Vortex Pump Branching Blades Solids Passage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional vortex pumps face efficiency reduction and blockages when handling media with larger solids due to inefficient blade designs and increased distances between the impeller and housing walls, which also lead to potential cavitation damage and reduced service life.
Innovation Solution
The vortex pump features a cascading impeller design with branching blades that extend from the inside to the outside in a curved radial direction, reducing free spaces for eddy formation and allowing for a lightweight, efficient impeller with sufficient ball passage, ensuring reliable delivery of media containing solids without blockages.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the distance between the impeller and the housing wall on the suction side is increased to allow larger solids passage, then the ball passage is improved, but the efficiency of the vortex pump is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The blade is divided into multiple blade sections along its length, with each section having optimized dimensions and positioning. This segmentation allows the blade to maintain close clearance with the housing wall for efficiency while still providing sufficient passage area for solids through the distributed blade sections.
Solution Approach 2:
Different portions of the blade have different properties - the blade sections have varying heights, widths, and spacing from the housing wall. The local geometry is optimized to provide both efficient fluid flow paths and adequate solid passage, with closer clearance near the hub for efficiency and larger clearance at the tips for solid passage.
2Loss of energy
If conventional blade designs are used to maintain efficiency, then energy loss is minimized, but blockages occur when handling media with larger solids
Solution Approach 1:
The blade is segmented into multiple sections that create a cascading arrangement. This segmentation provides multiple passage paths for solids while maintaining the aerodynamic efficiency of the overall blade structure. The distributed sections prevent solid accumulation that would cause blockages.
Solution Approach 2:
The blade sections are arranged in a cascading three-dimensional configuration rather than a simple planar arrangement. This vertical stacking creates additional passage dimensions for solids while maintaining the rotational efficiency of the impeller.
3Reliability
If the blade structure is made thicker and more substantial to prevent blockages, then reliability is improved, but the impeller weight increases and efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The blade sections have varying thicknesses and cross-sectional areas along their length. The sections are thicker where needed for structural integrity and solid passage, and thinner where fluid flow efficiency is critical. This non-uniform geometry provides blockage prevention without excessive weight.
Solution Approach 2:
The impeller and blade sections can be manufactured from composite materials or hollow structures that provide sufficient strength and solid passage capability while minimizing weight. The cascading design allows for optimized material distribution.
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
This design enhances the pump's efficiency and reliability, enabling the efficient conveyance of media with larger solids while minimizing the risk of blockages and cavitation, resulting in a cost-effective, versatile, and long-lasting pumping solution with improved NPSH values.
Implementation Method 1
Vortex pumps of this type are also referred to as vortex pumps, the pumping capacity of which is transmitted to the flow medium by a rotating disk provided with blades, the so-called vortex impeller
Implementation Method 2
The branches avoid free spaces in which undesired eddy formations occur, which would reduce the efficiency of the pump
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a vortex pump having an impeller which comprises blades for delivering solids-containing media. Starting from an original blade section (12), at least a part of the blades (7) branches off into further blade sections (14, 17).