Ventilation of Poultry Buildings with Exhaust Fans at One End and Continuous Slot Inlets Along the Sidewalls

Abstract

Ventilation of buildings for housing floor-raised poultry, with exhaust fans clustered at one end and continuous slot inlets along the sidewalls, was analyzed using relationships for airflow in manifolds. Air velocities measured along the inlets in two poultry buildings were compared to velocities computed using theoretical relationships. The parameter with the greatest effect on uniformity of airflow along the inlets was the inlet discharge coefficient multiplied by the ratio of total slot inlet area to the flow area in the building cross-section, defined as a. For typical poultry buildings without substantial internal obstructions to airflow, variation in air velocity at the slot inlets along the building length was less than 10% when a was less than 0.4. Reductions in air velocity along the inlets are developed from manifold relationships for a range of values of a and F, a dimensionless friction parameter. An example demonstrates application of results to sizing sidewall inlet openings in buildings designed for tunnel ventilation.