Modification of the Sickle Insert of an Internal Gear Pump

Abstract

The reduction of the weight of high-pressure components and systems (including hydraulic) is especially important in aircraft or mobile machinery. An interesting trend that began in the first half of the 20th century in the aviation industry is the weight reduction of structures by using components made of composite materials in place of those made of conventional materials. This trend is not only not diminishing, but is actually increasing year by year. This paper investigates the effect of modifying the design of the sickle insert on the volumetric efficiency of the pump. Moreover, this work presents the replacement of the sickle insert of an internal gear pump made of bronze with plastic materials, reducing its weight by 80%. To ensure similar performance, its design was modified, increasing the pump’s efficiency while additionally reducing its weight. This material substitution allows the reduction of weight, but it can adversely affect the performance of the hydraulic component, this also applies to the displacement pumps. For this reason, the design had to be changed to obtain similar operational parameters after changing the material.