Characterizing under hood cooling components for analysis and simulation

Characterizing the under hood cooling components by the flowrate versus pressure drop information is a unique method to understand how each of the components interact to determine the cooling system performance. Fin separation at the face of a condenser, radiator and a condenser + radiator combination accounts for approximately 10% of the measured heat exchanger static pressure drop. The isolated and installed shroud loss coefficients are 0.72 and 0.92, respectively. A Bernoulli pressure drop of the shroud accounts for only 25% of the installed shroud. Fan performance is changed by the presence of upstream obstructions (condenser and radiator) as well as downstream obstructions (engine bay). The engine bay produces an insignificant pressure drop but more importantly changes the fan performance.