RIT Receives Grant to Study Enhanced Heating and Air-Conditioning Systems

A grant to Rochester Institute of Technology from the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers is funding research into improving the performance of heating and air-conditioning systems.

The $5,000 grant is supporting undergraduate lab projects related to fan performance and airflow characteristics of air ducts in heating and air-conditioning systems. This spring, students in a Thermofluid Laboratory course—which focuses on thermodynamics, fluid mechanics and heat transfer—are working on the fabrication of a fan and air-duct system designed by students. The system will be used in an air-conditioning systems course and labs.

“This equipment will enable students to better understand fan performance, the interaction of the fan with the air-duct system and the characteristics of airflow around fittings commonly used in duct systems,” says Ronald Amberger, professor of manufacturing and mechanical engineering technology in RIT’s College of Applied Science and Technology.

Windows built into the walls of the air duct and the use of helium bubbles will enable observation of airflow, Amberger says.

Funding is part of an annual grants program of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers. RIT has been awarded two previous grants through the program. For more information, visit http://www.ashrae.org/template/AboutLanding.