A study of the aerodynamic and acoustic performance of an indoor unit of a DC-inverter split air-conditioner

The aerodynamic and acoustic performance of an indoor unit of a DC-inverter split air-conditioner is simulated by computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and computational aerodynamic acoustics (CAA). Numerical predictions of the flow rate (FR) and band sound pressure level (BSPL) are verified by experimental data and used to create an improved design. The parametric influence upon the values of FR and BSPL for the unit is analyzed for various cases of geometrical parameters of the indoor unit and the cross-flow fan. Two improved designs are developed that can increase the FR for the existing prototype of indoor unit while the BSPL remains lower.