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Fan Modelling

The fan enhances the rate of heat transfer to the coolant air. There are three ways to model the fan which are discussed as follows:

1. Fan curve (Dp vs Flow): In this method the fan geometry is not present, but the fan momentum contribution is modelled with source terms in the transport equations. This method is simple to implement and computationally inexpensive but requires a mapping of the fan performance (a fan curve), typically obtained from stand-alone testing.
2. Moving Reference Frame (MRF) Approach: In this method fan geometry is used, but rotation of the fan is modelled by including source terms for the momentum and turbulence in a rotating frame of reference equation. The steady state simulation technique simplifies the actual modelling of fan. The advantage of this method is that only the rotational speed of the fan is required, no further experimental details are required.
3. Transient Approach: In this method, the full detail of the fan geometry is considered, the momentum and turbulence are modelled with the actual rotation of the fan. This approach is performed using volume remesh in Simerics-MP+. In this case, the interface between rotating and stationary parts slides against each other. Since it is transient, it captures all the effects but is computationally more expensive than the MRF approach.