 2.0 40

1.0 20 1.0 20

0.0 0 0.0 0
0.0 0.5 1.0 Φ 0.0 0.5 1.0 Φ

Ψt R3r - H1 ηt% Ψt R3r - H2 ηt%

3.0 60 3.0 60

2.0 40 2.0 40

1.0 20 1.0 20

0.0 0 0.0 0
0.0 0.5 1.0 Φ 0.0 0.5 1.0 Φ

Fig. 8. Total pressure coefficient (circles) and total efficiency (triangles) curves for the configurations considered in the test program.

• 18 points (at angular intervals of 20) on the circum-
ference of radius R ¼ 30 mm;
• 24 points (at angular intervals of 15) on the circum-
ference of radius R ¼ 40 mm.
The radius of the largest circumference is limited to
40 mm because of the radial size of the probe head
(about 16 mm), the internal diameter of the impeller
being equal to 124.2 mm.
5. Results and comments
The data collected in the experimental investigation
have been grouped in tables according to the configura-
tion and the flow coefficient. The flow fields have been
then reconstructed by an interpolation of the data in the
plane perpendicular to the impeller axis. The results of this
analysis are shown in Fig. 10, in which the fields of the
local total pressure coefficient are shown for each of the
 A. Toffolo et al. / Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 29 (2004) 53–64
Fig. 9. The measurement grid inside the impeller at half of the
axial length L and definitions of the angular coordinate and yaw
angle.
considered configurations at the investigated flow coeffi-
cients. The measured velocity vectors are superimposed to
the corresponding fields, according to a common scale
that refers to the impeller peripheral speed u2 , which is
indicated on the outer circumference of the represented
impellers.
Other sample diagrams of the yaw angle (defined as in
Fig. 9) and of the local total and static pressure coeffi-
cients are presented for easy reference in Figs. 11–13,
respectively.
Fig. 10. The fields of the local total pressure coefficient and the velocity vectors measured experimentally. Velocity vectors are scaled according to the
tip speed vector shown at the outer periphery of the impeller.
59
5.1. Vortex position
At a given flow coefficient, the position of the vortex
center is deeply influenced by the shape of the casing. As
already observed by other authors in the literature, the
vortex does not abandon the inner periphery of the
impeller provided that the radial width of the rear wall is
sufficient (R2r and R3r rear walls). On the contrary, for
casing shapes featuring a small radial width rear wall
(RE) the vortex is forced to move also in the radial
direction towards the impeller axis, no matter the vortex
wall thickness. A thicker vortex wall causes a reduction of
vortex eccentricity, especially at low flow rates (U ¼ 0:2).
The height of the vortex wall plays an important role on
the eccentricity of the vortex as well. It appears from
Fig. 10 that the vortex is more eccentric in the RE-H2
casing than in RE-H1, because of the larger space avail-
able to vortex expansion in the discharge region.
In Fig. 14 the angular coordinate fv of the vortex
center, extrapolated from the measured data, is shown
as a function of the flow coefficient. For all the consid-
ered configurations, the vortex tends to depart from the
vortex wall under throttling with a progressive move-
ment that shows an almost constant trend. The results in
[14] showed that the vortex maintains its angular posi-
tion approximately unchanged for U > 0:8, or even
moves away from the vortex wall approaching the
maximum flow rates, but these were not observed in the
present experimental study. At a given flow coefficient,
60 A. Toffolo et al. / Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 29 (2004) 53–64

Fig. 10 (continued)

R2r - H1 Φ = 0.2
Φ = 0.2 Ψt Φ = 0.4
R2r - H1 Φ Φ = 0.6
yaw [˚] = 0.4 6
120 Φ = 0.66 Φ = 0.8
Φ = 0.8 4 Φ = 1.0
90 Φ = 1.0
60 2
30
0
0
-2
-30
-60 -4
-90 ζ
-6
-120 ζ
-180 -120 -60 0 60 120 180
-180 -120 -60 0 60 120 180
Fig. 12. The total pressure coefficient measured along the outer cir-
Fig. 11. The yaw angle measured along the outer circumference cumference (R ¼ 40 mm) for a sample configuration at different flow
(R ¼ 40 mm) for a sample configuration at different flow coefficients. coefficients.
 A. Toffolo et al. / Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 29 (2004) 53–64 61

R2r - H1 Φ = 0.2 ∆ζvV RE-S3H1

Ψs Φ = 0.4 120 RE-VE
8 Φ = 0.6 RE-H1
Φ = 0.8 RE-H2
4 Φ = 1.0 100
R2r-H1
R2r-H2
0 R3r-H1
80
R3r-H2
-4
60
-8
-12 40
-16
20
-20
-180 -120 -60 0 60 120 180 0 Φ
Fig. 13. The static pressure coefficient measured along the outer cir- 0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1.2
cumference (R ¼ 40 mm) for a sample configuration at different flow
coefficients. Fig. 15. The angular distance of the vortex center from the tangent to
the vortex wall edge at different flow coefficients for all the considered
configurations.

ζv RE-S3H1
0 RE-VE and to the space that is required for the passage of the
RE-H1 throughput flow rate. It is also worth noting that the
-20 RE-H2 change in the vortex wall height from H1 to H2 pro-
R2r-H1
R2r-H2 duces a larger change in fv as the rear wall radial width
-40 R3r-H1 increases, and that the corresponding change produced
R3r-H2 in DfvV is on the contrary smaller. For thick vortex
walls, the recirculating flow is partially guided by the
-60
vortex wall itself, and therefore the angular position of
the vortex is influenced also by the shape of the clear-
-80 ance and the thickness of the vortex wall. In particular, a
thicker vortex wall (VE) keeps the vortex core farther
-100 away (Fig. 15), since the recirculation zone is wider.

-120 5.2. The velocity vectors

0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1.2
Fig. 14. The angular coordinate of the vortex center at different flow
coefficients for all the considered configurations.
the design parameter that exerts the most significant
influence on the angular position of the vortex is the rear
wall radial width. In fact, the vortex is closer to the rear
wall as the radial width increases. On the other hand, for
the same rear wall, the vortex moves towards the rear
wall as the height of vortex wall diminishes. These ten-
dencies are also observed in Fig. 15, where the angular
distance DfvV of the vortex center from the tangent to
the vortex wall edge is shown as a function of the flow
coefficient. In fact, DfvV decreases for rear walls having
smaller radial widths and for vortex walls being placed
in lower positions. Therefore, it appears that the recir-
culating flow tends to occupy all the available portion of
the discharge arc according to the shape of the casing
As flow rate increases, in all the considered configu-
rations the flow field pattern seems to rotate jointly
around impeller axis, in the direction of impeller rota-
tion (Fig. 10). This phenomenon can also be observed in
Fig. 11 where the yaw angle on the external circumfer-
ence (R ¼ 40 mm) is shown at different flow coefficients
for a sample configuration. The curves, in fact, tend to
simply shift towards higher yaw angles and angular
coordinates. For thin vortex walls, the yaw angles are
higher when higher positions of the vortex wall and
smaller radial widths of the rear wall are used. This
trend can be easily explained when the path that the
throughflow has to follow around the recirculation zone
is considered. For thick vortex walls, on the other hand,
the yaw angles are much higher than those measured
with thin vortex walls. The mean values of the yaw angle
in the zone covered by the measurement grid are
approximately equal to 0, 15 and 40 when the rear
62 A. Toffolo et al. / Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 29 (2004) 53–64
walls R3r, R2r and RE, respectively, are matched with
the thin vortex wall. The same value approaches 75
when the rear wall RE is matched with the thick vortex
walls S3H1 and VE. Therefore, the overall curvature of
the streamlines in the flow field within the fan is much
lower when thick vortex walls are used.
Most of the analytical studies in the literature pro-
posed flow field models in which the streamlines are as-
sumed to be concentric to the vortex core. It appears
from Fig. 10 that this happens only when a special
equilibrium exists between the throughflow and the re-
circulating flow, depending on the casing configuration
and, to some extent, on the flow coefficient. In particular,
the streamlines tend to be more concentric as larger rear
wall radial widths and higher positions of the thin vortex
walls are used, that is when a larger space is available to
the recirculating flow. On the other hand, the streamlines
of the flow field obtained with the rear wall RE and the
two thick vortex walls seem to be almost concentric.
The length of the velocity vectors in Fig. 10 clearly
shows that the highest velocities for a generic configu-
ration are obtained on the boundary of the vortex core.
The highest velocity values increase with the flow coef-
ficient, attracting larger and larger portions of the
throughput flow in the proximity of the recirculation
zone. For instance, the maximum velocities measured on
the largest circumference using the R2r-H1 casing are
equal to 2, 2.2, 2.4, 2.7 and 3.2 times the peripheral
speed at U ¼ 0:2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8 and 1.0, respectively. The
highest velocity values, and the vortex strength (i.e.
circulation) accordingly, also increase noticeably for
larger radial widths of the rear wall. For example, at
U ¼ 0:4 the maximum velocities are equal to 1.9, 2.2
and 2.6 times the peripheral speed using the casings
RE-H1, R2r-H1 and R3r-H1, respectively.
5.3. Total pressure
Fig. 10 shows that for all the considered configura-
tions the local total pressure coefficient is greater than
zero only in the angular sector containing about the
whole geometrical inflow arc and the half of the geo-
metrical outflow arc that is close to the rear wall. Con-
versely, near the vortex core the local total pressure
coefficient drops to negative values, and for a given
configuration diminishes as the flow rate increases. The
minimum local Wt in the vortex core diminishes signifi-
cantly as the rear wall radial width increases. The mini-
mum depression in the vortex core is registered when the
rear wall RE is matched with the two thick vortex walls.
Due to these effects, the flow field induced by the
vortex cannot be described using a potential flow. It
cannot even be approximated by a combined Rankine
vortex, since within the impeller the value of the local
total pressure coefficient increases with the distance
from the vortex core according to annular strips, more
or less concentric to the vortex center, the extension of
which depends on both the configuration considered and
the flow coefficient. At low flow rates, the strips asso-
ciated with the higher energy are located on the sector of
the inner periphery of the impeller opposite to the
eccentric vortex. As the flow rate increases, these strips
tend to expand towards the vortex center, while in the
vortex and in the strips adjacent to it the local total
pressure coefficient continues falling. At the highest flow
coefficients (U equal to 0.8 or 1), the strip of maximum
energy further concentrates around the vortex, whereas,
in the region of the impeller opposite to the vortex, a
decrease in total pressure occurs due to the unfavorable
incidence on the portion of the suction arc that is far
from the vortex wall. This phenomenon is more evident
when low positions of the thin vortex wall are used,
since the geometric suction arc is larger and the inci-
dence conditions of a higher number of streamlines are
worse. The existence of this low energy zone due to stall
can be identified in Fig. 12, where the local total pres-
sure coefficient on the outer measurement circumference
(R ¼ 40 mm) is shown at different flow coefficients for
the R2r-H1 configuration. When U is greater than 0.6
the curves show a relative minimum between a pair of
maxima in the region opposite to the vortex, instead of
an absolute maximum.
In thin vortex wall configurations, a small decrease of
total pressure can be seen at low flow coefficients (0.2
and 0.4) in an annular strip of limited thickness in cor-
respondence to the wake of the vortex wall edge. This
phenomenon is probably due to the mixing between the
recirculation flow and the inflow and also appears in
Fig. 12, where two pairs of relative maxima and minima
can be identified.
5.4. Static pressure
The local static pressure coefficient within the impeller
is largely negative in all the considered configurations.
The typical shape of the curves representing the local
static pressure coefficient on the external measurement
circumference are more regular than those of the local
total pressure coefficient, as shown in Fig. 13 at different
flow coefficients. These curves simply feature an absolute
minimum in the points that are closest to the vortex core.
The minimum value follows the same trend of the min-
imum recorded for the total pressure coefficient, that is it
diminishes as the flow coefficient or the radial width of
the rear wall increase. On the other hand, the maximum
values of the local Ws are obtained in a region that is near
the edge of the rear wall. This maximum values become
higher as the radial width of the rear wall decreases, up
to small positive values in a narrow angular sector with
the R2r rear wall and up to large positive values in the
angular sector in which the radial clearance is constant
with the RE rear wall. This static pressure recovery is
 A. Toffolo et al. / Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 29 (2004) 53–64
probably due to the deviation imposed to the flow by the
first segment of the rear wall, the effects of which are
propagated towards the interior of the impeller.
6. Practical usefulness/significance
Cross-flow fans show substantial differences in terms
of geometrical characteristics but similar performance
and efficiency if compared to centrifugal fans. The pos-
sibility of increasing the mass flow rate by simply
extending the rotor length, without increasing the dia-
meter or the rotational speed, makes them suitable for
applications in which constraints exist on radial space or
noise (for instance, electric device cooling, air condition-
ing blowers, etc.). The high number of industrial appli-
cations is not supported by a deep theoretical knowledge
in the literature about the behavior of these machines.
The physical phenomena involved in fan operation due to
the non-axisymmetric flow field are much more complex
than in traditional turbomachinery. The practical use-
fulness of having trends clear in the link between char-
acteristics of the flow field and geometrical parameters
allows the basics to be set for a design pursuing one or
more objectives (maximum efficiency, maximum energy
transfer, maximum flow rate) at the same time.
7. Concluding remarks
When the measured flow field patterns (Fig. 10) are
compared to the performance of the corresponding fan
configurations (Fig. 8), a relationship can be outlined
as follows:
• Flow field patterns in which the eccentricity and the
strength of the vortex are limited are obtained at
low flow rates using small radial widths of the rear
wall (RE) and thick vortex walls. Under these condi-
tions the total pressure coefficient is very low, but the
total efficiency is higher if compared to thin vortex
wall configurations.
• Maximum efficiency is achieved when the vortex has
the maximum eccentricity (i.e. it lies on inner periph-
ery of the impeller) but a moderate strength, that is
when a thick vortex wall is used in combination with
a small radial width rear wall at medium flow rates
(around 0.6). The total pressure coefficient is also
quite high (around 2) in this case. Conversely, high
efficiency values are not obtained when thick vortex
walls are matched with the intermediate (R2r) and
large (R3r) radial width rear walls (see [3]) because
a larger space is available for vortex expansion in
the discharge zone and a stronger vortex is formed.
• When the vortex has the maximum eccentricity and is
very strong, the efficiency is penalized whereas the
63
total pressure coefficient increases towards its highest
values. This can be noted with large radial width of
the rear wall (R3r) and, to a lesser extent, with inter-
mediate radial width of the same wall (R2r). A minor
decrease in the efficiency and performance is due
to higher positions of the thin vortex wall, which
result in a stronger and more eccentric vortex.
• The combination of the small radial width rear wall
with the lower positions of the thin vortex wall is par-
ticularly unfavorable, because the vortex is not eccen-
tric enough to produce high performance, but it is
strong enough to penalize the efficiency.
• The results of qualitative non-standard noise mea-
surements performed in [3] showed that noise genera-
tion is lowered by increasing vortex wall thickness
and by reducing rear wall radial width. This trend
can be explained by the reduced interaction between
the vortex inside the impeller and the blade cascade,
due to the lower strength and eccentricity of the vor-
tex itself (Fig. 10), as already suggested by the few
authors who have reported experimental noise mea-
surements in the literature [4,7].
8. Recommendations and future research needs
The final objective that are still to be achieved in
cross-flow fan research are the formulation of a general
theory for fan operation and an ultimate set of design
criteria according to the different objectives that could
be considered (maximum efficiency, maximum energy
transfer, maximum flow rate).
The directions for the development of the present
work are:
• The reconstruction of the link between the flow field
pattern and the performance/efficiency curves by
numerical simulations of the entire flow field to be
validated using the experimental data collected on
fan performance and on the flow quantities within
the impeller;
• The investigation on the mechanism by which energy
is transferred to and wasted by the streamlines cross-
ing the impeller, to evaluate precisely the losses due
to volumetric and aerodynamic causes;
• The prediction of the performance/efficiency of a gen-
eric configuration for a given set of the main design
parameters, to search for the optimized set of design
parameters and corresponding optimal performances
according to multi-objective optimization techniques.
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