What is an air curtain?
An air curtain is a fan-powered device that creates an invisible air barrier over the doorway to separate efficiently two different environments, without limiting the access of the people or vehicles.
The energy-saving air screen reduces heating and cooling costs by up to 80% while protecting the internal climate and increasing people's comfort.
It keeps the atmosphere clean from pests and insects, dust, airborne, pollution, smells, odors and stops draughts and cold or hot air entrance.
The functioning of an air curtain is based on a high-velocity jet of air that covers all openings. Heated air curtains create comfort by the jet of air on people as they cross the air screen and helps to maintain the temperature on the entrance.
Our air curtains effective?
Absolutely! Yes
All studies and tests have proven that air curtains are effective. When an efficient air curtain is well installed it save lots of energy and at the same time the entrance areas remain climate protected, comfortable, and free of draughts, insects, odours, etc.
The following advanced Computational Fluid Dynamics CFD diagrams made by UPC (Polytechnic University of Catalunya) show clearly the efficiency of air curtains.
The surface of the next diagram is divided into two parts (at X=2): the left side considered inside has a heater on the wall and the refrigerated right side simulates outside.
Situation without air curtain:
An unprotected door without an air curtain following the laws of physics, the light heated air on the left of the image, goes up by natural convection and escapes to the cooler side while the heavier unheated cold air penetrates from the outside flowing through the floor. As the air tends to equalize temperatures and pressures and the warm inside is not thermally protected from the outside, the air mixes and we can’t see two separate thermal areas. In this situation, we waste lots of energy and the heater is not able to keep comfortable the internal area.
The situation with air curtain:
Protected door with air curtain the air jet of the air curtain placed on top, clearly divide the warm and the cold area in 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 became worse than an unprotected door.
Thank You !!!