3rd December 2012

Is ducting that simple?

Typical answer to this question is a big

Why, then, do we have so many issues in the field related to ducting? The normal field experience indicates that 70% of the field problems relate primarily to ducting issues. It could be either an issue with the duct design or an issue with installation.

3rd December 2012

Is ducting that simple?

And all this happens because ducting and air distribution is one of the most neglected and under estimated discipline in entire airconditioning gamut. It is taken for granted with changes made at site without taking any design consideration into account to accommodate interiors and other utilities. The end result is that while all other contractors on site walk away with completion certificates, we keep struggling at site.
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There are many reasons, why these things happen. The prime reason for this is ducting is taken as one of the simplest things in the world. And the in fact it is ! But we forget the basic GEPs (good Engineering Practices) related to ducting, both in the design phase as well as installation phase. In other words it is the most ignored discipline in the entire HVAC field. We therefore, today, look at some classic dos and don'ts of ducting.
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It is very common to have plenums like these. Such plenums create more problems than solving any. Such plenums impose high pressure drops on the fan

This either impacts the delivery of air quantity or consumes more power. Difficulties with air balancing and uneven air flow are observed.
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It also creates more noise. In other words it defies the very purpose of ducting. In case plenums have to be used they must be used in unidirectional configuration where the air does not change primary direction of flow. The cross section of plenum in direction of airflow should be such that the air velocity is preferably restricted to 500 fpm. The depth of the plenum in direction of the airflow should be at least 2.5~3 times that of AHU connection size.
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Many a times the AHU is connected to the ducting system using a elbow turning in the reverse direction of the fan rotation. In such configuration again the air needs to change its direction and momentum, that too at high velocity and turbulent state. This imposes high and unpredictable pressure drops on the blower. This results in either the drop in airflow or higher power consumption.
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The noise levels too increase due to turbulence. We must tackle this issue at design stage. One solution is to change the orientation of either the AHU or connecting ductwork. The other solution is to mirror the AHU orientation within the AHU. Even if, the elbow is installed in the direction of the fan rotation, it still does not comply with GEP of ducting.

3rd December 2012

Is ducting that simple?

Even if this elbow is correctly installed in terms of direction of fan rotation, the mounting elbow on the fan outlet itself is not recommended. It is recommended that the a straight piece of duct of length equal to 2.5 to 3 times the fan outlet dimension be installed before any transition or bend.
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3rd December 2012

How many times have we encountered the problem of noise when the diffuser collar is taken directly from the main duct but no airflow? This is because the main duct is carrying air at reasonably high velocity. Since the ducts are large, air does not turn into the collar, hence there is no airflow.
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Since the collar directly opens into the duct with air travelling at reasonable high velocities, the noise is transmitted to the occupied zone. It is highly recommended the collars for grilles and diffusers must be drawn from the branches where the air velocities are lower than 1,000 fpm. In case of constraints we can always incorporate linear diffusers on the sides of the corridors or spaces.
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How many times have we seen a grille collar on the duct just after an elbow on throat radius side?

As much as we try to balance the air, no air seems to be coming out of the grille. This happens because the air travelling and turning tends to travel along the heal radius. This causes lack of airflow on the throat radius side.
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This actually creates a vacuum in the elbow on the throat radius side. This is why the air never comes out of the grille in such a location. In fact, if we observe carefully in the field, such grilles suck air out of the occupied zone, rather than pushing the air into the zone. All we need to do is to ensu7re that no grille collar is taken out on the throat radius side immediately after the elbow.

3rd December 2012

Is ducting that simple?

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2.5 to 3 D

The grille collar or branches can always be taken out after the distance of 2.5~3 times the turning dimension of the elbow.
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Have we ever noticed that the room temperatures are higher that the return air temperature? This is a sure shot indication of the leakages in the supply air ductwork. And why do leakages happen? Sheer negligence at installation phase ! This happens due to many reasons :

We do not close the seams properly. We do not nut bolt the flanges adequately. We space the clamps at too far a distance from each other in case of TDF joints.
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3rd December 2012

In case of C and standing S seams, the C cleat is not properly closed over the standing S seam. Use of sealants is an unknown activity.

All such problems can be mitigated if we are vigilant enough. Following care must be taken at installation phase :

The seam closing should be done at the factory. If done at site, it must be done using the seam closing machines. In case of flanged ducting nut bolts should be done ay not more than 10 0mm distance with rivets at distance not exceeding 75 mm.
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3rd December 2012

In case of TDF joints the gap between two cleats should not exceed 75 mm. All transverse and longitudinal joints must be sealed using silicone sealants.

Having taken care of all these issues at the installation phase, it is advisable to carry out duct pressure testing as per SMACNA or DW143 specifications. This must perticularly be done for ducts where duct pressures are likely to exceed 1 static, for example, ducts upstream of VAV terminals. Duct pressure testing ensures that leakages are in permissible limits.
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But is case of duct leakages, what takes the cake is the way the connections are done between the collars and grilles or diffusers. Invariably most of the grille collars or diffuser collars are cut short, creating a gap between bottom edge of collar and top edge of diffuser. This make the air bypass directly to the return air path. Hence, the air does not get pumped into the conditioned area. Adequate care must be taken at installation phase to ensure that such gaps do not exist.
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These days Variable Air Volume systems have become extremely popular. There is no doubt that VAV systems save us a lot of energy. But in zest to use these systems many times we install hybrid systems. In part of the air distribution systems we install VAV terminals, whereas in rest of the part we install grilles/diffusers directly from the main duct without any VAV terminals. This leads to uneven temperatures in the conditioned space, some areas not cooling adequately while as other cooling excessively.
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While as VAV terminals are pressure independent, the areas where we mount grilles/diffusers directly on the supply ducts becomes pressure dependent system. As a whole the system works as pressure dependent system. As some of the VAVs close, more air travels thru directly mounted grilles/diffusers and vice versa. This leads to uneven and unpredictable temperatures in the areas served without VAV terminals.
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Also, normally the VAV terminals impose higher pressure drops as compared to grilles/diffusers. This tends to oversupply the air to areas served without VAV terminals and starve the areas served with the VAV terminals. This results in higher temperatures in areas served by VAV terminals and much lower temperatures in other areas. The grille/diffuser dampers have such low authority, that these dampers can hardly compensate for the pressure drops imposed by the VAV terminals.
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Therefore, such hybrid systems should never be used. Whenever, VAV systems are used, every grille or diffuser must be fed only through a VAV terminal. Also many times, we install the duct pressure sensor in a VAV system right at the start of ductwork at a AHU room location. While the VAV system works at more than 85% of its volumetric capacity, the system works perfectly.
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However, when the system starts to work at volumetric capacities lower than 80~85%, the system starts to starve the VAV terminals at the end of the ductwork. This creates the high temperatures in areas served by ductwork towards its tail end. This can very easily be averted by placing the duct pressure sensors towards the end of the duct, ideally place at a distance of 75 to 80% of total duct length from the AHU. This however needs prior planning and alertness, rather than waking up when the false ceiling work is already completed and we are about to commission the system.
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What we have talked about so far, all of us have learnt, some in hard way by making mistakes and some by learning from other peoples mistakes. However, a due diligence on duct design is mostly found missing on drawing boards, since it has become draughtsmans activity and very little engineering goes into it. The site execution team only makes it worse by accepting changes a drop of hat, introducing bends, tapers etc.
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 All we really need is a careful scrutiny

of duct design and follow some simple dos and don'ts

On the drawing board At site.

3rd December 2012

Is ducting that simple?

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