Particulate fouling assessment in membrane based air-to-air energy exchangers

摘要: Abstract The impact of air-side particulate fouling on the performance membrane-based, fixed-plate energy recovery ventilators (ERVs) is investigated for both fine and coarse (0.3–10 μm) as well ultrafine (∼0.1 μm) aerosols. Two residential size cross-flow ERV exchanger cores were fouled with ISO A3 medium test dust. It was found that dust loading, equivalent to a few years exposure in heavily polluted environment, has minimal cores. In cases, sensible latent effectiveness actually slightly enhanced due boundary layer thinning additional turbulence potentially caused by layer. Heavy loadings, absence appropriate filtration upstream, may result fan penalty (∼50%) added pressure drop across Samples three different membrane transport media, extracted from commercial HVAC cores, loaded graphite NaCl aerosol nanoparticles. Accelerated loading experiments conducted laboratory apparatus simulate several field. Initial post-loading water vapor permeance through samples experimentally determined each quantify effects fouling. relative humidity membranes also studied exposing particles dry air an elevated RH 75%, leading surface condensation. show deposition can only affect when severe enough form cake comparable thickness membrane. case hygroscopic salt particles, condensation at high values lead reductions up 15% before formation phase fouling, whilst no reduction observed non-hygroscopic particles. This indicates net porosity microporous substrate exposed salt-loaded samples. A pore-narrowing process layer, mobilization aqueous form, potential explanation these observations.