RECIPROCATING PUMPS

I. Definition of Reciprocating Pumps

Reciprocating pumps are positive displacement pump. It moves in a reciprocating motion.

Initially, a small quantity of liquid is taken into chamber and is physically displaced and forced out
with pressure by a moving mechanical element. It plays an important role in the machinery and
any other industry which is present in this world. positive displacement pump doesn’t need any
type of priming, reciprocating motion is done by the power source which gives rotary motion to
crank. High pressure is the main characteristics of this pumps and this high-pressure output are
being used in places like starting of the engine or the building of pressure in the fluid.

II. Construction of a Reciprocating Pumps

The main parts of Reciprocating Pumps are:

• Piston or Plunger
Piston is a component used in a reciprocating pump which is tightly fitted in a cylinder
and moves linearly back and forth to compress and move the fluid or liquid.
Plunger in a reciprocating pump has the same function as that of s piston and only
differs in its shape and size. It also moves in a closed fitted cylinder called stuffing box.

• Crank and Connecting rod

Its mechanism are operated by a power source (usually a motor). Power source gives
rotary motion to crank and with the help of connecting rod they translate it to reciprocating
motion to the piston inside the cylinder.
Crank is a circular disk attached to the motor and used to transfer the rotation motion of
the motor to the piston.
Connecting rod is the long solid rod. It provides connection between crank and the
piston. It also converts the rotation motion of crank into the linear motion of the piston.

• Suction Pipe
Pipe which take liquid from the source and provide it to the cylinder of the pump is
called Suction Pipe. One end of suction pipe remains dip in the liquid and other end are
attached to the inlet of the cylinder.
 • Delivery Pipe
Pipe which take water from the cylinder of the pump and provide it to the tank is called
Delivery Pipe. It has a two end, one of its end is attached in the delivery part and the other is
attached to the discharge part of the cylinder

• Suction and Delivery Valve

Suction and Delivery valves are provided at the suction end and the delivery end. These
valves are non-return valves.
Suction Valve is a one-way valve place between suction pipe and cylinder of the pump.
It is open when suction take place and close when delivery of water is taking place.
Delivery Valve is one-way valve and placed at the point of attachment of delivery pipe
with cylinder. It is open when delivery of water is taking place and closed when suction of
water is taking place.

III. Functioning of Reciprocating Pumps

To help visualize how a reciprocating pump works, let’s look at single piston and split process
into four parts:
Action 1: The plunger or piston is pulled back. The action
increases the volume of the cavity. As the cavity volume
expands, fluid is drawn in through the inlet to fill the
expanding cavity.
Action 2: The piston has reached its maximum displacement.
Since it is not moving into or out of the cavity, fluid is not
flowing through the inlet or the outlet.
Action 3: After reaching its maximum position, it is then
pushed back into the cavity. During this process, the piston
applies enough pressure to the fluid to overcome the pressure
in the outlet of the pump. This pressure differential pushes the
fluid from inside the cavity through the outlet of the pump.
Action 4: The piston reaches its maximum extension into the
cavity. Here the volume of the cavity is at a minimum and
 fluid is not flowing through the inlet or the outlet. The next action repeats the process, starting again
with action 1.

IV. Types of Reciprocating Pumps

A. Piston Pumps
The piston moves back and forth inside a cylinder, which pushes the liquid out of the
cylinder. The soap dispenser so commonly used is an example of this kind of pump.
Characteristics of Piston Pumps:
• Used to transfer both gases and liquids.
• Can withstand very high discharge pressure.
• The pistons repeatedly move in a back and forth manner, thus transferring the fluid
by drawing it in and forcing it out a discharge port, thus using the Reciprocating
technique.
• The pump and its internal parts come in direct contact with the liquids and gases.

1. Axial Piston Pumps

An Axial Piston Pump is a positive displacement pump that has a number of
pistons in a circular array within a cylinder block. This cylinder block is driven to rotate
about its axis of symmetry by an integral shaft that is aligned with the pumping pistons.
Axial piston pumps can be used as stand-alone pump, a hydraulic motor or an
automotive air conditioning compressor.

2. Radial Piston Pumps

Radial Piston Pump’s pistons are arranged radially inside cylinders around a
pintle, which acts a valve. These are highly efficient and reliable kind of piston pumps
with very low noise level. Such pumps are widely used in the automobile sectors and
test rigs.

B. Diaphragm Pumps
A Diaphragm Pump is a positive displacement pump that uses a combination of the
reciprocating action of a rubber, thermoplastic or Teflon diaphragm and suitable valves on
either side of the diaphragm to pump the fluid.
 Characteristics of Diaphragm Pumps:
• Used mainly for liquids and slurries, especially those that have high viscosity.
• Can withstand very high discharge pressure.
• In this, the fluids are transferred with the help of a flexible membrane which acts as
an obstruction to displace the fluids, making use of the Reciprocating technique.
• Only certain internal parts of the pump come in contact with the processing liquid

1. Hydraulic Diaphragm Pump

In Hydraulic Diaphragm Pump, the diaphragm acts as a divider between the fluid
that needs to be pumped and the fluid that is pumped. The arrangement of pistons in
such pumps makes them suitable for use in transferring highly inflammable or explosive
liquids.

2. Air-operated Diaphragm Pump

Air-operated Diaphragm Pump are divided by two chambers, which are in turn
again subdivided into two by two flexible diaphragms. It consists of a valve which
controls a steady supply of pressurized air into one chamber, which pushes the fluids
out through the other chamber.

V. Advantages and Disadvantages

A. Advantages
1. Piston Pumps
➢ Can be highly efficient and require low maintenance
2. Diaphragm Pumps
➢ Can handle all kinds of liquids, ranging from the most viscous to the highly
corrosive sorts.
B. Disadvantages
1. Piston Pumps
➢ Cannot be used for transfer of highly viscous fluids
➢ Manufacturing costs can be high
➢ It can result in a low volume of flow.
 2. Diaphragm Pumps
➢ Cannot run at a very high speed.
➢ Maintenance costs can be very high.
➢ Not always energy-efficient

VI. Characteristics of Reciprocating Pumps

A. Piston Displacement
1. Single-acting Reciprocating Pump
• Volume of water delivered in one revolution
VD  AL
• Discharge of pump
ALN
Qt 
60
• Weight of water delivered
 gALN
W
60
where: D = Diameter of the cylinder
A = Cross-sectional area of the piston or cylinder
r = radius of the crank
N = rpm of the crank
L = length of the stroke

2. Double-acting Reciprocating Pump

• Area on the side of piston

A D2
4
• Area on the side of piston, where piston rod is connected to the piston

A1 
4
D 2
 d2 

• Volume of water delivered in one revolution of crank

V   A  A1  L
 • Discharge of pump per second

Qt 
 A  A1  LN
60
If the diameter of the piston rod(d) is very small as compared to the
diameter of the piston, then it can be neglected.
2ALN
Qt 
60
where: D = Diameter of the piston
d = Diameter of the piston rod

B. Actual Discharge
Qa  Aa v
Qa  Cd Qt
where: Aa = Actual Area of the outlet
v = Velocity at outlet
Cd = Coefficient of Discharge
Qt = Theoretical Discharge
C. Slip
Slip  Qt  Qa
It can also be expressed in terms of percentage given by:
Q t  Qa
%Slip  x100
Qt
The slip of the pump is usually positive. However, slip can be negative if suction pipe is
long, delivery pipe is short and speed rotation (N) is high.
D. Work Done by Pump
 gALN
P  hs  hd 
60
where:  = Density;
g = Acceleration Due to Gravity
N = rpm of the crank
hs = Height of the Axis of the Cylinder from the Water Sump
hd = Height of the Delivery Outlet Above the Cylinder (Delivery Head)
hs+hd = Total Height Trough Which Water is Lifted
 Brake Horse Power
WaterPower Q H
PBH  
PumpEfficiency P

E. Volumetric Efficiency and Performance

• Volumetric Efficiency
The ratio of the volume of fluid actually displaced by a piston or plunger
to its swept volume.
Qactual
ev % 
Q theoretical
• Mechanical Efficiency
Pin
em % 
Pout
• Overall Efficiency
  e v em
• Acceleration Head on Suction Side
Ls A
Has  R 2 cos  t 
gAs
where: Ls = Length of Pipe
R = Stroke/2
 = (2N)/60
t = 0, at the beginning
t = , at the end
• Acceleration Head on Delivery Side
Ld A
Had  R 2 cos  Rt 
gAd
where: Ls = Length of Pipe
R = Stroke/2
 = (2N)/60
t = 0, at the beginning
t = , at the end
 • Safe Pressure Head
H  Hatm  Hs  Has
• Absolute Head During Suction
H  Hatm  Hs  Has  Hfs
• Absolute Head During Delivery
H  Hatm  Hd  Had  Hfd
• Pump Suction Pressure

 V 2  kg
Ps  P1  Pd1  0.1 H1SG    500SG ;
 98066.5  cm2

353.63Q
V
D2
• Pump Discharge Pressure
kg
Pd  P2  Pd2  9.1 H 2SG  ;
cm 2
• Pump Total Head
P2  P1
H  H d  Hs  H f
g

VII. Sample Problems

1. A single-acting reciprocating pump, running at 50 rpm, with percentage slip of 4.51. The
diameter of the piston is 200 mm and stroke length 400 mm. Determine the theoretical and actual
discharge.
Given:
N = 50 rpm
% slip = 4.51%
D = 200 mm
L = 400 mm
Required:
Qt = ?
Qa = ?
 Solution:
ALN
Qt 
60
 2 
 D  LN
Qt   
4
60
 2
 4  0.2m    0.4m  50rpm 
Qt 
60
3
m
Q t  0.0105
s
Q t  Qa
%Slip  x100
Qt
Qa  Q t 1  %slip 
 m3 
Qa   0.0105  1  0.0451
 s 
m3
Qa  0.10
s

2. A double acting reciprocating pump, running at 50rpm is discharging 900 liters of water per
minute. The pump has a stroke of 400mm. The diameter of piston is 250mm. The delivery and
suction heads are 25 and 4m respectively. Find the slip of the pump and the power required to
drive the pump.
Given:
N = 50 rpm
D = 250mm
Qa = 900 L/min
hd = 25m
L = 400 mm
hs = 4m
Required:
Slip = ?
P=?
 Solution:
2ALN
Qt 
60
 
2  D 2  LN
Qt   
4
60
 2
2   0.25m    0.4m  50rpm 
Qt   
4
60
3
m
Q t  0.0327
s
Slip  Q t  Qa
m3 L  1m3   1min 
Slip  o.0327  900   
s min  1000L   60s 
m3
Slip  0.0177
s

2  gALN
P  hs  hd 
60
 kg  m   
2 1000 3  9.81 2    0.25m   0.4m  50rpm 
2

P 
m  s  4 
 4m  25m 
60
P  9309.9135W

3. For a single acting reciprocating pump, piston diameter is 150mm, stroke length is 300mm,
rotational speed is 50rpm and the water is to be raised through 18m. Determine theoretical
discharge. If the actual discharge is 4 liter per second, determine volumetric efficiency, slip and
actual power required. Take the mechanical efficiency as 80%?
4. A single acting reciprocating pump has a plunger diameter of 125m and stroke of 300mm. The
length of suction pipe is 10m and diameter 75mm. Find acceleration head at the beginning,
middle and end of suction stroke. If the suction head is 3m, determine the pressure head in the
cylinder at the beginning stroke when the pump runs at 30rpm, take atmosphere head as 10.23m
of water.