INVESTIGATION ON THE SOLID-LIQUID FLOW IN THE REAR CHAMBER OF A SUBMERSIBLE MULTI-STAGE SLURRY PUMP

The complicated solid-liquid flow in a grooved rotating cavity is strongly influenced by both axial and radial gaps. This paper presents a numerical study on the influences of both axial and radial gaps on the solid-liquid flow inside the grooved rear chambers, aiming to accomplish effective micro-sized sand exclusion. The commercial RANS solver CFX 14.0 is used to predict the movements of dispersed phase in six rear chambers. The simulation results show that the periphery flow has little influence on the cavity flow when the dimensionless radial gap is no more than 0.038. Although the flow near the groove is turbulent and the cavity is open, Batchelor type flow can be predicted in most parts of all of the six cavities. The dimensionless tangential velocity of slurry increases with the decrease of axial gap, which contribute to better sand discharge capacity. Experimental abrasion investigations show that the simulation results are reasonable and the service life of SMSP is dramatically improved.