Case Study: CFD Support achieves ~25% axial fan efficiency improvement with CAESES

Axial Fan Optimization Using TCFD and CAESES

CFD Support faced the task of improving an existing 280 mm axial fan — increasing its efficiency across a working flow range (576–1296 m3/h) and raising its air capacity — while working within limited CPU/time resources. To tackle this, they partnered with CAESES and used the CAESES® geometry and optimization environment together with TCFD® for automated CFD simulation and templated setups.

Using CAESES® to parametrize the rotor geometry and drive an automated optimization loop (integrated with TCFD® for meshing, simulation and post-processing), CFD Support ran 300 simulations (~900 core‑hours) to perform global and local searches. The CAESES®-led workflow produced an optimized design with measurable gains: peak efficiency rose from 69% to 72% (+3 pp), maximum air capacity increased from ~1150 to ~1550 m3/h (+400 m3/h), maximum pressure from 410 to 450 Pa (+40 Pa), at the cost of +40 W power (100 → 140 W); the objective metric improved roughly 1.5× (about 25% per simulated point).

CFD Support