Senior Design · Structure & Principle
Water Air Purifier

An air purifier that replaces the filter with six layers of rain. A hollow shaft lifts water out of the tray, six fast-spinning serrated discs fling it into fine rain, and the air rises through all six layers — dust and odour stay in the water, the water returns to the tray, clean air leaves through the top. No filter, no consumables.

270 across flats × 409 mm · octagon4.9 L tray 6 × Ø150 discs60 m³/hno filter, no consumables
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In one sentence: “Air goes up through six layers of rain.”

Everything that follows answers three questions —

  1. How does the water get up there? (there is no pump)
  2. Where does the rain come from? (there is no nozzle)
  3. How is the dust caught? (water does not “suck” dust)

How it runsOrange = air · Blue = water · Black = dust — it vanishes once it enters the rain

Section · runningair and water at the same time
Orange = air · Blue = water · Black = dust (vanishes in the rain)

Air: inlet slits at the bottom → radial slots in the base plate → up through six layers of rain → demister pad → fan → out through the holes in the top plate.

Water: up the hollow shaft → distributor hub → six discs → films on the windows → collecting trough → back to the tray.

Dust: rides in with the air, hits a droplet inside the rain, and returns to the tray with the water.

The path is straight: in at the very bottom, out at the very top, no U-turn in between.

Spin it, and the water flies offPlan view · front at the bottom

Six clear Ø150 discs are stacked on one shaft at 3000 rpm. Water flows from the distributor hub onto each disc, is pushed to the rim by centrifugal force, and leaves from 240 teeth.

The rain flies 55 mm sideways on a slightly spiral path and hits the inside of the eight window panels, where it forms a film that runs down.

The windows are the collecting surface — no extra sleeve is needed.

The three front panels are clear: standing in front you see the discs spin and the rain fly.

Plan view · runningdiscs spin, water flies off
Plan view · discs spin, water flies off the rim onto the windows

Cross-sectionCut through the axis · orthographic · mm · bronze = parts on the rotating shaft

Section · labelled270 across flats × 409 mm
Top plate (perforated) outlet holes, no control disc Fan 140 mm own motor, high static pressure Demister pad catches fine mist 6 serrated discs Ø150 15 mm pitch, 240 teeth Distributor hub feeds every disc Front windows (clear) rear 5 panels opaque Base-plate radial slots air rises here Inlet slits one ring above the tray Water tray 4.9 L shallow and wide, 95 mm deep Hollow lift shaft Ø16 89 mm submerged Intake strainer Top outlet holes humid air straight up Rotor motor in a cup, out of the mist Rain off the rim ≈0.2 mm rim speed 23.6 m/s Rain films on the window drains into the trough Trough + corner drains back to the tray Lower bearing 6002 + lip seal Water level 270 (across flats) 409 Orange = air · Blue = water · Bronze = rotating parts · Black = dust

Structure, part by partBuilt from the bottom up — press → to add the next part; the new part is in full colour, earlier ones fade

Build-up
Water tray · 4.9 L shallow and wide, 95 mm deep Inlet slits a ring just above the tray rim Intake strainer keeps debris out of the shaft Skirt opaque outer wall Water level Base plate sits on the tray Radial slots the air comes up through here Collecting trough catches water off the windows Corner drain returns it to the tray Lower bearing 6002 + lip seal Hollow lift shaft Ø16 lower end in the water Distributor hub feeds every disc 6 serrated discs Ø150 15 mm pitch, 240 teeth Water column rises inside the shaft Driven from above shaft passes up into the head Window panels eight flat panels, 4 mm Clear at the front three panels; five opaque Rain lands here inside face, film runs down Separator plate coarse mist stays below Demister pad knitted mesh Motor cup keeps the motor dry Rotor motor BLDC, 24 V Head shell Fan 140 mm independent motor Fan frame arms to the shell Pulls air up through the whole machine Top plate closes the head Outlet holes clean humid air straight up 270 (across flats) 409
1 · Water tray

A shallow 4.9 L tray sits inside the opaque skirt. Just above the tray rim a ring of slits in the skirt lets the air in. The strainer in the middle guards the foot of the shaft.

2 · Base plate

Rests on the tray and closes it. Radial slots let the air through upward; the trough around the edge collects the water running down the windows, and eight corner drains return it to the tray. The lower bearing sits in the centre.

3 · Rotor

One part: a Ø16 hollow shaft, a distributor hub and six serrated discs. Its foot stands in the lower bearing; its top is driven by the motor in the head. Water climbs inside the shaft, into the hub, and out onto every disc.

4 · Window section

Eight flat panels around the rotor, standing on the base plate; the three at the front are clear. The rain from the discs lands on their inside faces and runs down as a film.

5 · Head

A separator plate closes the window section, then a demister pad. The rotor motor hangs in a cup above the pad; the shaft passes through the bearing in the cup.

6 · Fan

A 140 mm fan with its own motor sits above the head. It pulls air in at the bottom, up through the rain and the demister, and pushes it out of the top.

7 · Top plate

A perforated plate closes the machine. Clean, humid air leaves straight up through the holes.

→ add the next part · ← remove the last part

① How the water gets upNo pump — the rotor shaft itself is a Ø16 hollow tube; once it spins, it is the pump

When the tube spins, the water inside is thrown against the wall and the pressure on the axis drops below atmospheric. The tray surface is still at atmospheric pressure, so water is pushed up from below. Cross vanes inside the tube force the water to rotate with it.

h = ω²R² / (2g)
R = 7 mm, 3000 rpm → theoretical head ≈ 246 mm, effective at the wall about 180–210 mm.
Height to reach the hub: 81 mm at full tray, 131 mm at low water → starting threshold about 1900–2000 rpm, margin 1.5–2×.

At the top the water enters the Ø30 distributor hub: six connected chambers, filled in one go by the ~0.9 m centrifugal head at R = 15 mm; two Ø1.5 ports per chamber feed each disc.

Centrifugal self-primingprinciple sketch
ω h = ω²R²/2g low pressure on the axis; atmosphere pushes the water up Hollow shaft spins with the rotor · lower end sits in the tray

② Where the rain comes fromNo nozzle — 240 teeth on the rim split the water into ligaments that break into rain

Rim close-upedge view
film accelerates outward (~20 µm thick) disc surface 240 teeth ligaments drops v = ωR = 23.6 m/s d ≈ 0.2 mm Rim close-up · the film splits into 240 ligaments that break into rain

Six clear acrylic discs, Ø150, 15 mm apart, 240 triangular teeth on each rim. Water spreads into a ~20 µm film that accelerates outward and is split into 240 ligaments at the teeth.

v = ω · R = 23.6 m/s d ≈ 0.2 mm
Rim radius 75 mm at 3000 rpm. In ligament mode the median drop size is about 0.13–0.30 mm; 4000 rpm makes it ~15% finer. This assumes all 240 teeth are wetted — each disc gets a small weir ring at R ≈ 20 mm.

Drops hit the window panels at ~19 m/s and run down as a film; the 20–60 µm secondary mist from the splash is caught by the demister pad in the head.

③ How the dust is caughtAir rises at 0.44 m/s, rain crosses at ≈20 m/s; every air parcel is swept by six layers, ~0.3 s residence

Inertial impaction

Air flows around a drop; a particle has mass and cannot make the turn, so it hits the drop. Finer drops and higher relative speed make this easier — a 2.5 µm particle vs a 0.2 mm drop has a single-drop collection efficiency of about 0.7.

dominant ≥ 1 µm

Interception

The particle follows the air around the drop but passes within its own radius of the surface and is held by surface tension. Independent of inertia — only size matters.

dominant 0.5–2 µm

Absorption

Ammonia, formaldehyde, some aldehydes, ketones and organic acids dissolve in water and are carried away. This handles odour — the real advantage of washing over a filter.

water-soluble gases
Single-pass efficiency vs particle sizequalitative · common to wet scrubbers
0%25%50%75%100% 0.010.1110100 particle diameter (µm) hardest to catch diffusion winsinertial impaction wins single-pass collection efficiency (qualitative)

There is a valley in the middle: 0.1–1 µm is hardest — too light to impact, too heavy to diffuse.

Finer drops make the valley shallower — that is why the drops are pushed down to 0.2 mm.

The report gives the η(d) curve itself rather than one blanket CADR number.

Key parametersCurrent version · dimensions taken from the section drawing

ItemValueNote
Envelope270 across flats × 409 mmoctagonal, aspect ratio 1.5
Water tray4.9 L, 95 mm deepshallow and wide
Hollow lift shaftØ16 × 1, 89 mm submergedinternal cross vanes, lift 81–131 mm
Serrated discs6 × Ø150 × 2 mm240 teeth, 15 mm pitch, rim 23.6 m/s
Drop size (design)≈ 0.2 mmrange 0.13–0.30
Residence in the rain≈ 0.31 s0.44 m/s upward over 134 mm
Design airflow / resistance60 m³/h · 55–70 Pa140 × 38 mm high-static-pressure fan, PWM
Rotor motoroutrunner BLDC, 24 V, 50 W2500–4000 rpm, soft start, bearings at both ends
Demisterplate + knitted mesh + fine layertwo stages, face velocity ≥ 1 m/s
2.5 µm single-pass efficiency (est.)25–45%conservative 13–30%, to be measured
Noise (est.)46–57 dB(A)mainly rain on the windows; 5 mm or laminated panels

What to verify nextOrder matters — if the first two fail, nothing after them counts

Lift flow rate
Remove the discs and weigh the water delivered: ≥ 2 L/min at 3000 rpm and low water level is needed for six discs. If short, raise the speed or use a Ø20 lower tube.
bench · semester 1
Tooth wetting and drop size
One disc, dyed water, high-speed camera: do all 240 teeth deliver, and what is the median drop size? This number sets how deep the efficiency valley is.
bench · semester 1
Single-pass efficiency η(d)
Duct method: particle counters upstream and downstream read simultaneously. Dry the downstream sample first, or droplets count as particles. No sealed chamber — chamber decay counts natural settling as cleaning.
full unit · semester 2
Carry-over, noise, vibration
White paper at the outlet for 10 min; A-weighted level at 1 m per source; 0–4000 rpm sweep for head vibration.
full unit · semester 2
“Air goes up through six layers of rain.”

Water lifts itself by centrifugal self-priming · rain leaves the disc rims · dust hits the drops and stays

no filterno consumablesyou can see the dirt