Gas-liquid flow patterns visualization in a self-priming centrifugal pump

The self-priming pumps are ubiquitous in gas-liquid mixtures lift and transportation areas. The fast self-priming time is a vital evaluation index for a self-priming pump. However, the bubble movement path and the bubble size distribution characteristics during the self-priming process are still an open issue. This paper aims to obtain the gas-liquid flow patterns inside a centrifugal pump during the self-priming process and evaluate the effect of the rotational speed and the position of the back-flow hole on the self-priming time through experiments. A centrifugal pump with a double-blade was designed as a visualization prototype. The high-speed photography technology was used to capture the bubble motion and size in the pump during the self-priming process. The bubble image processing method was used to identify the bubble size distribution in the diffuser during the selfpriming process. The bubble number and size distribution images were presented to understand the influence of the rotational speed and the position of the back-flow hole. The higher rotational speed accelerates the gas-liquid mixing rate and shortens the self-priming time. However, there is a limited value of the self-priming time as the speed goes up to a certain high level. Moreover, the position of the back-flow hole slightly affects the self-priming time.