Abstract
By using EDEM–Fluent codes and coupling the continuous fluid medium with a solid particle discrete element, the solid–liquid two-phase flow field in a centrifugal pump was simulated under the same inlet conditions of the particle volume fraction and three flow conditions of 0.7Qd, 1.0Qd and 1.3Qd. By introducing the Archard wear model, the wear was calculated, and the wear law was obtained for the pump flow parts such as the leading edge of the impeller blade, blade tip, blade pressure side, blade suction side, impeller shroud, hub and volute. The results demonstrate that the wear of volute is about 70% of the total wear of pump. The wear in the impeller mainly occurs in the blade leading edge, the junction of the hub and the trailing part of the blade pressure side, and the junction of the shroud and the rear part of the blade suction side. Under lower flow conditions, the wear in the impeller shroud is relatively considerable. As the flow rate increases, the wear in the blade pressure side and the hub increases significantly.
Highlights
Centrifugal pumps are used to transport solid–liquid two-phase media for many occasions.The wear produced by sand particles directly affects the hydraulic performance and operational life of the pump
Lei et al [10] measured the wear of the impeller blade under different flow conditions, stating that the wear on the blade suction side is more severe than the pressure side under lower flow conditions, and the pressure side wear is more severe under higher flow conditions
Based on the calculation results, the following conclusions can be made: (1) As the flow rate increases, the particle trajectory in the impeller is biased towards the blade pressure side; the kinetic energy of solid particles decreases along the volute casing, and its trajectory
Summary
Centrifugal pumps are used to transport solid–liquid two-phase media for many occasions.The wear produced by sand particles directly affects the hydraulic performance and operational life of the pump. Luo et al [13] experimentally studied the erosion wear of the impeller blade and reported that the erosion wear is more severe in the blade leading edge, the pressure side and the rear part of the suction side. Roco [14] conducted a paint wear experiment to investigate the wear in the pump under different pump geometries and sediment concentrations. Ahmad et al [15] developed a numerical software to research the wear in the pump and compared the results of the paint wear experiment. They proposed that the blade leading edge wears most severely and the blade pressure side erodes faster than the suction side. Azimian et al [16] set up an erosion tester to study the slurry erosion under different
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