Vortex pump

Abstract

A pump casing (3), which houses an impeller (7) rotatably and is formed with a discharge port (5) for discharging a liquid sucked by the rotation of the impeller (7), comprises: a vortex chamber (11) in which the impeller (7) is housed and which is installed below the discharge port (5); and a gas-liquid separation chamber (14) for guiding the liquid from the vortex chamber (11) to the discharge port (5) and removing bubbles in the liquid, wherein, in a region of the gas-liquid separation chamber (14) on the vortex chamber (11) side, a wall (18) for forming two flow paths by dividing the region is provided, and a first inclined portion (26) is provided at the base of the discharge port (5) on a downstream side in a rotation direction of the impeller (7), the first inclined portion (26) being an inclined surface that connects an inner surface of a ceiling surface (23) of the gas-liquid separation chamber (14) to an inner surface of the discharge port (5) and increases a horizontal opening area of the discharge port (5) downward, thereby enabling bubbles (25) contained in the liquid in the gas-liquid separation chamber (14) to be discharged from the discharge port (5).

Description

vortex pump

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a self-priming vortex pump having a discharge port and a gas-liquid separation chamber.

[0002] 7, in a self-priming vortex pump 101, an impeller 103 having a plurality of blades 102 on its outer periphery is rotatably housed in a pump casing 104. The pump casing 104 is formed with a suction port 105 for sucking in liquid and a discharge port 106 for discharging the liquid, and when the pump casing 104 is filled with liquid, the impeller 103 is driven to rotate by a motor 107, thereby discharging the liquid sucked in through the suction port 105 from the discharge port 106. Because normal suction does not occur until the pump casing 104 is filled with liquid, it is desirable to shorten the time (self-priming time) from when the vortex pump is started until this state is reached (see Patent Document 1).

[0003] JP 2014-190292 A

[0004] In such conventional self-priming vortex pumps, liquid (e.g., water) and gas (e.g., air) are separated in a gas-liquid separation chamber, thereby discharging air from the piping and pumping water from deep locations such as wells. To improve the performance of self-priming vortex pumps, it is necessary to control the flow of liquid in the gas-liquid separation chamber and shorten the time required to pump water from deep locations such as wells. As shown in FIG. 7 , in a conventional vortex pump 101, liquid flowing into a gas-liquid separation chamber 110 via a gas-liquid separation chamber inlet 108 and a vortex chamber 109 directly and perpendicularly impinges on a ceiling surface 111 above the gas-liquid separation chamber 110. This causes turbulence in the flow of liquid into the gas-liquid separation chamber 110. As a result, the efficiency of discharging gas (air bubbles) contained in the liquid through the discharge port 106 decreases, resulting in a longer self-priming time.

[0005] Therefore, the present disclosure provides a vortex pump that guides the flow of liquid to a discharge port, thereby smoothly discharging gas to the outside of a gas-liquid separation chamber and shortening the self-priming time.

[0006] A vortex pump according to the present disclosure comprises: an impeller; and a pump casing that rotatably houses the impeller and has a discharge port formed therein for discharging liquid sucked in by the rotation of the impeller; the pump casing comprises: a vortex chamber that houses the impeller and is located below the discharge port; and a gas-liquid separation chamber that guides liquid from the vortex chamber to the discharge port and removes air bubbles from the liquid; a region of the gas-liquid separation chamber on the vortex chamber side is provided with a wall portion for dividing the region into two flow paths; one of the two flow paths, located downstream in the rotation direction of the impeller, is a discharge flow path through which liquid discharged from the vortex chamber flows, and the other flow path, located upstream in the rotation direction of the impeller, is a return flow path through which liquid returning to the vortex chamber flows; the discharge port is provided in a ceiling surface of the gas-liquid separation chamber and has a cylindrical shape extending upward from the ceiling surface; At the base of the outlet on the downstream side in the direction of rotation of the impeller, there is a first inclined portion that connects the inner surface of the ceiling surface of the gas-liquid separation chamber and the inner surface of the outlet, and the first inclined portion has an inclined surface whose horizontal opening area of ​​the outlet increases as it extends downward.

[0007] According to the present disclosure, by providing an inclined portion that guides the liquid containing air bubbles upstream of the liquid flow at the base of the discharge port, the liquid containing air bubbles that has been guided into the gas-liquid separation chamber is guided along the inclined portion toward the discharge port, allowing the air bubbles to be discharged more quickly from the discharge port, thereby achieving the effect of shortening the self-priming time.

[0008] Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing an exploded view of a vortex pump according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 2 is a front cross-sectional view showing the same vortex pump. Fig. 3 is a front cross-sectional view showing a vortex pump according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 4 is a front cross-sectional view showing a vortex pump according to a third embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 5 is a front cross-sectional view showing a vortex pump according to a fourth embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 6 is a front cross-sectional view showing a vortex pump according to a fifth embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 7 is a schematic diagram showing a conventional vortex pump.

[0009] 1, a vortex pump 1 includes a motor 2 and a pump casing 3. The pump casing 3 includes a suction port 4 and a discharge port 5. Pipes (not shown) are attached to the suction port 4 and the discharge port 5, respectively.

[0010] The motor 2 has a rotating shaft 6 extending horizontally. An impeller 7 is fixed to a protruding portion at one end of the rotating shaft 6. The impeller 7 is arranged so as to be enclosed within the pump casing 3. A cooling fan 8 is provided on a protruding portion at the other end of the rotating shaft 6, opposite the end at which the impeller 7 is fixed. A fan cover 9 is fixed to the motor 2 so as to cover the cooling fan 8. A terminal cover 10 is provided on the top of the motor 2. The terminal cover 10 is fixed to the motor 2.

[0011] As shown in Figure 2, the interior of the pump casing 3 is formed with a vortex chamber 11 that houses the impeller 7 in a rotatable manner, an intake passage 13 that guides the liquid sucked from the intake port 4 to the vortex chamber 11, and a gas-liquid separation chamber 14 that guides the liquid from the vortex chamber 11 to the discharge port 5.

[0012] The vortex chamber 11 is open, and when the impeller 7 is housed in the vortex chamber 11, one main surface of the impeller 7 is exposed. For this reason, as shown in Figure 1, a cover 12 is attached to the pump casing 3 so as to cover the impeller 7. The vortex chamber 11 is formed in the lower part of the pump casing 3, and is therefore located below the suction port 4, the discharge port 5, and an inlet 16 (described later). The vortex chamber 11 has a vortex chamber flow path 15 formed in an arc shape in a portion corresponding to the outer periphery of the impeller 7.

[0013] The vortex chamber flow path 15 has a suction side at one end and a discharge side at the other end, and is formed to go around the outer periphery of the impeller 7 approximately once.

[0014] The suction passage 13 is a passage extending vertically inside the pump casing 3 , with its upper end communicating with the suction port 4 and its lower end communicating with one end of the vortex chamber passage 15 .

[0015] As shown in Figure 2, the impeller 7 is a rotating body that has a plurality of blades 17 when it rotates. The rotary shaft 6 of the impeller 7 is connected to a motor 2 (not shown). The impeller 7 rotates using the motor 2 as a drive source. When the impeller 7 rotates, the plurality of blades 17 of the impeller 7 discharge the liquid in the vortex chamber 11 into the gas-liquid separation chamber 14.

[0016] 2, gas-liquid separation chamber 14 is disposed above vortex chamber 11, and has a generally trapezoidal cross section with an upper base wider than a lower base when viewed from the direction of rotation shaft 6 of motor 2. The lower part of gas-liquid separation chamber 14 communicates with the other end of vortex chamber flow path 15. Wall portions 18 that divide the lower region of gas-liquid separation chamber 14 into two are provided on the upstream and downstream sides of the lower region in the direction of rotation of impeller 7 (see arrow Y1 in FIG. 2) that face the lower region.

[0017] Wall portion 18 forms two flow paths within gas-liquid separation chamber 14. In this embodiment, the side closer to suction flow path 13 is the downstream side in the direction of rotation, and the side farther from suction flow path 13 is the upstream side in the direction of rotation. Wall portion 18 is a plate-shaped wall body, and is arranged so as to extend along the vertical direction within gas-liquid separation chamber 14. Therefore, the two flow paths also form paths that extend along the vertical direction. Vortex chamber 11 and gas-liquid separation chamber 14 are connected by a gas-liquid separation chamber inlet 19 on the downstream side of wall portion 18 and a vortex chamber return port 20 on the upstream side of wall portion 18.

[0018] The gas-liquid separation chamber 14 is composed of a first side surface 21 and a second side surface 22, which form the surfaces on the gas-liquid separation chamber inlet 19 side. The upper part of the gas-liquid separation chamber 14 is provided with a ceiling surface 23, which forms the surface connecting to the inlet 16, through which priming water required for self-priming is poured, and the discharge port 5. A removable plug 24 is attached to the inlet 16. The inlet 16 is located on the end of the ceiling surface 23 of the gas-liquid separation chamber 14, which is closer to the suction port 4. The discharge port 5 is located on the end of the ceiling surface 23, which is farther from the suction port 4.

[0019] Next, the operation of the vortex pump 1 will be described with reference to FIG. 2 . First, an operator pours priming water (liquid) into the inlet 16 to fill the vortex chamber 11 and the gas-liquid separation chamber 14 with liquid, and then attaches the plug 24 to the inlet 16. Next, the operator drives the motor 2 to rotate the impeller 7, causing air in the piping to be sucked in from the suction port 4 via the suction passage 13. The liquid and gas sucked in through the suction port 4 flow into the vortex chamber passage 15 of the vortex chamber 11 via the suction passage 13 (arrow Y2). In the vortex chamber passage 15, the rotation of the impeller 7 and the circulation of the liquid mix the gas in the piping with the liquid, forming bubbles 25. The liquid containing the bubbles 25 in the vortex chamber passage 15 is guided by the rotation of the impeller 7 to the gas-liquid separation chamber inlet 19 and discharged into the gas-liquid separation chamber 14 (arrow Y3). The liquid containing the bubbles 25 is then guided toward the discharge port 5 (arrow Y4). Some of the air bubbles 25 contained in the liquid are separated from the flow circulating within the gas-liquid separation chamber 14 and discharged from the discharge port 5 due to buoyancy (arrow Y5). The remaining liquid generates a flow circulating within the gas-liquid separation chamber 14 and a flow returning to the vortex chamber 11 through the vortex chamber return port 20. As this action of discharging the air bubbles 25 continues, the degree of vacuum within the piping increases, raising the water level within the piping (self-priming). Then, liquid flows from the suction port 4 via the suction flow path 13 into the vortex chamber 11. When the gas-liquid separation chamber 14 is filled with liquid, the liquid is discharged from the discharge port 5 and the system switches to normal operation. Here, the time it takes for the vortex pump 1 to draw the liquid from the time the vortex pump 1 starts operating to the installation position of the vortex pump 1 is the self-priming time.

[0020] Next, characteristic features of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 2 . The vortex pump 1 of this embodiment includes a first inclined portion 26 that guides the flow of liquid at the base of the discharge port 5 into the discharge port 5. The discharge port 5 is provided on the ceiling surface 23 of the gas-liquid separation chamber 14 and has a cylindrical shape extending upward from the ceiling surface 23. The pump casing 3 has a first inclined portion 26 at the base of the discharge port 5, downstream in the direction of rotation of the impeller 7, that connects the inner surface of the ceiling surface 23 of the gas-liquid separation chamber 14 with the inner surface of the discharge port 5. Due to the first inclined portion 26, the horizontal opening area of ​​the cylindrical base of the discharge port 5 increases as it extends downward. Note that the first inclined portion 26 may be a curved surface that convexly extends inward in the gas-liquid separation chamber 14.

[0021] With this configuration, the air bubbles 25 that flow into the gas-liquid separation chamber 14 from the gas-liquid separation chamber inlet 19 and separate from the flow of liquid guided toward the discharge port 5 (arrow Y4) are guided by their own buoyancy along the first inclined portion 26 toward the discharge port 5. Therefore, the air bubbles 25 contained in the liquid are easily discharged to the top of the discharge port 5 (arrow Y5). As a result, the efficiency of discharging the air bubbles 25 is improved, and the self-priming time is shortened.

[0022] Second Embodiment A second embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to Fig. 3. In Fig. 3, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0023] 3, the pump casing 3 has a second inclined portion 28 at the base of the discharge port 5 on the upstream side in the rotation direction of the impeller 7, which connects the inner surface of the discharge port 5 to the inner surface of the ceiling surface 23 of the gas-liquid separation chamber 14. The first inclined portion 26 and the second inclined portion 28 increase the horizontal opening area of ​​the cylindrical discharge port 5 at the base downwards at the base. The second inclined portion 28 may be a curved surface that convexly extends inward in the gas-liquid separation chamber 14, or the curved first inclined portion 26 and the curved second inclined portion 28 may be connected and provided around the entire circumference of the base of the discharge port 5.

[0024] If the liquid and air bubbles 25 are guided from the gas-liquid separation chamber 14 toward the discharge port 5, the air bubbles 25 separate from the liquid and are guided to the discharge port 5 along the first inclined portion 26 on the upstream side of the base of the discharge port 5. On the other hand, if the liquid flow velocity is high, the air bubbles 25 are not separated from the liquid and guided toward the discharge port 5, but move to the side surface 27 of the gas-liquid separation chamber 14. Some of the air bubbles 25 that collide with the side surface 27 and bounce back are discharged from the discharge port 5 along the second inclined portion 28. As a result, the efficiency of discharging the air bubbles 25 is improved and the self-priming time is shortened.

[0025] Third Embodiment A third embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to Fig. 4. In Fig. 4, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0026] 4, the pump casing 3 has a second inclined portion 28A at the base of the discharge port 5 on the upstream side in the rotation direction of the impeller 7, which connects the inner surface of the discharge port 5 to the inner surface of the side surface 27 of the gas-liquid separation chamber 14 on the upstream side in the rotation direction of the impeller 7. The first inclined portion 26 and the second inclined portion 28A increase the horizontal opening area of ​​the cylindrical discharge port 5 as it extends downward. The second inclined portion 28A may be a curved surface that convexly extends inward in the gas-liquid separation chamber 14, or the curved first inclined portion 26 and the curved second inclined portion 28A may be connected and provided around the entire circumference of the base of the discharge port 5.

[0027] Of the liquid and bubbles 25 guided from the gas-liquid separation chamber 14 toward the discharge port 5, bubbles 25 that collide with the side surface 27 move upward or downward due to the force of the collision. In the third embodiment, the second inclined portion 28A is provided from the discharge port 5 toward the side surface 27, so that bubbles 25 that collide with the side surface 27 can easily move toward the discharge port 5. As a result, the efficiency of discharging bubbles 25 is improved and the self-priming time is shortened.

[0028] Fourth Embodiment A fourth embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to Fig. 5. In Fig. 5, the same components as those in the third embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0029] 5, a third inclined portion 29 is provided so as to extend upward from the peripheral edge of the upper portion of the gas-liquid separation chamber 14 toward the discharge port 5. The third inclined portion 29 connects the inner surface of the second side surface 22 downstream in the rotation direction of the impeller 7 in the gas-liquid separation chamber 14 to the inner surface of the ceiling surface 23 downstream in the rotation direction of the impeller 7 in the gas-liquid separation chamber 14. The third inclined portion 29 inclines toward the discharge port 5 as it extends upward.

[0030] As a result, the liquid and bubbles 25 discharged from the gas-liquid separation chamber inlet 19 into the gas-liquid separation chamber 14 head toward the ceiling surface 23 and the discharge port 5 without accumulating on the periphery of the upper part of the gas-liquid separation chamber 14. As a result, the efficiency of discharging the bubbles 25 is improved, and the self-priming time can be further shortened.

[0031] Fifth Embodiment A fifth embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to Fig. 6. In Fig. 6, the same components as those in the third embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0032] As shown in FIG. 6 , a third inclined portion 29A extends upward from the periphery of the upper portion of the gas-liquid separation chamber 14 toward the discharge port 5. The third inclined portion 29A connects the inner surface of the second side surface 22 downstream of the gas-liquid separation chamber 14 in the direction of rotation of the impeller 7 to the first inclined portion 26. Furthermore, the third inclined portion 29A may be a curved surface that convexly extends inward in the gas-liquid separation chamber 14. By arranging the curved first inclined portion 26 and the curved third inclined portion 29A so that they are tangent to each other, the liquid and bubbles 25 are easily guided to the discharge port 5. As a result, the efficiency of discharging the bubbles 25 is improved, and the self-priming time can be further shortened. Note that the curved first inclined portion 26 and the curved third inclined portion 29A being tangent to each other refers to a positional relationship in which the tangents to the curved first inclined portion 26 and the curved third inclined portion 29A extend horizontally.

[0033] As a result, the liquid and bubbles 25 discharged from the gas-liquid separation chamber inlet 19 into the gas-liquid separation chamber 14 do not accumulate on the periphery of the upper part of the gas-liquid separation chamber 14, but easily move toward the discharge port 5. As a result, the efficiency of discharging the bubbles 25 is improved, and the self-priming time can be further shortened.

[0034] Although the vortex pump according to the present disclosure has been described above based on the respective embodiments, the present disclosure is not limited to the respective embodiments. As long as it does not deviate from the spirit of the present disclosure, various modifications conceivable by a person skilled in the art to the present embodiments and configurations constructed by combining components of different embodiments are also included within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0035] The self-priming vortex pump according to the present disclosure is useful as a vortex pump because it can shorten the self-priming time compared to conventional pumps.

[0036] REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 vortex pump 2 motor 3 pump casing 4 suction port 5 discharge port 6 rotating shaft 7 impeller 8 cooling fan 9 fan cover 10 terminal cover 11 vortex chamber 12 cover 13 suction flow path 14 gas-liquid separation chamber 15 vortex chamber flow path 16 inlet 17 blade 18 wall portion 19 gas-liquid separation chamber inlet 20 vortex chamber return port 21 first side surface 22 second side surface 23 ceiling surface 24 plug 25 air bubble 26 first inclined portion 27 side surface 28 second inclined portion 28A second inclined portion 29 third inclined portion 29A third inclined portion 101 vortex pump 102 blade 103 impeller 104 pump casing 105 suction port 106 discharge port 107 motor 108 Gas-liquid separation chamber inlet 109 Vortex chamber 110 Gas-liquid separation chamber 111 Ceiling surface Y1 Arrow Y2 Arrow Y3 Arrow Y4 Arrow Y5 Arrow

Claims

1. A pump comprising: an impeller; and a pump casing that rotatably houses the impeller and has a discharge port formed therein for discharging liquid sucked in by the rotation of the impeller, wherein the pump casing comprises: a vortex chamber that houses the impeller and is located below the discharge port; and a gas-liquid separation chamber that guides liquid from the vortex chamber to the discharge port and removes air bubbles from the liquid, wherein the gas-liquid separation chamber has a wall portion that forms two flow paths in an area of ​​the gas-liquid separation chamber facing the vortex chamber, and of the two flow paths, one flow path located downstream in the direction of rotation of the impeller is a discharge flow path through which liquid discharged from the vortex chamber flows, and the other flow path located upstream in the direction of rotation of the impeller is a return flow path through which liquid returning to the vortex chamber flows, and the discharge port is located on the ceiling surface of the gas-liquid separation chamber and has a cylindrical shape that extends upward from the ceiling surface, A vortex pump having a first inclined portion at the base of the discharge port on the downstream side in the rotation direction of the impeller, connecting the inner surface of the ceiling surface of the gas-liquid separation chamber and the inner surface of the discharge port, wherein the first inclined portion is an inclined surface whose horizontal opening area of ​​the discharge port increases as it extends downward.

2. A vortex pump as described in claim 1, wherein the discharge port has a second inclined portion at the base upstream of the discharge port in the direction of rotation of the impeller, connecting the inner surface of the ceiling surface of the gas-liquid separation chamber to the inner surface of the discharge port, and the second inclined portion is an inclined surface whose horizontal opening area of ​​the discharge port increases as it extends downward.

3. A vortex pump as described in claim 1, wherein the discharge port has a second inclined portion at its base on the upstream side in the direction of rotation of the impeller, connecting the inner surface of the discharge port to the inner surface of the side surface of the gas-liquid separation chamber on the upstream side in the direction of rotation of the impeller, and the second inclined portion is an inclined surface whose horizontal opening area of ​​the discharge port increases as it extends downward.

4. A vortex pump as described in claim 3, wherein the gas-liquid separation chamber has a third inclined portion connecting the inner surface of the side surface of the gas-liquid separation chamber downstream in the rotation direction of the impeller and the inner surface of the ceiling surface of the gas-liquid separation chamber downstream in the rotation direction of the impeller, and the third inclined portion is an inclined surface that slopes upward toward the discharge port.

5. A vortex pump as described in claim 3, wherein the gas-liquid separation chamber has a third inclined portion connecting the inner surface of the side surface of the gas-liquid separation chamber downstream in the rotation direction of the impeller and the first inclined portion, and the third inclined portion is an inclined surface that slopes upward toward the discharge port.

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