Prediction of infiltration rates through an automatic door

An experimental investigation on infiltration rate through automatic doorways was conducted in an experimental room with three automatic doors. The experimental infiltration rate tested was up to 617 m3/h, which was equivalent to the outdoor air occupying about 47% of the outdoor air supplied to the room. The result of the infiltration rate increases with an increase of indoor–outdoor temperature difference. Based on the unbalanced supply-return airflow in a HVAC system, the total infiltration rate was corrected with the combined counter and exfiltration airflow and the air lock exchange to develop a reliable correlation. This correlation enables the prediction of the infiltration rate through an automatic door with the cycling of the door opening and closing. The difference of the calculated result of 580 m3/h of the infiltration rate in comparison with the experimental result of 617 m3/h is about 6% for the indoor and outdoor temperatures of 18 °C and −1 °C, respectively. When the outdoor temperature rises from −1 °C to 4 °C, the infiltration rate calculated changes from 580 m3/h to 466 m3/h.