Air Curtain Technology
02.
Are air curtains effective?
Absolutely!
Generally, the air entering through the inlet grille is compressed by internal fans and forced through an air outlet directed at the open doorway.
All studies and tests have proven that air curtains are effective. When an efficient air curtain is properly installed, it saves considerable amounts of energy. At the same time, the entrance areas remain climate protected, comfortable, and free of draughts, insects, odors, etc.
The following advanced Computational Fluid Dynamics CFD diagrams made by UPC (Polytechnic University of Catalunya) clearly show the efficiency of air curtains.
The diagrams below are divided into two parts (at X=2): the left side simulates an indoor environment with a heater on the wall, and the right side simulates an outdoor environment.
The air curtain placed on top divides the warm and cold areas into two thermal zones. The air curtain keeps the internal environment on the left side of the image at a comfortable, warm temperature and avoids cold air penetration from the outside. In this second situation, the air curtain saves up to 80% of the energy given by the heater placed on the left wall.
Important Note: Poorly designed air curtains, wrong selected units (less powerful), or inadequate installation will lose part or even all the advantages and become worse than an unprotected door.