Study on the Transition Process of Normal Shutdown of Large Vertical Submersible Mixed Flow Pump Unit

Abstract

_ Water pump units are essential in water conservation projects. Axial flow pumps, crossflow pumps, and mixed-flow pump units are commonly implemented in new pumping station projects. The technology related to water pump units has been substantially developed in recent years. Nonetheless, the large vertical submersible mixed-flow pump unit is still considered a relatively novel pumping station unit. The operational status of a submersible pump unit can be influenced by the gate or flapper door of the outlet during its startup and shutdown process. During this process, the pump speed, flow rate, and other external characteristic parameters of the unit undergo significant changes in a short time period. The appearance of unstable flow phenomena, such as flow separation and vortex, inside the unit has a significant impact on its safety and stability. Hence, studying the normal shutdown process of the pump unit is essential to investigate factors influencing the unit’s stability. This paper presents a numerical simulation and analysis of the normal shutdown process of a large vertical submersible mixed-flow pump unit. Analysis of the results revealed that the “backflow” phenomenon of water flow occurs during all four cases of the normal shutdown transition process. The unit’s operating conditions are largely determined by the closing time of the flapper door. The unit will experience runaway conditions when the flapper door’s closing time is longer (4 seconds). Keywords vertical submersible mixed flow pump; normal shutdown process; numerical simulation