FLUID MECHANICS II

COURSE 92-320

EXAMPLE PROBLEMS ON PUMPS

PLEASE NOTE THAT THE PAGE NUMBERS REFERRED TO BELOW ARE THOSE FOR THE
TURBOMACHINE HANDOUT NOTES.

1) Given are the following data for a commercial centrifugal water pump: r
1
= 4 in., r
2
= 7 in.,

1
= 30
o
,
2
= 20
o
, RPM = 1440. Estimate (a) the design-point discharge, (b) the water
horsepower, and (c) the head if b
1
= b
2
= 1.75 in.

2) The 32 in. pump, shown on page P11 of the handout notes is to pump 24,000 gal/min of
water at 1170 rpm from a reservoir whose surface is at 14.7 psia. If the head loss from the
reservoir to the pump inlet is 6 ft, where should the pump inlet be placed to avoid cavitation
for water at 60
o
F.

3) A pump from the family whose characteristics are given in the graph on page P14 of the
notes has D = 21 in and n = 1500 rpm. Estimate (a) discharge, (b) head, (c) pressure rise, and
(d) brake horsepower of this pump for water at 60
o
F and best efficiency.

4) Consider the use of a centrifugal pump from the family in problem #3. The pump is to
deliver 100,000 gal/min of water at 60
o
F with a head of 25 ft. Assuming that the pump is to
operate at best efficiency, determine the required values for (a) the pump size (b) the pump
speed, and (c) the brake horsepower.

5) The 32 in pump on page P11 of the notes is to operate at a speed of 1170 rpm to pump water
at 60
o
F from one reservoir to another 120 ft higher through 1500 ft of 18 in ID pipe with a
friction factor f = 0.015. If minor losses are ignored; (a) What will the operating point and
efficiency be? (b) At what speed should the pump be operated to be at the BEP.

6) If two 32 in pumps are used in parallel, for the situation in problem #5, will the discharge
increase? Is it more efficient?

7) Suppose the elevation change in problem #5 is raised from 120 to 500 ft, which is greater
than a single pump can supply. What would the operating point and efficiency be for two 32
in pumps in series at 1170 rpm.