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The Silverstone Penetrator fans are rather unique so it is worth having a look at how this fan technology really works when compared to a more traditional fan design.
A normal fan produces air flow in a manner as seen above. Air intake follows the physics of moving from a high pressure area into a low pressure area meaning that air will enter into the fan evenly. Due to centrifugal forces and compression through the fan frame the airflow is spread outwards as it leaves the fan. This actually means there is a dead spot that is slightly wider than the fan hub.
This design is perfectly fine as an exhaust design, however when used as an intake unit it is less than perfect due to this dead spot in the center.
Silverstone went through a long testing time period when looking at fan designs and the image above shows what happens when resistance is added on the intake side – in this case by adding a fan filter. The airflow is spread outwards more than it would be in free air. Additionally, fans with lower air pressure will see a greater ‘outwards effect' than those with higher air pressure.
The image above shows what happens when this is used as an intake fan inside a computer case. Due to the walls of the case the airflow will spread out and travel along the side walls leaving dead space in the middle of the case, this is not an ideal situation, especially if a specific component would benefit from cooling in the center of the area.
This is how Silverstone have been rather ingenious in their new design. Many people who have a Raven 02 will have noticed that they used a honeycomb air guide cover which doubled as a fan guard to improve airflow direction.
These honeycomb holes have an equal depth and are spread in an even manner which helps to create numerous air guide tracts which forces the air upwards in a parallel flow. This also negates dead spots even though the airflow rate will be slightly reduced. Silverstone however took this a stage further.
By adding a fan filter on the intake side and by redesigning the fan grille the ‘Air Penetrator' series dramatically improve airflow efficiency when compared against a more traditional fan design. This uses a combination of fan blades which twist air into a ‘swirl shaped' fan grille and this forces airflow to crest forward in a circular motion which helps to virtually eliminate dead spots. This airflow is very directly focused and can also extend much further. By creating this design ethic and removing a honeycomb grille they have also helped to increase airflow as there is one less ‘material' to travel through on route.
An added benefit of the Air Penetrator grille is that this is built into the frame of the unit and is designed to also act as a fan guard which means you dont need to add another grille for protection. Many of you will remember that in the RV02 and FT02 cases that sometimes the fan grille had to be removed to fit 12.2 inch graphics cards, but this obviously leaves the blades exposed, leading to potential issues.
The Silverstone SG07 is the first chassis to be equipped with an Air Penetrator fan and we have one in our labs already so our review will be published in the very near future. We are excited about this product.
