Choosing the best slurry pumps Australia for your application can be a daunting task. These pumps can be found in nearly all industries. They play an important role in various processes. You should therefore know the key aspects to look for when choosing the right pump for pumping slurry.
Pump design
The pump design is crucial to ensuring that the corrosive and abrasive aspects of the slurry don’t destroy the pump’s impeller. Sludge and slurry may contain unforeseen solids that will clod different types of pumps. Most pumps have an impeller with a tolerance to the volute, the corrosive and abrasive nature of the slurry will wear the volute and damage the tolerance. This causes the pump to lose its suction capabilities and causes downtime with pumps along with expensive spare parts and maintenance.
Construction material
When choosing the right material for your pump, you should consider a material that can safely handle your slurry. If you are pumping highly abrasive slurry with a neutral pH then you can use a Hi-Chrome as the construction material. The metallurgy has a high Brinell hardness that can easily withstand the slurry’s abrasive nature. On the other hand, if the slurry isn’t only abrasive but also has a lower pH, it is recommended to go with a duplex construction made of stainless steel. This is the best material for slurry pumpsthat can withstand caustic materials such as acids.
Deployment method
When choosing a pump, it is important to consider the deployment method. Determining the ideal deployment of the pump is very important when determining the ideal setup. The main deployment methods for pumps are flooded suction pumps, submersible pumps and self-priming pumps.
Flooded suction deployment
The fluid to be pumped with flooded suction pumps is positioned above the pump. The pump is positioned below to enable gravity to feed the fluid into the suction and keep the pump primed for efficient functioning.
Submersible deployment
Submersible pumps are completed submerged in the slurry. By being completely submerged, there is no need of priming the pump.
Self-priming deployment
The pump and power unit aren’t submerged with a self-priming unit. The suction house gets into the slurry and the unit works as a super-sized wet dry vacuum.
Pump seal
It is important to choose an ideal seal when choosing a pump for pumping slurry. A seal should have hardened faces made from either tungsten carbide or silicon carbide. Some advanced pumps incorporate a seal technology that uses a dual mechanical seal setup that has self-contained seal-flushing to allow the seal face to be cooled at any given time to prevent the slurry from overheating the seal.
Power sizing
When choosing slurry pumps Australia, it is important to determine the proper power requirements and pump size. Slurries are abrasive and this makes it important to choose the right pump size that will allow your pump to run at a slow speed to lengthen the duration of the pump’s life. Once you exceed the ideal speed, the life of your pump will reduce because the wear points in the pump are sandblasted.