Study of a Bionic Anti-Erosion Blade in a Double Suction Centrifugal Pump

Abstract

A bionic blade with convex domes was applied in a double suction centrifugal pump to improve erosion resistance of the blade surfaces in this study. The hydraulic performance of the pump was simulated and the numerical results were in good agreement with the experiment data. The erosion rates of the smooth blade and bionic blades with convex domes at different heights (1.0 mm, 1.5 mm, 2.0 mm ) were numerically predicted. The results showed that the pump with bionic blades had a higher head and a lower efficiency than those of the pump with smooth blades. A comparison of the erosion rates indicated that the bionic blades exhibited much better erosion resistance than the smooth surface ones. The high erosion-rate area was reduced remarkably and the erosion region became more dispersed on the whole bionic blade surface. The pressure side of the blade with 2.0 mm-height convex domes showed better anti-erosion performance than those with other two heights, while the suction side with 1.0 mm-height domes showed better anti-erosion performance.