Study on the Relationship between Wear and Flow Characteristics of a Centrifugal Pump at Different Mass Concentrations

Abstract

In order to study the wear characteristic of a centrifugal pump at different mass concentrations, simulation and experimental research were carried out. The simulation was based on the DPM (discrete phase model) to complete the coupling of particles and the flow field. The experimental research included a performance test and a wear test. Through the comparison of the simulation and experimental research results, the relationship between the particle movement and the wear was analyzed, and the flow field was analyzed through the energy gradient theory. The energy gradient and the particle movement were combined to explain the wear characteristics. When the particles entered the impeller flow area, they directly hit the leading edge of the blade and the hub wall. The particles were sinking due to the flow field, which caused the particles to accumulate near the hub and the pressure surface. These places were at the most severely worn wall. The farther away from the axis the position was, the greater the relative velocity difference between the particles and the wall was, so that wear occurred first in these places. The low-energy properties near the hub made particles gather there, which was also the most serious cause of hub wear.