Keeping Cool: Research on Cold Air Curtains at Kettering University May Add up to Energy Savings Worldwide.Energy Editors/Business Editors FLINT, Mich.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 13, 2004 Making refrigerated re·frig·er·ate tr.v. re·frig·er·at·ed, re·frig·er·at·ing, re·frig·er·ates 1. To cool or chill (a substance). 2. To preserve (food) by chilling. supermarket display cases more efficient by 10 percent would translate into a lot of energy saved worldwide -- research that is increasingly important for an energy-reliant world. "Ten percent doesn't sound like much, but it is do-able," said Dr. Homayun Navaz, associate professor of Mechanical Engineering at Kettering University The university boasts that the majority of its' seniors are employed or accepted to graduate schools before graduation and that one out of 15 alumni either own their own business or are high-level managers in leading companies (see Notable Alumni). in Flint, Mich., and researcher of refrigerated display case efficiency. Navaz is part of a national energy improvement effort that includes research teams at the University of Illinois-Champagne Urbana and Oakridge National Laboratory with funding from Southern California Edison Southern California Edison (or SCE Corp), the largest subsidiary of Edison International (NYSE: EIX), is the primary electricity supply company for much of Southern California. It provides 11 million people with electricity. through the California Department of Energy and the California Energy Commission The California Energy Commission is California’s primary energy policy and planning agency. Created in 1974 and headquartered in Sacramento, the Commission has responsibility for activities that include forecasting future energy needs, promoting energy efficiency through . The air curtain
abbr. Food and Drug Administration FDA, n.pr See Food and Drug Administration. FDA, n.pr the abbreviation for the Food and Drug Administration. )-prescribed specifications. How much of the warm air has infiltrated through the return air grill into the display case defines the cooling load. The more warm air that has infiltrated into the display case the harder the compressors have to work to make the warm air cool again - thus using more energy. Approximately 70 percent of the cooling load comes from the cold air curtain. Utilizing Digital Particle Image Velocimetry Particle image velocimetry (PIV) is an optical method used to measure velocities and related properties in fluids. The fluid is seeded with particles which, for the purposes of PIV, are generally assumed to faithfully follow the flow dynamics. (DPIV DPIV Digital Particle Image Velocimetry DPIV dipeptidyl-peptidase IV ) technology, the cold air curtain is seeded with smoke containing very small particles and then lasers are shot through the air and a digital camera records the data by tracking the particles of smoke in the airflow. A computer compiles the data and completes statistical analyses to identify the velocity field. The velocity field indicates which direction the airflow is moving. The images taken of the laser are the "streamlines" showing where the outside air is being entrained into the air curtain. "By looking at this data we can measure how much air is being entrained - based on actual measurements - so we don't have to rely on computational modeling or guesswork," said Navaz. Prior to the Kettering research, there was no methodology for calculating the infiltration rate. Putting doors on refrigerated cases is not a viable option. "Doors cause sales to go down," explained Navaz, "one of the big chains in California tried using cases with doors and sales plummeted. For the full story and colorful images, visit: www.kettering.edu/news. |
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