Advantages and Disadvantages of Screw Pumps Paper
Advantages and Disadvantages of Screw Pumps Paper
Advantages and Disadvantages of Screw Pumps Paper
The screw pump was described by Archimedes on the occasion of his visit to Egypt. This
suggests that the apparatus was unknown to the Greeks before Hellenistic times.
A cuneiform inscription of Assyrian king Sennacherib (704–681 BC) has been interpreted
by Stephanie Dalley to describe casting water screws in bronze some 350 years earlier.
This is consistent with classical author Strabo, who describes the Hanging Gardens as
watered by screws.
In 1588 Sliding vane water pump technology is described by Italian engineer Agostino
Ramelli in his book “The Diverse and Artifactitious Machines of Captain Agostino
Ramelli,” which also included other pump and engine designs.
INTRODUCTION
Screw Pump
The fluid enters from the suction side of the pump and moves linearly along these
intermeshing screws to the discharge side of the pump. The clearances between the
screws and the liner are very small hence the fluid gains pressure while moving through
the pump.
1|Page
Vane Pumps
A slotted rotor is eccentrically supported in a cycloidal cam. The rotor is located close to
the wall of the cam so a crescent-shaped cavity is formed. The rotor is sealed into the
cam by two side plates. Vanes or blades fit within the slots of the impeller. As the rotor
rotates (yellow arrow) and fluid enters the pump, centrifugal force, hydraulic pressure,
and/or pushrods push the vanes to the walls of the housing. The tight seal among the
vanes, rotor, cam, and side plate is the key to the good suction characteristics common
to the vane pumping principle.
The housing and cam force fluid into the pumping chamber through holes in the cam
(small red arrow on the bottom of the pump). Fluid enters the pockets created by the
vanes, rotor, cam, and side plate.
As the rotor continues around, the vanes sweep the fluid to the opposite side of the
crescent where it is squeezed through discharge holes of the cam as the vane
approaches the point of the crescent (small red arrow on the side of the pump). Fluid
then exits the discharge port.
2|Page
TERMINOLOGY
Screw Pump-a pump in which the working pressure is created by means of screw-
shaped impellers in the vertical water column
Vane Pump
a pump in which a liquid is displaced through a shaped stator by a shaped rotor.
Archimedes Screw- a machine used for transferring water from a low-lying body of
water into irrigation ditches.
Two/Double screw pump-These pumps operates by using two intermeshing screws as
described above.
Three screw pump-They utilize one driving screw intermeshed with the other two
screws to create pressure and move fluid.
Shaft Seal - Component mechanical seals, industry-standard cartridge mechanical seals,
and magnetically-driven pumps.
Externals (head, casing) - Cast iron, ductile iron, steel, and stainless steel.
Vane, Pushrods - Carbon graphite.
End Plates - Carbon graphite
Packing - Available from some vendors, but not usually recommended for thin liquid
service
3|Page
ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF SCREW PUMPS
ADVANTAGES
Wide range of flows and pressures
Wide range of liquids and viscosities
Built-in variable capacity
High speed capability for freedom of driver selection
Low internal velocities
Self-priming with good suction characteristics
High tolerance for entrained air and other gases
Minimum churning or foaming
Low mechanical vibration, pulsation-free flow, and quiet operation
Rugged, compact design - easy to install and maintain
High tolerance to contamination in comparison with other rotary pumps
DISADVANTAGES
Relatively high cost because of close tolerances and running clearances
Performance characteristics sensitive to viscosity change
High pressure capability requires long pumping elements
4|Page
DISADVANTAGES
5|Page
+ Pump capacity is self-regulating with incoming level
When incoming water-level goes down, at dry weather flow, the screw pump ‘automatically’
pumps less water. Ergo: no control system required to adapt pump performance.
6|Page