TUTORIAL
CENTRIFUGAL PUMP SYSTEMS
by Jacques Chaurette p. eng.
copyright 2005
Fluide Design Inc., 5764 Monkland avenue, Suite 311, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H4A 1E9
Tel: 514.484.PUMP (7867) E-mail: [email protected] Web site: www.fluidedesign.com
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Table of contents
1. Different types of pump systems
2. Three important characteristics of a pump system: pressure, friction and flow
3. What is friction in a pump system
4. Energy and head in pump systems
5. Static head
6. Flow rate depends on elevation difference or static head
7. Flow rate depends on friction
8. How does a centrifugal pump produce pressure
9. What is total head
10 What is the relationship between head and total head
11. How to determine friction head
12. The performance or characteristic curve of the pump
13. How to select a centrifugal pump
Examples of total head calculations - sizing a pump for a home owner application
14. Examples of common residential water systems
15. Calculate the pump discharge pressure from the pump total head
Copyright . 2005---- www.lightmypump.com---------- Revised October 9, 2007
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Appendix A
Flow rate and friction loss for different pipe sizes based at different velocities
Appendix B
Formulas and an example of how to do pipe friction calculations
Appendix C
Formulas and an example of how to do pipe fittings friction calculations
Appendix D
Formula and an example of how to do velocity calculation for fluid flow in a pipe
Appendix E
The relationship between pressure head and pressure
Copyright . 2005---- www.lightmypump.com---------- Revised October 9, 2007
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Foreword
This tutorial is intended for anyone that has an interest in centrifugal pumps. There is no
math, just simple explanations of how pump systems work and how to select a
centrifugal pump. For those who want to do detail calculations, some examples have
been included in the appendices.
This tutorial answers the following questions:
- What are the important characteristics of a pump system?
- What is head and how is it used in a pump system to make calculations easier?
- What is static head and friction head and how do they affect the flow rate in a
pump system?
- How does a centrifugal pump produce pressure?
- Why is total head and flow the two most important characteristics of a centrifugal
pump?
- What is meant by the pump rating? And what is the optimal operating point of a
centrifugal pump?
- How to do details calculations that will allow you to size and select a centrifugal
pump?
- How to verify that your centrifugal pump is providing the rated pressure or head?
- What is density and specific gravity and how do they relate to pressure and
head?
Copyright . 2005---- www.lightmypump.com---------- Revised October 9, 2007
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1. Different types of pump systems
There are many types of centrifugal pump systems. Figure 1 shows a typical industrial
pump system. There are many variations on this including all kinds of equipment that
can be hooked up to these systems that are not shown. A pump after all is only a single
component of a process although an important and vital one. The pumps’ role is to
provide sufficient pressure to move the fluid through the system at the desired flow rate.
Figure 1 Typical industrial pump system.
Back in the old days domestic water supply was simpler...aaah the good old days.
Goodnight John boy..
Figure 1a The old days.
Copyright . 2005---- www.lightmypump.com---------- Revised October 9, 2007
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Domestic water systems take their water from various sources at different levels
depending on the water table and terrain contours.
Figure 1b Water supply sources (source: The Ground Water Atlas of
Colorado).
The system in Figure 2 is a typical domestic water supply system that takes it's water
from a shallow well (25 feet down max.) using an end suction centrifugal pump. A jet
pump works well in this application (see http://www.watertanks.com/category/43/) .
Figure 2 Typical residential pump system.
The system in Figure 3 is another typical domestic water supply system that takes it's
water from a deep well (200-300 feet) and uses a multi-stage submersible pump often
called a turbine pump (http://www.webtrol.com/domestic_pumps/8in_turbine.htm).
Copyright . 2005---- www.lightmypump.com---------- Revised October 9, 2007
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Figure 2a Typical jet pump.
igure 3 Typical residential deep well pump
system.
Copyright . 2005---- www.lightmypump.com---------- Revised October 9, 2007
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Figure 3a Typical residential deep well pump system
(source: The Ground Water Atlas of Colorado).
Figure 3b Another representation of a typical residential
deep well pump system.
Copyright . 2005---- www.lightmypump.com---------- Revised October 9, 2007
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Figure 3c Typical deep well residential submersible pump.
2. Three important characteristics of pump systems: pressure, friction and flow
Figure 4 Three important characteristics of pump systems.
Pressure, friction and flow are three important characteristics of a pump system.
Pressure is the driving force responsible for the movement of the fluid. Friction is the
force that slows down fluid particles. Flow rate is the amount of volume that is displaced
per unit time. The unit of flow in North America, at least in the pump industry, is the US
gallon per minute, USgpm. From now on I will just use gallons per minute or gpm. In the
metric system, flow is in liters per second (L/s) or meters cube per hour (m3/h).
Copyright . 2005---- www.lightmypump.com---------- Revised October 9, 2007
