Experimental investigation on the flow-induced noise under variable conditions for centrifugal pumps

Abstract

With extensively using of centrifugal pumps, noise generation in these pumps is increasingly receiving research attention in recent years. The noise sources in centrifugal pumps are mainly composed of mechanical noise and flow-induced noise. And the study of flow-induced noise has become a hotspot and important domain in the field. The flow-induced noise closely related to the inner pressure pulses and vibration of volute in pumps, therefore, it is necessary to research the interaction and mechanism among them. To investigate the relationships, a test system is designed which includes a test loop and a measurement system. The hydrophones and pressure sensors are installed on the outlet of the pump and vibration acceleration sensors are disposed on the pump body. Via these instruments, the signals of noise, pressure pulses and vibration are collected and analyzed. The results show that the level of flow-induced noise becomes smaller as the flow increment during low flow rate operations, and it is steadily close to the design point, then it increases with the growing of flow rate in high flow rate conditions. Furthermore, there are some similar peak points in the power spectrum charts of noise, pressure pulses and vibration. The broadband noise at low flow rate is mostly focused on the region of 0–40 times shaft frequency, which is mostly made by rotating stall and vortex; while the noise at high flow rate conditions is focused on the region of 60–100 times shaft frequency, which may be mostly made by cavitations. The proposed research is of practical and academic significance to the study of noise reduction for centrifugal pumps.