Literature Review

Centrifugal blowers have been researched, analyzed and evaluated by different angles by various
researchers, recommendation bodies, and projects using finite element analysis. A thorough
study has been done on initial level to analyze and evaluate the centrifugal blowers.

Lin G. F. (1991)

Here, authors carried out a stress calculations for a fiber reinforced composite thruster
blade. The composite blade is constructed using multiple layers of braided fiber in a thick
shell skin layer. The core is filled with foam type material and uses shear webs for
internal supports. The objective of this work is to explore the rotating blade
hydrodynamic design constraints of a typical composite blade by performing a 3-D
element- stress analysis. Two salient features are exhibited in the numerical result for
composite blade stress calculations. First minimum deflection at the tip of a composite
blade can be quite large compared to that of an isotropic metal blade using the same blade
form. Second maximum through the thickness tensile stress in the skin layer thickness
direction could become critical for higher loadings. Composite blade can provide not
only a means of weight savings but is also can have excellent structural stiffness and
strength properties through proper geometric and material design.

Lauchle G. C., et.al (1997)

In this paper, authors described Discrete-frequency axial-flow fan noise reduction using
active noise control. The unique aspect of this research is the use of the fan itself as the
anti-noise source in the active noise control scheme. This is achieved by driving the
entire fan unit axially with an electrodynamics shaker which mechanically couples the
solid surfaces of the fan to the acoustic medium. The experimental apparatus is composed
of a baffled fan unit in a free field. A small cylindrical flow obstruction is placed on the
inlet side of the fan to enhance noise emissions at the blade-pass frequency and

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 harmonics. The experiment successfully demonstrates the concept of active control of
tonal fan noise using a shaken fan as the cancellation source. For the fan operating in a
planar baffle, the fundamental blade-passage frequency sound-pressure level at the
location of the error sensor is reduced by 20 dB, while the second and third harmonic
levels are reduced by 15 and 8 dB, respectively. Placing a cabinet enclosure over the
baffled fan did not affect these results significantly, and free-field sound power
measurements indicate similar level reductions with the active control in operation.

Banks C. L. and Wu S. F. (1998)

Authors in this article present the results of an investigation of centrifugal blower noises.
Experiments on three different types of blowers were conducted to determine the major
noise generation mechanisms. The information thus gained has led to an innovative noise
reduction method utilizing a stationary, non-contacting transition mesh. In this
Experiment an overall noise reduction of 3 to 5 dB was achieved for all the blowers
running at impeller speeds in the range of 10 to 30 m/s. In addition, a semi analytical
model was developed to predict noise spectra from dimensionally similar centrifugal
blowers. This model yielded an acoustic power proportional to the fourth power of the
blower speeds. Comparisons of the calculated and measured noise spectra from different
blowers running under various speeds were also demonstrated.

Carudina M. (2001)

In this research paper, the author has explained noise generation in vane axial fans due to
rotating stall and surge. A characteristic of axial flow fans is instabilities in their
performance and noise in partial load operation. These instabilities are a consequence of
rotating stall created in the rotor blade and/or in the guide vane cascade. At some
operating conditions the rotating stall caused the appearance of a surge representing the
lowest region of fan operating stability. The rotating stall and especially surge caused a
steep increase in the emitted noise and lowered the performance of the fan. The rotating
stall generation phenomenon is highlighted and its influence on the emitted total noise
level and noise spectra for axial flow fans with inlet and outlet guide vanes.

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Khorrami M. R. et.al (2001)

Rotor tip-clearance induced noise, both in the form of rotor self noise and rotor-stator
interaction noise, constitutes a significant component of total fan noise. Innovative yet
cost effective techniques to suppress rotor-generated noise are, therefore, of foremost
importance for improving the noise signature of turbofan engines. To that end, the
feasibility of a passive porous treatment strategy to positively modify the tip-clearance
flow field is addressed. In their paper, Mehdi R. Khorrami et.al, focused on accurate
viscous flow calculations of the baseline and the treated rotor flow fields. Detailed
comparison between the computed baseline solution and experimental measurements
shows excellent agreement. Tip-vortex structure, trajectory, strength, and other relevant
aerodynamic quantities are extracted from the computed database. Extensive comparison
between the untreated and treated tip clearance flow fields is performed. The
effectiveness of the porous treatment for altering the rotor-tip vortex flow field in general
and reducing the intensity of the tip vortex, in particular, is demonstrated. In addition, the
simulated flow field for the treated tip clearly shows that substantial reduction in the
intensity of both the shear layer roll-up and boundary layer separation on the wall is
achieved.

Brian Hayman et.al (2001)

The objective of his paper is to establish a sound technical basis for the large-scale use of
fibre composites in naval vessels. It includes in-depth studies of material performance
and characterization, structural performance under both static and extreme dynamic
loads, non-destructive inspection and evaluation, damage repair, fire performance, and
effectiveness of various electro-magnetic shielding methods

Mouritz A. P. et.al (2001)

Authors reviewed recent applications of fibre-reinforced polymer composites to naval

ships and submarines. A wide range of new applications of composite to naval vessels are
described, including their current and potential use in the superstructure, advanced mast
systems, propellers, propulsion shafts, rudders, pipes, pumps, machinery and other

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 equipment in large warships. Potential applications of composite to submarines are also
described, such as their possible use in propulsors, control surfaces, machinery and
fittings. For each application the major benefits gained from using composite instead of
conventional shipbuilding materials, such as steel and aluminium alloys are identified.
The paper also outlines the main drawbacks of using composites in naval vessels.

Kobayashi B. et.al (2002)

A backpack blower powered by a small utility engine requires high operating

performance, while at the same time, the demand by society for cleaner exhaust gas and
lower noise is ever more intensifying. Buhei Kobayashi et.al have successfully solved
this problem by developing a new blower which satisfies the requirements like higher
operating performance with low noise.

Tournour M. et al (2003)

In this paper the tonal noise radiated by a subsonic blower fan of an HVAC system was
studied. Numerical simulations have been performed and compared to measurements.
The numerical simulation is based on the aero-acoustic analogy where the unsteady flow
is first computed using STAR-CD and then passed to LMS SYSNOISE to compute the
acoustic radiation. The measurements have been performed in the semi-anechoic room of
Denso Thermal System Italia. Good correlation has been found between the numerical
simulation both in terms of level and spatial distribution.

Wan-Ho J. and Duck-Joo L. (2003)

Authors, in this paper, investigated on the noise generation mechanism of a centrifugal

fan and developed a prediction method for the unsteady flow and acoustic pressure fields.
For this, a numerical analysis method using acoustic similarity law is proposed, and it is
verified that the method can predict the noise generation mechanism very well by
comparing the predicted results with available experimental results.

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Im H. B. et.al (2004)

Equipment used at nuclear power plants requires robust and reliable designs because in
case of disaster, such as earthquake, small damage can turn into an unpredictable result.
Blower used at nuclear power plants is important because of such reason. A seismic
analysis is one of crucial design procedures of an axial blower used in nuclear power
plants., conducted experiments in order to improve seismic technology in Korea. Seismic
technology can be roughly categorized into analysis and experiment. In this paper, the
axial blower is modeled and undergone mode analysis in ANSYS. Data from mode
analysis, such as modal participation factor and effective mass were used to determine
frequency response function and then modal coordinate function. Then superposition
method is applied to yielded modal coordinate function in order to find RRS. By
obtaining RRS, it was possible to determine the safety of the axial blower used in the
nuclear power plant.

Lin C. C. and Lee Y. (2004)

Authors, in this paper, discussed the stacking sequence optimization of laminated

composite structures using genetic algorithm with local improvement. In this study, a
local improvement is inserted into a standard Genetic Algorithm (GA), and the real
calculation, by finite element analysis. The GA with local improvement is applied to
composite propeller the amount of calculation is reduced by over half. By using the
numerical rifting surface theory to marine propeller of a practical tool to solve both
steady and unsteady flow problems. Comparisons with measured steady performance
characteristics indicate agreement across a wide variety of propeller types.

Cao R. and HU J (2005)

Authors of this paper proposed a cluster design approach to achieve a good aerodynamic
and acoustic performance of a ventilation system and an advanced measurement system
was adopted to test the aerodynamic and acoustic performance of the unit which was
based on a pipe test rig with non-reflection acoustic boundary and was designed to
separate the mechanical and airflow generated noise. This measurement device was

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 located at the ventilation room supply diffuser and the results showed that the cluster
centrifugal blower provides a higher mass flow rate and a lower sound pressure level than
a conventional mechanical ventilation system.

Velarde S. et.al (2005)

In this paper, authors have given an experimental study about the influence of some
geometric features on the aeroacoustic behavior of a squirrel-cage fan, used in
automotive air conditioning units, has been carried out. The study focused on the effect of
both the shape and the position of the volute tongue on the noise generated by the fan.
Different geometric configurations were tested in order to compare the results. First of
all, the performance curves were measured in a standardized test facility. Then, the
acoustic behavior of the fan was characterized by means of acoustic pressure
measurements near the fan inlet. The comparison of the test results indicated a great
dependence of both the shape and the position of the volute tongue and the noise
generation. In particular, some geometric configurations of the volute tongue were able to
reduce the fan noise generation without reducing the fan performance.

Jeon W. H. (2005)

Many researchers have been focused on the fan noise in the context of reducing the noise
generated from the fan. But, only a few researches have been carried out on the noise
prediction because of the difficulty in obtaining detailed information of flow-field and
implementing scattering effects by the casing. Authors of this paper have developed a
new method to predict the noise from a centrifugal fan. By using this method, the sound
characteristics of a splitter impeller are analyzed. The objective of this study is to
calculate the effects of splitter vanes that are attached to an original impeller on acoustic
signature. A Discrete Vortex Method (DVM) is used to describe the flow-field of the
centrifugal fan. Lowson's equation is used to predict the acoustic far-field pressure. In
this paper, four impeller types were considered: original impeller, an impeller that has
twice number of blade, a splitter impeller, and a splitter impeller that has twice number of
splitter blade. This study reveals that the splitter modifies the flow-field near the impeller

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 tip more uniformly. The splitter impeller influences the acoustic characteristics as well as
the performance. The splitter impeller, which has the splitter to be placed in a jet region is
found to improve the acoustic characteristics, and therefore reducing noise.

Younis M. et.al (2007)

In this paper, authors studied complex phenomena related to the internal flow in a
squirrel-cage fan and their influence on the aeroacoustic behavior using Computational
Fluid Dynamics. These phenomena are the interactions and unsteadiness induced by the
relative motion of the rotating blades compared to the volute. Unsteady Reynolds
Averaged Navier-Stokes approach was used on the computational domains which have
been divided into two zones, a rotating zone including the impeller and a stationary zone
including the volute for 3D unsteady calculations. The sliding mesh technique has been
applied to the interfaces in order to allow the unsteady interactions between the two
zones. The overall behavior of the fan has been validated experimentally at different flow
rates. The unsteady part is illustrated by the pressure and aerodynamic force fluctuations
applied on the blade surfaces, and on different points from the lateral surface of the
volute. Finally, using the pressure and the velocity fluctuations data acquired upon the
surfaces of rotating blades, acoustic pressures have been computed using the Fowcs
Williams-Hawking (FW-H) analogy.

Eisinger F. L. and Sullivan R. E. (2007)

In this article, authors have explained about the fatigue cracks from high cycle vibratory
loading which are developed in a centrifugal fan impeller after a relatively short period of
operation. Based on vibration tests of the impeller and acoustic analysis of the internal
spaces of the fan, structural-acoustic coupling with matching frequencies involving two
nodal diameter modes (structural and acoustic) was identified as the cause of the
vibration problem. This paper gives a description of the problem and identifies available
remedies for its elimination. Special attention is given in case 1 to the acoustics of the
system, where changes of the fan casing utilizing a decoupling acoustic chamber attached
to the casing was investigated and in case 2 where changes needed to the structural

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 characteristics of the impeller by utilizing a modified impeller with a substantially
increased natural frequency by 44% of the two nodal diameter vibrator mode shape are
studied and he confirmed that the structural acoustic coupling and vibration were
significantly reduced in case 1 and were fully eliminate in case 2 by comparing with
experimental tests

Jurij P. and Mirko C. (2008)

Here, in this paper, authors explained about the identification of noise sources on
centrifugal blower which was performed with an acoustic camera at the design and off-
design operation conditions and concluded that the rotational noise prevails at the design
point of operation, and that the non-rotational noise prevails at off-design operation The
main source of noise within a suction unit can be attributed to the aerodynamically
generated noise, at the design as well as at off-design operation.

Jianfeng M. A. et. al (2008)

Autors, in this paper have studied on reduction of centrifugal blower whose impeller has
equidistant forward-swept blades. They designed two new impellers with different blade
spacing and an experimental study was conducted. Both the fan’s aerodynamic
performance and noise were measured and then the two redesigned impellers were
compared with the original ones. He also analysed the effect of the noise reduction
method for a centrifugal fan using impellers with non-isometric forward-swept blades.

Kolla S. et.al (2008)

With the developments in material science, newer materials found application in solving
the problem of noise reduction. Authors have worked on noise reduction of air blower
casing using composites. In this paper the various sound pressure values at different
frequencies of both metal and composite blower are analyzed and concluded that the
noise was reduced to 9.7% when composite material is used.

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Chen-Kang H. and Mu-En H. (2009)

Due to their numerous applications, studies on blowers and their problems have been
attracting the researchers. Here in this paper, authors gave a brief introduction about the
blowers and different types of blowers. They concentrated on centrifugal blowers which
are commonly used for ventilation and air conditioning systems and explained about the
performance analysis and optimized design of backward-curved airfoil centrifugal
blower. During his study, the CFD package FLUENT is used to simulate four backward-
curved airfoil centrifugal blowers. Then the simulation results are compared with the
measured results for validation.

Datong Q. et.al (2009)

In this paper, authors have given an Experimental study on the noise reduction of an
industrial forward-curved blades centrifugal fan. They made many different experimental
tests to find a good impeller-volute matching to reduce the centrifugal fan noise without
reducing performance. The experimental results show that a good coupled modification
not only reduces the fan noise but also could advance the fan performance and extend the
operating range.

Shinagam R. K. et.al (2010)

Authors have given experimental study on reduction of motor-fan noise by modification

of blade and shroud configuration. In this work, an experimental study on the base line
fan and three redesigned composite material fans for low noise is performed by aero
acoustic analysis.

Itha V. andRao T. B. S (2012)

The authors, in their paper, examined the choice of composites as an alternative to metal
for better vibration control, used CATIA and HYPERMESH to model the blower and
analyzed its strength and deformation using FEA software ANSYS. Finally modal

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 analysis is performed on both Aluminium and composite blower to find out first five
natural frequencies.

Srinath Y. and Reddy K. M (2013)

The authors, in their work, aimed at observing the choice of E-Glass as an alternative to
model for better vibration control. E-Glass known for their superior damping
characteristics are more promising in vibration reduction as compared to metal. The
modeling and meshing was done using CATIA V5 R19 and HYPERMESH 10 and
analysis was done using ANSYS.