The Resistance to Air Flow of Wire Gauzes

Abstract

Summary Wire gauzes are used in air duct systems and wind tunnels for many purposes. Methods of estimating the pressure loss through a gauze currently available are often found in practice to be unsatisfactory. In this paper data obtained by several experimenters are correlated. It is shown that the effect of Reynolds number on pressure drop is similar for a large range of gauze porosities. An empirical method of estimation of the pressure drop is given which can be used with confidence for gauzes of porosity (defined as the proportion of area not blocked by the wires) from 0·27 to 1·00, and over a range of Reynolds number, based on approach velocity and wire diameter, from 20 to 600.