Positive Displacement Reciprocating Pump Fundamentals - Power And Direct Acting Types

A CFD test case of a positive displacement reciprocating pump is presented to demonstrate the capability and benefits which numerical analysis may bring to designers in terms of information on fluid dynamic fields useful to optimize the geometry of the discussed device in all the different operating conditions; even in the worst operating conditions when cavitation appears. The paper discusses the role of design parameters such as the inlet valve shape, mass and spring preload in full cavitating conditions. The comprehensive CFD model makes use of the Singhal et al.(1) cavitation algorithm in conjunction with an Eulerian multiphase model. User defined functions add a few more functionalities to the CFD solver such as the valve dynamics model and the compressibility of water. For each of the cases, the work presented shows the capability of the CFD technique to predict quantitative results such as the volumetric efficiency loss and amount of water vapour generated when cavitation arises. Providing pump designers with this information before the design process has come to an end would give them the possibility to improve the operational life of the device as well as its efficiency. It would also result in a more economic and competitive device on the market.

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A CFD Study on the Mechanisms Which Cause Cavitation in Positive Displacement Reciprocating Pumps

Iannetti¹,

Stickland²,

Dempster³

2015

JHE

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A transient multiphase CFD (computational fluid dynamics) model was set up to investigate the main causes which lead to cavitation in PD (positive displacement) reciprocating pumps. Many authors agree on distinguishing two different types of cavitation affecting PD pumps: flow induced cavitation and cavitation due to expansion. The flow induced cavitation affects the zones of high fluid velocity and consequent low static pressure e.g. the valve-seat volume gap while the cavitation due to expansion can be detected in zones where the decompression effects are important e.g. in the vicinity of the plunger. This second factor is a distinctive feature of PD pumps since other devices such as centrifugal pumps are only affected by the flow induced type. Unlike what has been published in the technical literature to date, where analysis of positive displacement pumps are based exclusively on experimental or analytic methods, the work presented in this paper is based entirely on a CFD approach, it discusses the appearance and the dynamics of these two phenomena throughout an entire pumping cycle pointing out the potential of CFD techniques in studying the causes of cavitation and assessing the consequent loss of performance in positive displacement pumps.

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Positive Displacement Reciprocating Pump Fundamentals - Power And Direct Acting Types

Cited by 3 publications

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Modeling and simulation of vehicles's energy conversion techniques

Modeling and simulation of vehicles's energy conversion techniques

A CFD study on design parameters acting in cavitation of positive displacement pump

A CFD Study on the Mechanisms Which Cause Cavitation in Positive Displacement Reciprocating Pumps

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