Price Industries –Airflow Visualization
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Date
2016-12-07
Authors
Ross, D. Austin
Nabess, Ella
Guan, Guian
Zhou, Zheng
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Abstract
This report details the design process for an airflow visualization system for Price Industries. The system to be designed was to allow for the external injection of smoke (or another form of visualization technique) into an air path that is evenly distributed and without disrupting the throw or pattern of the product. The solution was to be portable within the research center and be safe for human exposure. The current system being used, internally injects smoke into the airflow but because the vent is equipped with a HEPA filter, the smoke cannot penetrate, thus there is a need for an external injection system. The implemented approach to meet the requirements of this project wasto first analyze the current system in place. The team visited Price Industries to meet with the client and assess the environment that the new system would be used in. The team used brainstorming techniques as well as competitor searches to come up with a unique solution. Once a concept was selected with the client’s approval, the team began the detail design process. The final design selected is a hand held wand design that utilizes the current smoke machine, which allows for easy maintenance since the client is already familiar with the product. The wands nozzle is attached to a duct hose that feeds to a reservoir equipped with a fan and damper to adjust the flow rate. The reservoir sits on a cart to increase portability. The length of the wand nozzle can be easily adjusted to adapt to other vent sizes in the future. The total cost of the visualization system comes under budget at $772.19 CAD. Given the time constraints of the project, the team was not able to build a prototype; therefore the team was not able to test out the nozzle hole patterns that were designed. The team has proposed future testing recommendations that can be implemented by the client to select the optimal nozzle design. Overall, the final design described in this report meets all ofthe criteria for the project scope and meets each customer need.