Submersible Pump Priming With Reverse Impeller Rotation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Submersible pumps face inefficiency and potential damage due to trapped gas in the volute during startup or restart, leading to snoring, energy consumption without output, and component overheating, especially after snoring or service operations.
Innovation Solution
A method involving reverse and forward impeller rotations to expel gas-liquid mixtures, monitoring power consumption and liquid levels to detect trapped gas, and adjusting impeller direction based on gas presence, ensuring liquid refills the volute.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If the pump is stopped when liquid level falls below the inlet, then the pump avoids snoring and energy waste, but the pump cannot remove floating grease/waste from the liquid surface
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies reverse rotation of the impeller to remove trapped gas from the volute. By rotating the impeller in reverse direction, gas is expelled from the volute through the inlet, allowing the pump to transition from a non-productive gaseous state to a productive liquid-pumping state. This inversion technique resolves the contradiction by enabling the pump to operate effectively only when liquid is present, avoiding energy waste during snoring conditions while maintaining grease removal capability during intentional snoring periods.
2Device complexity
If the pump operates with trapped gas in the volute, then the pump structure remains simple, but the impeller cannot effectively pump liquid and components overheat
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a priming procedure that is performed before normal pump operation begins. This preliminary action detects the presence of trapped gas in the volute and executes reverse rotation to expel the gas, ensuring that the pump starts in a liquid-filled state. This preliminary gas removal prevents the harmful effects of snoring (energy consumption without liquid output, overheating, and component damage) while maintaining the simplicity of the pump structure without requiring additional mechanical components.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a control system that monitors pump operation parameters to detect the presence of gas in the volute. Based on this feedback, the control system automatically initiates the priming procedure with reverse rotation when gas is detected, and switches to forward rotation when liquid pumping is confirmed. This feedback mechanism ensures reliable operation and prevents component overheating while maintaining structural simplicity.
3Object-generated harmful factors
If a small slit is added to the volute to remove gas, then gas can be expelled from the volute, but the slit becomes clogged by solid matter in the pumped liquid
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical passive gas removal system (slit in the volute) with an active mechanical system using reverse rotation of the impeller. Instead of relying on a fixed slit that can be clogged by solid matter, the impeller itself actively expels gas through the inlet during reverse rotation. This substitution eliminates the maintenance issue of clogged slits while effectively removing trapped gas from the volute.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Effectively removes trapped gas from the volute, enabling efficient pump operation and preventing component damage by ensuring liquid contact with the impeller, thus restoring pump functionality.
Implementation Method 1
driving the impeller in a reverse direction of rotation in order to generate a flow of gas/liquid mixture from the volute out through the inlet of the pump
Implementation Method 2
driving the impeller in a forward direction of rotation in order to generate a flow of liquid from the volute out through the outlet of the pump
Data Source
AI summary
A method for priming of a pump in response to a priming condition includes confirming that the liquid level in the reservoir is located at the same level or above the upper portion of the impeller, driving the impeller in a reverse direction of rotation for a time duration between 2 seconds and 5 seconds, stopping the impeller from rotating in the reverse direction of rotation, driving the impeller in a forward direction of rotation, detecting, during the forward operation of the impeller, whether too much gas is present in the volute, and in response to detection of too much gas in the volute, stopping the impeller from rotating in the forward direction of rotation and driving the impeller in the reverse direction of rotation, and in response to non-detection of too much gas in the volute, exiting the priming of the pump.