Tag: bernoulli principle

Understanding Air Entrainment

Published on by codybiehleLeave a comment

EXAIR uses the word entrainment a lot, all of our blowoff products use the principle to amplify the air stream and increase efficiency. But, what is entrainment and what causes the phenomenon? Entrainment can be defined as a fluid that is swept along into an existing moving fluid. This brings Bernoulli’s equation into the picture. When looking at specific situations and conditions Bernoulli’s equation can show some interesting significance with gases.

Bernoulli’s Equation

Bernoulli’s equation takes into account four main variables which are Pressure (P), Density (r), Velocity (v), and a height difference (z); along with a single constant for gravity. you can see the relationship between the velocity squared and the pressure from the equation above.  Being that this relationship is a constant along the streamline; when the velocity increases; the pressure has to come down. Now we have to look at how fluids like to behave. Fluids within a system like to be at a constant pressure when at the same height and reach a state of equilibrium. This means that fluids will always flow towards a low pressure area, which means that if you create a constant low pressure area you can amplify the air stream. This is the same principle as to why airplanes can fly.

EXAIR Super Air Nozzle entrainment

Since compressed air can be an expensive utility, it is good to minimize it and maximize the surrounding entrained air. Therefore we have designed our products to use this entrainment principle to amplify the air blast while using less compressed air and more entrained ambient air. Products like our Super Air Knife can see an amplification ratio (ambient air to compressed air) of up to 40:1; this means for every 1 SCFM of compressed air used we are entraining 40 SCFM of ambient air.

EXAIR’s Super Air Knife

We use this principle for our Air Amplifiers, Air Knifes, Air Nozzles and Jets, Safety Air Guns, and our Gen4 Static Eliminators. Our goal is to save you money and give you better results in the process.  

If you have questions about any of our engineered Intelligent Compressed Air® Products, feel free to contact EXAIR or any Application Engineer.

Cody Biehle
Application Engineer
EXAIR Corporation
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What Is A Coanda Profile?

Published on by Russ BowmanLeave a comment

The big thing that sets engineered products like EXAIR Intelligent Compressed Air Products apart from other devices is the engineering that goes into their design.  Several principles of fluidics are key to those designs:

The one I wanted to discuss today, though, is the Coanda Effect, what it means for our engineered compressed air products, and what they can do for you:

The Coanda effect is named after Henri Coandă, who was the first to use the phenomenon in a practical application…in his case, aircraft design.  He described it as “the tendency of a jet of fluid emerging from an orifice to follow an adjacent flat or curved surface and to entrain fluid from the surroundings so that a region of lower pressure develops.”  Put simply, if fluid flows past a solid object, it keeps flowing along that surface (even through curves or bends) and pulls surrounding fluid into its flow.  Here’s a demonstration, using an EXAIR Super Air Amplifier and a plastic ball:

What’s interesting here is that the Super Air Amplifier is not only DEMONSTRATING the Coanda effect, it’s also USING it:

Air Amplifiers use the Coanda Effect to generate high flow with low consumption.

EXAIR Standard and Full Flow Air Knives also have Coanda profiles that the primary (compressed air) flow follows, and uses, to entrain “free” air from the surrounding environment:

Compressed air flows through the inlet (1) to the Standard Air Knife, into the internal plenum. It then discharges through a thin gap (2), adhering to the Coanda profile (3) which directs it down the face of the Air Knife. The precision engineered & finished surfaces optimize entrainment of air (4) from the surrounding environment.

EXAIR Air Wipes can be thought of as “circular Air Knives” – instead of a Coanda profile along the length of an Air Knife, an Air Wipe’s Coanda profile is on the ring of the Air Wipe, which entrains surrounding air into a 360° ring of converging air flow:

Air Wipe – How it works

So that’s the science incorporated in the design of our products.  But what does it mean to the user?

  • Efficiency.  Pulling in a tremendous amount of “free” air from the surrounding environment means minimal consumption of compressed air, while still getting a hard hitting, high velocity air flow.
  • Sound reduction.  This air entrainment also creates a boundary layer in the air flow, resulting in a much quieter air flow than you get from a simple open-end blow off.

EXAIR Corporation is committed to helping you get the most out of your compressed air system, and thanks to Mr. Coandă, that includes reducing your compressed air consumption and noise levels.  If you’d like to find out more, give me a call.

Russ Bowman, CCASS

 

 

 

Application Engineer
EXAIR Corporation
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Daniel Bernoulli, Entraining EXAIR Products

Published on by EricKuhnash@EXAIR.comLeave a comment

Daniel Bernoulli was born February 8, 1700 in Groningen in the Netherlands and was the son of Johann Bernoulli an early developer of calculus. It is believed that Daniel did not have a good relationship with his father. This mainly stemmed from the both of them entering the same scientific contest at the University of Paris. The two tied and his father Johann took exception to being compared to his son as “equal” and could not accept the shame and banned Daniel from his home. Daniel tried to reconcile their difference but his father carried this grudge to his death.

Earlier in Daniels life his father convinced Daniel to study business as there was no income incentive to study mathematics but against his will Daniel did choose the study of business. His father then convinced Daniel to study medicine but Daniel still wanted to study mathematics and agreed to study medicine under the condition that his dad teach him mathematics privately. Daniel completed his bachelors degree at the age of 15 and his masters degree when he was 17. Daniel then went on to study medicine and received his PhD in anatomy and botany from the Universities of Basel, Heidelberg and Strasbourg.

Daniel Bernoulli was very accomplished but mostly known for Bernoulli’s principle. Bernoulli’s principle is the relationship between fluid speed and pressure. An increase in the speed of a fluid will occur simultaneously with a decrease in the fluid’s pressure or potential energy. The Venturi effect, published in 1797 by Giovanni Venturi, applies Bernoulli’s principle to a fluid that flows through a tube with a constriction in it. The Venturi tube provides a handy method for mixing fluids or gases, and is popular in carburetors and atomizers, which use the low pressure region generated at the constriction to pull the liquid into the gas flow. It also offers a particularly clear example of the Bernoulli principle.

For example, above is how a Super Air Wipe works. Compressed air flows through an inlet (1) of the Air Wipe into an annular chamber (2). It is then throttled through a small ring nozzle (3) at high velocity. This primary airstream adheres to the Coanda profile (4), which directs it down the angled surface of the Air Wipe. A low pressure area is created at the center (5) inducing a high volume flow of surrounding air into the primary airstream. As the airflow leaves the Air Wipe, it creates a conical 360° ring of air that attaches itself to the surface of the material running through it (6), uniformly wiping the entire surface with the high velocity airflow.

EXAIR incorporates the Bernoulli Principle with our engineered products which entrain air such as our Super Air Knives, Super Air Wipes, Air Amplifiers and Static Eliminating products to name a few. We have several Applications Engineers that will appreciate your call to discuss our products. If you have an application or question please call 800.903.9247 or visit us on our website www,EXAIR,com and let us help you.

Eric Kuhnash
Application Engineer
E-mail: EricKuhnash@exair.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_EK

Entrainment: What is it?

Published on by johnball2014Leave a comment

By definition, entrainment is a form of the verb, entrain, which is fluid that is swept along into an existing moving flow.   Whenever there is a discussion about fluid dynamics, the Bernoulli’s equation generally comes up.  This equation is unique as it relates flow energy with kinetic energy and potential energy.  The formula was mainly linked to incompressible fluids, but under certain conditions, it can be significant for gas flows as well.  I would like to discuss how EXAIR uses the Bernoulli’s equation for entrainment to maximize efficiency within your compressed air system.

This relationship between pressure as compared to flow and velocity came to be known as the Bernoulli’s principle.  “In fluid dynamics, Bernoulli’s principle states that an increase in the speed of fluid occurs simultaneously with a decrease in static pressure or a decrease in the fluids potential energy”1. Bernoulli realized that the sum of kinetic energy, flow energy, and potential energy is a constant during steady flow.  He wrote the equation like this:

Equation 1:

P/r + V2/2 + gz = constant

P – Pressure

r – density

V – velocity

g – gravitational constant

z – height difference

 

Not to get too technical, but you can see the relationship between the velocity squared and the pressure from the equation above.  Being that this relationship is a constant along the streamline; when the velocity increases; the pressure has to come down.  An example of this is an airplane wing.  When the air velocity increases over the top of the wing, the pressure becomes less.  Thus, lift is created and the airplane flies.

Since we know the criteria to apply the Bernoulli’s equation with compressed air, let’s look at some EXAIR products.  Blowing compressed air to cool, clean, and dry, EXAIR can do it very efficiently as we use the Bernoulli’s principle to entrain the surrounding air.  Remember from the equation above, as the velocity increases, the pressure has to decrease.  When the pressure decreases, the surrounding air will move toward the low pressure.  That low pressure will sweep the ambient air into the air stream; called entrainment.

Compressed air is expensive, but the ambient air is free.  The more ambient air we can entrain, the more efficient the blowing device is.  As an example, we engineer the Super Air Knife to maximize this phenomenon to give an amplification ratio of 40:1. So, for every 1 part of compressed air, the Super Air Knife will bring into the air streamline 40 parts of ambient “free” air.  This makes the Super Air Knife one of the most efficient blowing devices on the market.  By adding mass to the flow stream, it will reduce the compressed air usage, saving you money, and allow for better cooling and a stronger blowing force.  For a drilled pipe, the amplification ratio is generally only two to three times.

We use this principle for many of our products like the Air Amplifiers, Safety Air Guns, Air Nozzles, Air Knives, and Gen4 Static Eliminators. Daniel Bernoulli was able to find a relationship between velocities and pressures, and EXAIR was able to use this to create efficient, safe, and effective compressed air products.  To find out how you can use this advantage to save compressed air in your processes, you can contact an Application Engineer at EXAIR.  We will be happy to help you.

John Ball
Application Engineer
Email: johnball@exair.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_jb

 

  1. Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernoulli%27s_principle