The design of a slurry pump is critical to making sure that the abrasive and often corrosive aspects of the slurry does not destroy the impeller. Additionally, slurry and sludge may contain large unforeseen solids that will inevitably clog many types of pumps. Since most centrifugal pumps have an impeller with a close tolerance to the volute, the abrasive and sometimes corrosive nature of the slurry will quickly wear the volute and ruin the tolerance. This, in turn, causes the pump to lose its suction capability. This causes massive downtime with slurry pumps along with costly maintenance and spare parts.
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For this reason, the EDDY Pump is ideal for slurry pumping applications. The EDDY Pump does not have an impeller, but instead a rotor that does not have any critical tolerances. This allows it to pump slurry at rates of 30% and solids up to 12 inches. This is far more than what centrifugal pumps can handle without any failure or need to change wear parts.
Choosing the proper material for a slurry pump is another critical process for determining the correct pump to handle your slurry. If the slurry is highly abrasive with a neutral pH then the best construction material is a Hi-Chrome. This metallurgy has the highest Brinell hardness that can withstand the abrasive nature of the slurry. On the other hand, if the slurry is not only abrasive but also has a low pH, it is best to go with a duplex stainless steel construction. This material is the best for a slurry pump to withstand caustic material such as acid, while still having a high Brinell level.
Adding lime with water, as a slurry, allows the solution to be pumped considerable distances, making transporting the material easier than mechanically loading into trucks. As you can imagine, the lime slurry is not only corrosive but abrasive as well, which can pose challenges for all types of pumps. Due to these challenges, pump manufacturers are constantly coming up with new designs for reducing the detrimental effects that lime slurry can have on their equipment and production rates. Some of these design ideas are featured on multiple types of pumps including slurry pumps, centrifugal pumps, and peristaltic pumps. Typically, the answer to effectively pumping lime is to keep the fluid moving constantly to maintain the chemical in suspension. With lime slurry, it is important to constantly be reaching a critical line velocity in which there is enough flow and turbulence to prevent sediment from building up in dead spots or crevices found throughout the system. It goes without saying that cleaning limescale in pipes can be very labor intensive, expensive, and particularly in metal pipes. Ideally, the pipeline should be as smooth as possible with an open flow path, making sure the flow rate is directly proportional to maintaining momentum. This is why the EDDY Pump’s turbulent flow design is perfect for keeping the slurry agitated enough to not accumulate on the sides of the pipelines.
Determining the proper slurry pump size and power requirements for your application is crucial. Based on the abrasive nature of slurries, it is important to choose a pump size that will allow for the pump to run at a slow enough speed in order to lengthen the duration of the slurry pump’s life. An ideal RPM to run a slurry pump at is between 900- RPM. Once you begin to exceed this speed, the life of the pump significantly decreases because the wear points in the slurry pump essentially get sandblasted.
As you can see in the 4″ EDDY Pump shown above, the tolerance between the rotor and the volute easily allows the passage of a man’s arm, while the tolerance in a centrifugal pump is significantly less.
This means you can pump MORE solids with LESS clogging.
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Slurries are specialized compounds found in various processing industries, including sanitary sectors like mining, aggregates, mineral processing, dredging, tunneling, and water treatment, as well as other industries that involve slurry or sewage. Because slurries combine the properties of liquids and solids, special consideration must be given when determining the type and size of the slurry pump to use with them. Kingda Pump features several companies that specialize in slurry pumps capable of handling a wide range of loads, from light to heavy.
Slurries are solid-liquid mixtures, with the liquid acting as a transport mechanism for the solid. The size of particles in slurries can range from a micron to thousands of millimeters. The ability of a pump to move a slurry through a process line is greatly influenced by particle size.
Aslurry pump is a centrifugal pump used to transport abrasive and frequently corrosive solid particles inside a carrier fluid. To minimize substantial particle velocity and thus wear rates, the slurry pump should have a low specific speed design that allows for slower operating speeds than ordinary water pumps. Depending on the application, wear-resistant metallic or elastomeric materials are used in slurry pump components that come into contact with the pumped medium.
Slurries are further classified into four classes by industry based on their aggressiveness, with Class 1 being the least aggressive and Class 4 being the most aggressive. Pumping slurries can wear out pumps and pipeline components in the following ways:
Several types of pumps are suitable for pumping slurries, as described below. However, we must address a couple of critical issues before deciding which technology to use.
The pump’s speed and shear the pump can cause damage to solids or slurry, which is a concern for centrifugal pumps. Twin screw pumps, generally, because of the minor slurry’s solids.
Because slurries weigh a lot and are hard to push, the pumps explicitly made for slurries will have heavier and more potent than pumps designed for liquids with less viscosity.
Slurry pumps tend to be larger than conventional pumps, have more horsepower, and are constructed with more robust bearings and shafts. The centrifugal pump can be described as the most popular kind of pump for slurry. These pumps employ an impeller rotating like water-like liquids flow through a centrifugal pump.
Pumps designed explicitly for slurry pumps will usually feature the following features compared to conventional centrifugal pumps. Centrifugal force can push it outward if something is spinning fast around a central point.
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These pumps may also be made of specialized high-wear alloys for pumping abrasive slurries. Hardening stainless steel is another popular option for abrasive slurries.
Helpful displacement pumps may be better than centrifugal pumps for certain slurry pumping conditions.
Follow these four simple steps to determine what type of slurry pump is the best for your particular need or application.
Think about the following:
Are the design and material used to construct the impeller of a centrifugal pump suitable for pumping slurries?
It is also critical to consider the slurry’s chemical compatibility with any elastomers in the pump. Once the nature of the slurry and the components of various types of pumps have been addressed, we can choose a potential candidate slurry pump for the application.
The most crucial part of this equation is determining the required pump horsepower to supply a certain quantity of liquid at the needed differential pressure. Think about the following:
Most centrifugal slurry pumps operate at low speeds to reduce component wear — typically less than rpm. Find the ideal spot where the pump can run at a minimum speed without allowing solids to settle into the slurry and clog the lines.
Then, to reduce wear even further, reduce the pump’s discharge pressure to the lowest setting possible. Also, use proper piping layout and design principles to ensure consistent and uniform slurry delivery to the pump.
Thanks to features such as the large diameter of the impeller, shafts, bearings, and internal passageways, and their heavy-duty construction, Slurry pumps can withstand massive wear. Slurry pumps have more upfront operating costs than water pumps in the industrial industry. But, only slurry pumps are efficient in hydro-transporting solid materials. The longer-term advantages outweigh the initial cost.
The production of centrifugal force that causes the material to move outwards from the center of the pump is crucial for the efficiency of slurry pumps. However, the power of centripetal force pulls the material toward the center. Since the energies that impart the speed of the slurry increase, the process of transport of Slurry pumps works on the principle of centrifugal force. A centrifugal pump, however, is ineffective since the solids in the slurry would build up rather than flow freely.
Knowing the exact conditions required for each pump is crucial for anyone planning to set up a slurry pump.
Wet – the drive and slurry pump are entirely submerged in this setup. Certain types of slurry pumping, like underwater operations, will require this.
Dry — the setup protects the bearings and the pump’s drive free of the slurry. The wet part is freestanding and free of any liquid that surrounds it, comprised of the impeller, shell and suction liner, hub and shaft sleeve, and the stuffing box. The slurry pump technician puts most horizontal pumps in place using this method.
Semi-dry — this particular arrangement is used in horizontal pump dredging. The wet side and the bearings are flooded; however, the drive is dry. In this situation, bearings require a sealing arrangement.
This guide gives a brief overview of slurry pump types and their installation; however, there is more to be learned. Kingda will be there to help those looking to comprehend slurry pumps and applications or require help deciding what type of pump and installation is best for their needs.
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