Skip to content

Fan-to-Duct Connection Chooser

Run the Fan-to-Duct Connection Chooser MicroSim Fullscreen

This sketch is built on the FanPedia MicroSim kit. To run it in the p5.js editor, add the ../shared-libs/ files it loads (fanpedia-sim.css, fanpedia-core.js, fanpedia-p5.js), or their published URLs, to the editor's index.html before pasting ch19-fan-duct-connection-chooser.js.

About This MicroSim

Eight illustrative job descriptions appear in a fixed order. For each one the learner selects one of seven options and presses Submit:

  1. Bolted flange connection
  2. Slip connection
  3. Flexible connector
  4. Tube adapter and rubber sleeve
  5. Bolt-on inlet box
  6. Free-standing inlet box
  7. Inlet box horn

Each option has a definition the learner can open with Definition at any time; opening a definition is exploration and is never scored. Each job is scored on its first submission and then locks. Job 2 accepts either a slip connection or a flexible connector, because FanPedia calls for a flex connector in the form of a slip connection there. Jobs 3 and 4 come back to back and differ only in temperature: the tube adapter's rubber sleeve is judged by its rating (up to 5 psi and 180°F), so it fits job 3 (3 psi, 150°F) but not job 4 (220°F), where the blower bolts to the matching 125# ASA pipe flange instead.

Feedback starts with "Correct." or "Not this one." and gives the deciding fact; an incorrect answer also shows the accepted answer. Choosing the tube adapter for job 4 adds "Check the temperature against the sleeve's 180°F rating." The running count reads "Correct: n of 8". After job 8, the summary lists every job with the learner's answer and the accepted answers, followed by "Mastery: 7 or more of 8" or "Review the sections on the items you missed." Start over clears all answers.

How to Use

  1. Read the job description and find the deciding fact: isolation, separate support, different planes, a pressure or temperature limit, or intersecting airflows.
  2. Select an option. Press Definition to read what the selected option is, if you need to.
  3. Press Submit. Read the feedback, then press Next.
  4. After job 8, press See summary. Press Start over to try all eight again.

Keyboard: keys 1 to 7 select an option; D opens or hides the selected option's definition; Enter submits the selection, then goes to the next job. Tab and Space or Enter work on every button.

Data label: "Illustrative jobs · Source: FanPedia pp. 67–194", shown at the bottom left of the drawing.

Iframe Embed Code

You can add this MicroSim to any web page by adding this to your HTML:

<iframe src="https://moroshek.github.io/FanTASTIC-textbook/sims/ch19-fan-duct-connection-chooser/main.html"
        height="566px"
        width="100%"
        scrolling="no"></iframe>

Lesson Plan

Learning Objective

The learner will use the support, alignment, temperature and pressure facts in a job description to choose the inlet box style or fan-to-duct connection that fits it, with at least 7 of 8 correct on the first attempt (Bloom: Apply, verb: use).

Audience

Adult professional development: new application engineers, sales staff, representatives and facilities staff.

Duration

10-15 minutes

Prerequisites

Bolted flange connection, slip connection, flexible connector, tube adapter and sleeve, 125# ASA pipe flange bolt pattern, bolt-on inlet box, free-standing inlet box and inlet box horn, all defined in Chapter 19.

Activities

  1. Choose (6 min): Work through the eight jobs. Before submitting, underline (mentally or on paper) the one fact that decides the answer.
  2. Compare (3 min): Put jobs 3 and 4 side by side. What changed, and which rating does it cross? Then compare jobs 6 and 8: both use a free-standing box, so what decides job 8?
  3. Review (3 min): Read the summary and reopen the definitions of the options you missed.

Common Misconceptions Addressed

  • A rubber sleeve connector can be used at any temperature: job 4 exceeds the sleeve's 180°F rating, and choosing the tube adapter there triggers a temperature reminder.
  • A bolted joint is fine on a spring-isolated fan: job 1 requires a flexible connector.
  • Any detached inlet box is supported by the fan: job 6 is a free-standing box supported at the floor.
  • A horn is a sound-control device: job 7 uses the horn to keep the inlet duct clear of the discharge airflow.

Assessment

  • Running count "Correct: n of 8"; mastery is 7 of 8 correct on the first attempt.
  • Opening definitions is exploration, not evidence.
  • Follow-up question: a pressure blower runs at 4 psi and 170°F into a pipe line. Which connection, and what changes if the temperature rises to 200°F?

References

  1. Chapter 19: Damper Details and Duct Connections - the inlet box styles and the "Connecting the Fan to the Duct" section this MicroSim exercises.
  2. Chapter 18: Inlets, Outlets and Flow Control - integral and detached inlet boxes and companion flanges.
  3. FanPedia: The Fan & Blower Encyclopedia (PDF) - accessory pages and technical descriptions for flex connectors, tube adapters and inlet boxes (pp. 67, 126, 127, 141-143, 187, 194).
  4. FanPedia online - Twin City Fan's online fan and blower encyclopedia.
  5. p5.js - the JavaScript library used to draw the chooser.