New Flow Resistance Correlation in Perforated Tiles and Porous Plates

[jvangilder]

When you enter an "Open Area", e.g., 25%, for a perforated tile, ITA CFD translates that into a pressure-drop-vs-airflow rate. This pressure drop increases with airflow rate squared - and all of this can be conveniently summarized as a dimensionless loss coefficient. So, how do we know what loss coefficient corresponds to a given open area? Well, in theory, you can look up an estimate in a handbook or try to find manufacturer data. However, it turns out that both of those approaches may not be very accurate.

We just published the attached paper (research led by Schneider Electric joined by a university and a data-center-CFD competitor) on this topic. While there are many interesting findings, we proposed a new correlation between open area and loss coefficient based on our own experimental data and detailed CFD modeling. This correlation was found to be significantly more accurate than the handbook correlations that we (and most of the CFD modeling community) has been using for years!

The new resistance correlation is now incorporated in ITA CFD in the modeling of Perforated Floor Tiles, Perforated Ceiling Tiles, and Porous Plates. You may notice some slight differences in results. We believe this is because we have been able to improve the accuracy of your simulations.