Understanding Fan Laws

1. 1. The affinity laws for fans are used in HVAC to express the relationship between variables involved
in fan performance and power. They are the basic proportional relationships between Fan Speed
(rpm) – Air Flow Volume (m3/h) – Pressure (Pa) – Power (W) They are frequently used to estimate
air moving device requirements. Additionally, the fan laws can be used to calculate the performance
of air movers in different sizes and speeds. Fan Affinity Laws
2. 2. Volume of Airflow (m3/h) What happens to flow rate if the impeller speed changes (first law)
Pressure (Pa) What happens to system pressure if the air volume rate changes (second law) Power
(Watts) What happens to power demand if the impeller speed changes (third law) Three Basic Fan
Laws
3. 3. The volume of air moved by a fan changes in direct proportion to the change in speed of the fan
impeller and can be calculated as follows: V2 = (U2 / U1) x V1 This is a useful relationship as it allows
us to use changes in volume when calculating the other fan laws. Example: A fan produces 1000m³/h
at an impeller speed of 2000rpm What is the resulting airflow if the speed was reduced to 1000rpm?
V2 = (1000/2000) x 1000 = 500m³/h The First Fan Law – Volume of Air V2 – Volume of air moved
(m3/h) U2 – Air Produced (m3/h) U1 – Speed (rpm) V1 – Potential reduction in speed (rpm)
4. 4. The pressure developed by the fan and the pressure drop in a system varies with the square of the
change of speed of the impeller or volume passing through the system. P2 = (U2 / U1) 2 x P1
Example: A fan produces 200Pa at an impeller speed of 1000rpm. What is the change in pressure if
the impeller speed was increased to 2000rpm? P2 = (2000/1000) ² x 200 P2 = 800Pa Alternatively
P2 = (V2 / V1)2 x P1 Example: A system has a resistance of 250pa at an airflow of 500m3/h. What
will the resistance be if we reduce the airflow to 400m3/h? P2 = (400/500)2 x 250 P2 = 160Pa The
Second Fan Law – Pressure P2 – Change in Pressure (Pa) U2 – Change in Speed (rpm) U1 – Speed
(rpm) P1 – Pressure (Pa)
5. 5. The power required to move air through the fan or system varies with the cube of the change in
volume and is calculated as follows: W2 = (V2 / V1) 3 x W1 Interestingly the noise generated by the
fan is also a power relationship and again varies with the cube of the change in air volume being
handled. Example: If the power input to the impeller is 500Watts delivering a volume of 1000m3/h.
What is the power input when the same impeller is delivering 500m3/h? W2 = (500/1000) ³ x 500
W2 = 62.5Watts, so half the volume = half speed =1/4 the pressure and 1/8th the Power (and noise)
The Third Fan Law – Power W2 – New Power Input (Watts) V2 – Power input (Watts) V1 – Volume of
Air (m3/h) W1 – Change in/new Airflow (m3/h)
6. 6. Fan laws are essentially about impellers and what happens to their characteristics when they
undergo changes in rotational speed, air density, or are scaled in size. They also help with the
understanding of ventilation systems and the relationship between air volume flow rate and system
total pressure. As we have discussed the fan laws that we should be mostly concerned with are those
that tell us: - What happens to flow rate if the impeller speed changes (first law) - What happens to
system pressure if the air volume rate changes (second law) - What happens to power demand if the
impeller speed changes (third law) Fan Laws Summary