Effect of ventilation mode and airflow rate on the flow field and particle mass concentration distribution of a high-speed rail carriage in the putty polishing workshop

Abstract

Objectives. The putty polishing procedure usually produces a large number of micron-sized particles, which can lead to serious respiratory diseases as well as skin conditions. The diagonal ventilation system is widely used to decrease the particle concentration in different environments. However, it becomes less effective for a large empty factory workshop, such as the polishing workshop for high-speed rail carriages, in which the diagonal ventilation mode usually results in turbulence in the airflow. In this article we report that the situation can be improved by optimizing the number and locations of the air inlets and outlets in the carriage-polishing workshop. Three modified ventilation modes are proposed, whose efficiencies are evaluated by numerical simulations and compared to the diagonal mode. Results. The results show that the mode with two inlets close to the ceiling and two outlets close to the floor yields the best performance. Besides, the optimum airflow rate under this mode is further determined by both simulations and in-situ measurements. The results reported can serve as a reference for the design of the ventilation systems in the polishing workshops of similar sizes.

Keywords:

• ventilation
• high-speed rail carriage
• putty polishing workshop
• particle concentration
• flow field

Acknowledgement

This study was supported by China Academy of Safety Science and Technology.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Science and Technology Project of Beijing Municipal Education Commission [grant number KM201910038001].