EAT223 Thermofluids and Engines

Turbomachinery
Summary
Motivation
Principles of operation
Dimensional analysis
Pump selection

Motivation
The most common practical engineering application for fluid mechanics is the
design of fluid machinery.
This includes machines that add energy to the fluid (pumps), and machines that
extract energy (turbines).
Both types are connected to a rotating shaft i.e. Both are turbmachines.
(Turbo Latin for spin, or whirl).
Whilst machines that deliver liquids are called pumps, when gases are involved
different terms are used:
Fan: small pressure rises
Blower: up to 1 atm. Pressure rise
Compressor: > 1 atm. Pressure rise
We will study a device that is commonly used to move liquids through a piping
system: the centrifugal pump.
This is a rotodynamic pump that uses a rotating impeller to increase the
pressure of a fluid.

Principles of operation
Fluid enters the pump impeller along or near to the
rotating axis and is accelerated by the impeller,
flowing radially outward into a diffuser or volute
chamber (casing)
From here it exits into the downstream piping
system.

Dimensional analysis I
The power P of any rotary hydraulic pump typically depends upon the following
quantities:
N: speed
D: impeller diameter
Q: volumetric flow rate (discharge)
: density
H: change in head
g: gravitational constant
The general equation is thus:

P , N , D, H , Q, g

However, since if is normal to consider gH as one quantity, we may write this as:

P , N , D, gH , Q

Dimensional analysis II

P , N , D, gH , Q
Exercise:
Use Buckinghams theory to find 3 dimensionless groups.
Assume the repeating variables are , N and D.
Thus, the groups can be found by expressing the remaining variables in terms of
a Nb Dc and finding a, b, and c.
E.g. P = 1 a Nb Dc solve to get 1 etc.
You should end up with three Pi groups, such that: 1 = [2, 3]
Solution:

1 2 , 3

P
Q

,
3 5
3
N D
ND

gH
N 2 D 2

Power group
Flow (or
discharge)
group

Head group

Dimensional analysis III

We can plot non-dimensional performance characteristics as follows:
Efficiency

P
N 3 D 5

gH
N 2D2

Power

Head

Q
ND 3

P
Q

,
3 5
3

N D
ND

gH
N 2 D 2

Worked Example
A pump draws water from one tank and delivers it to another at a higher
elevation. The pump impeller is 500 mm diameter and revolves at 600 rev/min.
The pump is geometrically and dynamically similar to another pump with an
impeller 550 mm diameter, for which the following data was acquired when the
pump was running at 900 rev/min:

H (m)

37

41

44

45

42

36

28

Q (m3/s)

0.016

0.032

0.048

0.064

0.08

0.096

Determine the flow rate and developed head for the pump used, if the frictional
resistance characteristic (i.e. the system characteristic) is given by the following
expression:

H f 8 3800 Q 2

Expressions of this form come from the static head

+ the turbulent head loss term in Bernoullis
equation, covered in EAT106

Solution to worked example I

First determine the head-flow characteristics for the pump actually used. To do
this we know that the head and flow coefficients (calculated using the
dimensionless groups) are constant:
2

N 2 D2
gH
0.367 H1
constant H 2 H1
2 2
N D
N1 D1
3

N 2 D2
Q

0.5 Q1

constant

2
1
3
ND
N1 D1
From these relationships, produce a table for the pump you are using:
H (m)

37

41

44

45

42

36

28

Q (m3/s)

0.016

0.032

0.048

0.064

0.08

0.096

H2 (m)

13.58

15.05

16.15

16.52

15.41

13.21

10.28

Q2 (m3/s)

0.008

0.016

0.024

0.032

0.04

0.048

Solution to worked example II

Now produce a table for frictional resistance Hf versus Q.
Choose Q values 0, 0.02, 0.04, 0.06, 0.08, 0.1

H f 8 3800 Q 2

Hf (m)

9.52

14.08

21.68

32.32

46

Q (m3/s)

0.02

0.04

0.06

0.08

0.1

Now plot H2 and Hf versus Q.

The operating point is where the two curves intersect.
Curves produced using Excel are on the next slide.
However, in an exam you will have to plot them by hand!

Solution to worked example III

At the matching
point:
Q = 0.038 m3/s
Head = 13.5 m

Question 1
A centrifugal pump has an impellor diameter of 0.5 m. When running at 550
rev/min the following data was obtained:
Q
(m3/min)

14

21

28

35

42

49

56

H (m)

40

40.6

40.4

39.3

38

33.6

25.6

14.5

(%)

41

60

74

83

83

74

51

Predict the performance of a geometrically similar pump having an impeller

diameter 0.35 m, running at 1450 rev/min. Hence determine the efficiency of
the pump at the operating point and the power required to drive the pump. The
system characteristic is given by the relationship h = 20 + 0.01Q2.
[41%; 720.5 kW]
The following non-dimensional relationships may be assumed without proof:

P
Q

,
3 5
3

N D
ND

gH
N 2 D 2

Remember:
Assume data is unchanged.
Pump power P = QgH /

Question 2
Tests on a centrifugal pump having an impellor diameter of 8 cm and running at
a constant speed of 500 rev/min gave the following results for water::
Q (m3/s)

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

H (m)

4.0

4.1

3.9

3.4

2.4

1.2

(%)

48

68

76

70

50

It is proposed to use a similar pump having an impellor diameter of 4 cm and

running at a higher speed of 800 rev/min, in an application where the system
resistance is given by the equation h = 10(1 + Q).
Determine the new flow rate and delivery head, the efficiency at which the
pump operates, and the power required to drive the pump at the new operating
point.
[0.416 m3/s; 14.2 m; 67%; 86.5 kW]

P
Q

,
3 5
3

N D
ND

gH
N 2 D 2

Remember:
Assume data is unchanged.
Pump power P = QgH /