CFD based condition monitoring of centrifugal pumps

Pumps are an integral part of engineering systems used in power and process industries. Flow through the centrifugal pump is very complex mainly due to the rotation imposed by the impeller and its interaction with the volute casing. Performance and condition monitoring of pumps are important to identify decreased performance, to avoid unplanned shut downs, to predict and plan preventive maintenance, and to enhance service life. Cavitation has direct influence on operating stability and service life of centrifugal pump. The Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) technique is emerging as a useful computational tool for the prediction of pump performance and occurrence of cavitation at different flow conditions.
In this work, three-dimensional steady-state analysis of a single-stage centrifugal pump with three backward curved blades and a double volute casing has been carried out using Ansys-CFX. The computational results are validated with the experimental results of head developed and the overall efficiency of the centrifugal pump over a wide range of flow rates. The main focus of this study is to predict cavitation inside the centrifugal pump at different flow conditions. The computed results will be useful in knowing the flow conditions favorable to prevent cavitation. This would also enable development of cavitation predicting tools for the centrifugal pump as a part of condition monitoring exercise.