Cross flow air curtains offer superior air barriers driven by exceptional effectiveness and efficient air draft. All commercial and industrial air curtains engineered at Acme Air Curtains are powered by cross flow air suction — enabling our clients to maintain hygienic and energy efficient workspaces.
Acme Air Curtains are used as effective air barriers across industries — food industry, manufacturing, packaging plants, pharmaceutical companies, logistic terminals and transportation hubs as well as for commercial air curtain applications at educational institutes, healthcare facilities and at retail spaces.
What is a cross flow suction air curtain?
A cross flow suction air curtain is an equipment wherein the suction of the air is from the front of the unit directly by the impellers or tangential flow fan assembly to create curtain / barrier of air across any opening/door [to prevent environment contamination through open doorways].
The quantum of air sucked by these flow fans exits the unit chassis at perpendicular to the axis of flow fan through its discharge nozzle. This type of suction necessitates full equipment length flow fan or fan assembly, which is powered by a uni-shaft, side mounted motor OR a dual shaft, centrally mounted motor.
Due to the full-length impeller assembly of the units, air draft generated does not experience any major velocity variations across the horizontal point of the air barrier throughout the unit’s nozzle. Resulting to very low air barrier dispersion and stiffer air draft with increased travel distance from top to bottom. Hence superior air draft efficiencies to prevent environment contamination.
What is a centrifugal suction air curtain?
Centrifugal suction air curtain has forward / backward curve [based on the fan movement direction] centrifugal fans with volute [fan covers] connected to a plenum with side suction of air, which turns the air 90 degrees to discharge the pressurized air through the fan cover into the plenum inlet at high speed. From the plenum this high-speed incoming air is distributed across the length of the plenum [generally equivalent to the length of air curtain equipment] which usually narrows down at open end to compensate for drop in air draft pressure arising due to distribution of air into the plenum. Usually, small air curtains have one dual shaft motor with 2 centrifugal fans, whereas longer units have multiple sets of dual / uni-shaft motors with identical centrifugal fans and it’s volutes.
Benefits of cross flow suction air curtains compared to centrifugal suction air curtain.
+ Cross flow suction offers largely uniform, laminar air flow air draft to cover any prospective opening, from top to bottom. Whereas a centrifugal suction air curtain’s air barrier will lack uniformity in the laminar flow due to the dispersion of the air flow within the plenum, which in turn lowers the velocity and further accelerates the air dispersion in the formed curtain when the air draft leaves the plenum to create the air barrier from top to bottom of the opening.
+ Typical cross flow suction unit offers superior air curtain formation with minimal variation in air velocity of the air draft across any horizontal point of the air barrier. This results in near zero weak air draft zones, hence better efficiency of the air barrier in repelling contaminants, with negligible seepage of air [dispersion] through the air barrier from top of the opening to bottom of the opening.
As against this, a centrifugal suction air curtain’s air draft has wide variation in air draft speed as one moves from left to right side horizontally. Such weak zones within the air draft from top to bottom, across any horizontal point in the curtain’s air barrier, results in air seepages [dispersion] and across contamination of protected inside air by outside environment partially due to venturi effect taking place near around these weak zones. This reduces the efficiency of the air barrier in prevention of environment contamination by unwanted air pollutants/conditions i.e. to repel dust — prevent conditioned air losses — humidity containment — prevent passage of hazardous fumes — insects.
+ Cross flow suction air curtain offers relatively low noise, high uniform velocity + high cfm air draft as compared to centrifugal suction air curtains.
+ Cross flow suction units are energy efficient units as compared to identical velocity and cfm centrifugal suction air curtains.
+ Cross flow suction units have more hardware and are comparatively laborious to produce hence relatively expensive as compared to centrifugal suction air curtains.
+ For equivalent air draft specs the overall size of air curtain unit is comparatively sleeker than centrifugal suction air curtain.
+ Durability of the unit and the efficacy of the air barrier makes cross flow suction air curtains a better value for capital invested.
Centrifugal suction single / multiple motor air curtains with partial length flow fans. Single motor, dual shaft air curtain unit
Two motors, dual shaft air curtain unit
Three motors, 2 with dual shaft & 1 with single shaft air curtain unit
Centrally mounted motor air curtain having cross flow suction with end-to-end TFF
Left / Right side mounted motor air curtain having cross flow suction with end-to-end- TFF
