Dampers

…essential components
of an HVAC system
Dampers –
Part of a System
Control Air Flow

Volume
Temperature

Pressure
Dampers
■ Volume (Air) Control
– Regulate air flow

■ Temperature Control
– Maintain constant temperature
Typical Volume Control
Application

Damper
regulates
air to
branch
Volume Control
Dampers
■ Isolating Dampers
– Regulate or stop flow of air in branches
of a duct system

■ Balancing Dampers
– Limitair flow by holding damper blades
at a specified position

■ Fan Inlet Vane Dampers

– Used to control air flow rate to a fan

■ Fan Outlet Dampers

(or Terminal Unit VAV Type Dampers)
– Used to control air flow rate from a fan
Typical Temperature
Control Applications
Face & bypass for discharge air temp

Mixed air control

Air Flow at
Temp A

Temp C

Air Flow at
Temp B
Temperature
Control Dampers
■ Operate as pairs to maintain a
predetermined set point

■ Simultaneously regulate two different

air streams, each having a different
temperature

■ Can control the temperature as well

as maintain a constant volume of air
 Typical Temperature &
Volume Control Application

Exhaust air
Return air

Conditioned
space

Outside air Supply air

Damper Applications
Barometric / Gravity

Balancing

Control

Fire

Smoke

Combination Fire / Smoke

Damper Applications
Barometric / Gravity
■ Automatically open and close to
maintain predetermined
differential pressure

■ Insures proper air flow in boiler

flue exhausts

■ Safely limits high static pressure

in ductwork
 Damper Applications
for round or
rectangular Balancing
ducts ■ Used for air balancing applications

Control
■ Most commonly specified for
environmental control

■ Rectangular dampers have 2 types of

operation

Parallel
All blades move together at
same rate and same direction
Opposed
Adjacent blades turn in opposite
directions
 Damper Applications
Smoke (leakage-rated)
■ Actuator and damper must be UL approved
as a MATCHED SET for smoke control

You cannot use just any actuator!!

UL
c UL
 Damper Applications
Fire
■ Normally open

■ Closes with a spring loaded mechanism

(fusible link) at a predetermined
temperature or in a fire condition

When FUSIBLE LINK

temperature
reaches 165°F
(74°C) or 212°F
UL (100°C) link
releases high-torque

c UL spring, & BLADES

SLAM SHUT
Damper Applications
Combination Fire / Smoke
■ Provide both smoke and fire functions
in a SINGLE damper

■ Driven with an actuator during smoke

control

■ Permanently close via a fusible link

during fire conditions
Factors Affecting
Damper Performance
■ Inlet and Outlet Conditions

■ Location

■ Damper Authority

■ Damper Flow Characteristic

■ In-duct Obstructions
 Inlet and Outlet
Conditions
Factors
affecting
performance
■ Overhangs

■ Projections
Air currents caused
by these conditions ■ Obstructions
can adversely affect ■ Adjacent walls
damper performance
■ Turbulence
from nearby
discharge fan
 Damper Location
Factors
■ Entering air should be evenly
affecting
performance
distributed across damper face

■ Air outlet should not be restricted

■ Nearness of duct elbows,

upstream and downstream

■ Location of next damper

Damper Flow
Characteristic
The relationship between
flow rate through the damper
and the position of the
damper blades
 Damper Flow
Characteristic (Opposed)
Factors Use damper authority to determine installed
affecting damper flow characteristic
performance
100

A=10%

A=5% A=20%

% A=1% A=50%
Flow 50
Inherent

0
0 50 100
% Damper Blade Rotation
 Damper Flow
Characteristic (Parallel)
Factors Use damper authority to determine installed
affecting damper flow characteristic
performance
100

A=5% A=20%

A=1% A=10% A=50%

%
Flow 50 Inherent

0
0 50 100
% Damper Blade Rotation
 Johnson
Johnson Controls
Controls
Inherent
Inherent Flow
Flow Characteristic
Characteristic
Factors Valid when differential pressure is held
affecting constant regardless of damper blade position
performance
100
Determined in a certified
testing laboratory

% Parallel
Flow 50 Blade

Opposed
Blade

0
0 50
100 % Damper Blade Rotation
 % Damper Authority
Factors
■ Impact of the damper on
affecting
performance
total system

■ The ratio of wide open

pressure drop through the
damper to the total duct
system pressure drop at the
design flow
 % Damper Authority
Factors = ( Pd ÷ Pt ) x 100
affecting
performance
= ( 0.1 ÷ 2 ) x 100 = 5%
Pd =
Pressure
drop across
wide open Fan Static = 2 in. W.G. P Damper = 0.1 in. W.G
damper
C
Pt = C
Total
pressure
drop in that
portion of
the system
Grill
in which
the damper
is to be
installed Fire
Room Damper
 In-duct Obstructions
Factors
affecting ■ Actuators
performance
■ Jackshaft assemblies

■ Sensing devices

■ Structural supports

■ Filters
 Additional
Considerations
Factors
affecting ■ Pressure drop
performance
■ Leakage

■ Maximum torque
required to move
damper blades
 Selecting the
Correct Damper
Factors
■ Determine which installed damper
affecting
performance
flow characteristic will provide the
best control

■ Use the value of the damper

authority which best matches the
system characteristics to determine
the wide open pressure drop through
the damper
 Damper
Applications
2-Position
Static Pressure Control
Temperature Control
Face and Bypass
Mixed Air Control
 2-Position Application
Damper ■ Fully open or fully closed
Applications
■ Not a modulated device
EXAMPLES ■ Must obtain wide open design flow
rate through damper with a
• 100% pressure drop less than or equal to
Flow or a value specified
• 100% ■ Size to duct to provide lowest
Shut Off possible wide open pressure drop
 Static Pressure
Control Application
Damper ■ Less common today with the use of
Applications
Variable Air Volume systems and use
of inlet vanes to control fan capacity

■ Damper modulated to maintain a

static pressure set point at some
downstream point in ductwork

■ Generally installed near the fan

discharge

■ The damper pressure drop must be

included in the overall system
resistance
 Static Pressure
Control Application
Damper Pdamper = Pfan – ( Psystem + Pset point) Point A
Applications Set Point 0.5
in. WG*
*Set Point at “A” is
what the VAV boxes
require at MAX CFM

2.6
At 25% of the
2.4
system flow rate 2.2 Fan curve
(vertical line Y), 2.0
the pressure drop 1.8
across the Pressure 1.6 Damper fully open
1.4 Y
damper must be (In. WG) X
1.2 System resistance curve for
equal to 2.4 -
1.0 ductwork, filters, coils
(0.05 + 0.5) = 0.8 (excluding damper)
1.85 in. WG to 0.6
maintain set point 0.4
0.2
0
0 50
100
Percent of System Flow
 Static Pressure
Control Application
Damper Damper Pressure Drop Requirement
Applications
% Damper Authority = ( Pd ÷ Pt) x 100

2 (Necessary to maintain
set point)
1.85

Damper
Pressure
Drop 1
Inch WC

0
0 25 50 75 100
Percent of System Flow
 Static Pressure
Control Application
Damper
Applications
AUTHORITY
AUTHORITY RECOMMENDATIONS
RECOMMENDATIONS
Opposed Blade Dampers –
Size
Size for
for an
an authority
authority of
of 20
20 to
to 50%
50%
Parallel Blade Dampers –
Not
Not recommended
recommended for
for this
this application
application

Note: The damper flow characteristic for the

static pressure application would be an
authority of 100%.

But damper authorities over 50% are not

recommended due to excessive pressure
drops and potential noise problems.
 Temperature
Control Application
Damper ■ Used to regulated amount of
Applications
conditioned (supply) air to compensate
for heat gain / loss within a space

■ Determine amount of heat gain / loss

required from supply air by using
equation
Sensible
Heat Transfer (BTUH) = (1.08) (CFM) (T
sa – Tr)

CFM = Flow rate through damper

Tsa = Temperature of supply air
Tr = Temperature of room air
 Temperature
Control Application
Damper
Applications
AUTHORITY RECOMMENDATIONS
Size for a linear damper flow characteristic

Opposed Blade Dampers –

Use an authority of 8 to 10%
Parallel Blade Dampers –
Use an authority of 20 to 25%
Others –
Refer to product data sheets
 Face & Bypassor
Multi-Zone Application
Damper ■ Size the face and bypass dampers so combined
Applications flow rate is relatively constant

■ Use parallel blade dampers to enhance

downstream air mixing

Bypass
Air Flow

Face
 Face & Bypass
Application
Damper ■ Use same full flow resistance to achieve constant flow
Applications rate through both face and bypass sections

■ Size bypass damper so full flow resistance equals

sum of full flow resistance of coil and coil face damper

Face & 100 “A”

“A” “A”
“A” -- Coil
Coil Face
Face Vel.
Vel. =
= 500
500 fpm
fpm
Bypass “B” - Coil Face Vel. = 400 fpm
“B” - Coil Face Vel. = 400 fpm
“B”
“B” “C”
80 “C” -- Coil
Coil Face
Face Vel.
Vel. =
= 300
300 fpm
fpm
Damper
Ratios for “C”
“C”
Bypass 60
Various Damper
Coil Drops Size % 40
of Coil
20

0
.01 .02 .03 .05 .1 .2 .3 .5 1
Pressure Drop Through Coil, in. WG
 Mixed Air Control
Application
Damper ■ Used to regulate flow rate of two air streams so
Applications mixed air stream can be maintained at a
predetermined temperature

Example: Economizer cycle control

Exhaust air
Return air

Conditioned
space

Outside air Supply air

 Mixed Air Control
Application
Damper Dampers are adequately matched if
Applications the combined flow characteristic does
not deviate more than 15%

Match Poorly Matched Dampers Well Matched Dampers

dampers Authority O.A. + R.A. = 7% Authority O.A. + R.A. = 7%
so their 100 100
combined
%
flow rate %
Flow
Flow
is constant
regardless 50 50
of position

0 50 0 50
0 100 % Actuator Stroke or Rotation 0 100% Actuator Stroke or Rotation

O.A. Flow R.A. Flow Combined

 Mixed Air
Control Application
Damper
Applications “hunting and cycling”
Instability in both temperature and
static pressure control loops occurs
if variations in combined flow
characteristics are excessive

■ Large variations cause mixing plenum pressure

to fluctuate significantly as dampers are
modulated

■ In turn, the flow rate of each air stream

unpredictably varies so set point is difficult to
maintain

■ This instability causes oscillation in supply fan

static pressure
 Mixed Air
Control Application
Damper % Authority of
Applications Second Damper
70
Constant Flow Damper
60 Matching Chart
(i.e. for Mixing Plenums)
50
40 Parallel Blade

30
20 Opposed Blade
10
0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30
% Authority of First Damper
 Mixed Air Control
Application
Damper
Applications ■ Select mixing dampers to have
a linear flow characteristic

■ When two air streams are mixed,

resulting mixed air temperature can be
determined with equation

Tm = [(T1)(Flow1)+(T2(Flow2)] ÷ (Flow1 + Flow2)

Tm = Temperature of mixed air stream

T1 = Temperature of air stream #1
T2 = Temperature of air stream #2
Flow1 = Flow rate of air stream #1
Flow2 = Flow rate of air stream #2
 Mixed Air Control
Application
Damper
Applications AUTHORITY RECOMMENDATIONS
Outdoor air damper installed in duct
■ Size for an authority of…
– 8-10% for opposed linkage
– 20-25% for parallel linkage
Opposed ■ Select return and exhaust air
or Parallel dampers for an authority of:
Blade – 8-10% for opposed linkage
20-25% for parallel linkage
Dampers
–

Outdoor air damper installed at louver face

■ Its size may match the louver
■ Determine the authority for design flow rate
(assume 400FPM) and damper size
■ Use constant flow damper matching chart to
determine authority of return air damper
■ Select exhaust air damper for same authority as
outdoor air damper
DAMPERS Made
DAMPERS Made RIGHT,
RIGHT,
Right Away

FAN 268.1