Summary Page for Individual Report
| Date: November 28, 2006 |
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Table of Contents |
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| Author: Jeff | Team: Tornado Machine |
Problem Statement:
The critical function for the Tornado Machine is the ability to create a visible vortex. The machine generates the vortex using a 60 cubic feet per minute (cfm) radial fan connected to a wind-distributing pipe. The fan’s blower is connected to a ball valve to control the velocity and I had to connect the valve to the wind-distributing pipe.
The connection had to be simple, air tight, lightweight, and small in size and it had to be able to distribute a maximum of 60 cfm.
Approach:
The final design was based on the size of the wind pipe and the ball valve. The connection has a direct influence on the updraft and the circulation within the chamber since the fan provides both. Many designs were evaluated. The final two designs were a PVC elbow joint and a rubber hose. Since the blower and the wind pipe are perpendicular to each other, the connection had to be a 90-degree transition.
The two were evaluated using a rating system, which considered customer needs and design requirements. The final design choice was the PVC elbow joint. The elbow joint will allow for future modifications and adds simplicity to the entire system.
Results:
Three overarching results were found during this design process. First, a nozzle design was developed that maximizes the efficiency of the system for the given radial blower without sacrificing modularity. Second, empirical data was collected to characterize the radial blower in terms of its flow rate and associated pressure drop, which allows for accurate predictions of system performance. Third, these results were combined so as to develop an analytic model of the circulation generator, which we intend to verify for future analysis.
Conclusions:
There are many potential solutions that should be taken into consideration before a single option can be selected for any design. All possible solutions should be evaluated including those that are outside budget and design constraints. One should never assume to have the single best design and should never settle.
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