Experimental studies of natural make-up air distribution in residential kitchen

Abstract The well organized and sufficiently supplied make-up air is crucial to the removal of cooking oil fume (COF) particles in residential kitchens. Natural make-up air can also achieve similar influence, but it is usually ignored. This study investigated the effects of natural make-up airflow patterns through different openings on exhaust performance to determine a reasonable air distribution for Chinese residential kitchens. Oil heating experiments were carried out in a full-scale kitchen chamber and 14 cases were tested, including unorganized or organized make-up airflow patterns. Results showed that make-up air through a typical window opening caused serious cooking oil fume spillage and high particle concentration in the breathing zone. When the exhaust airflow rate was 300 m 3/h, the cumulative inhaled particle number and mass concentration in 14 min could reach (11.39 ± 3.74) × 109 # and 188.99 ± 78.97 μg, respectively. The disadvantage of this window opening could be alleviated by adjusting of window position or exhaust airflow rate. The study also showed that adding side panels on range hood improved the capture performance of the range hood when opening windows. Moreover, more reasonable make-up air distribution could be achieved by inducing make-up air through the ceiling- and floor-mounted openings. When the exhaust airflow rate was 300 m3/h, the cumulative inhaled number was lower than that of the window opening conditions under 500 m3/h. The results indicated that organized make-up airflow through mounted openings significantly improved the capture efficiency of the range hood, which can be an ideal alternative for window-opening pattern.