Rotodynamic pumps - Presentation -Description

The article "Rotodynamic pumps" is the subject of several booklets:

• [BM 4 300] Presentation. Description ;

• [BM 4 302] How it works ;

• [BM 4 304] Pump project;

• [BM 4 306] Special mechanical problems ;

• [BM 4 308] Operation ;

• [BM 4 314] Cavitation resistance of rotodynamic pumps.

The subjects are not independent of each other. Readers will often need to refer to other issues. The issue number is followed by the paragraph or figure number.

A centrifugal pump is an open system in which a field of centrifugal forces is set up. This machine is no longer based on the transport of fluid in a bucket, or on the variation, over time, of a trapped volume. The fluid is no longer pushed by a material wall, but set in motion and balanced by a force field. This is a very simple notion, as we shall see in what follows, but it is also less spontaneous than that of a moving container. Since it is based on other principles, the centrifugal pump operates and is used according to other laws, which are the subject of all the articles that follow. We've covered the essentials, but we haven't touched on certain limited areas or specific aspects. They will be dealt with in another section.

New numerical calculation methods such as unsteady 3D Navier-Stokes are changing and stimulating the art of drawing and design. New materials are appearing. New coatings and surface treatments are being used. Electronics are involved in a number of ways, including variable speed and condition monitoring systems.

The French pump industry employs around 6,000 people. Sales are in the region of €1 billion, with total exports accounting...