Aeroacoustic Simulations of an Axial Fan with Modelled Turbulent Inflow Conditions

Abstract

In applications, the acoustics of fans can differ significantly from the measurements of the standalone fan. This is due to disturbed inflow conditions, for example, caused by a heat exchanger upstream of an axial fan. Resolving the complex geometry and dimensions of typical heat exchangers in aeroacoustic scale-resolving simulations leads to a very high computation effort, which is currently not economically feasible. Turbulence reconstruction tools, such as the FRPM, provide the possibility to model the turbulent inflow conditions, thereby avoiding the representation of the heat exchanger in the aeroacoustic simulations. This approach is tested on a benchmark experiment of a ducted fan with an upstream turbulence grid.