The coarse, large particles found in slurry play a major role in the leading edge wear of slurry pump impeller vane due to the way the particles travel. Inertia of the large particles means they do not follow the stream lines of the carrier fluid. This results in the large particles impacting the leading edge of the vane.
When slurry flows through a pipe the larger particles settle towards the bottom of the inlet and are pulled along by the flow, whilst the smaller particles are suspended within the slurry. This segregation of the particles in the pipe means the impeller inlet of the centrifugal pump does not see a homogenous slurry mixture.
Centrifugal pump impeller vanes are designed to meet the incoming flow and accelerate the fluid. The problem occurs when the slurry approaches the impeller of the slurry pumps there is an abrupt change in flow direction. The small, fine particles follow the fluid as it transitions from the pipe into the impeller, but the large particles do not. They continue to move in a straight line, impacting the vane leading edge as the slurry moves through the impeller. The high relative velocity between the rotating vane and the incoming particles results in the impeller leading edge wear. Loss of vane length due to impacting of the large particles results in a loss of pump performance. Eventually the pump will no longer be able to generate the head and flow required for the duty and the impeller will need to be replaced.
Technical dept.
Hebei Union ShengXin Pump Co.,Limited