FUNDAMENTALS OF

PUMPS
TYPES AND
OVERVIEW
By / Mostafa Mahmoud 2|Page
Contents
What is a
pump? ........................................................................................... 3
1. POSITIVE DISPLACEMENT
PUMPS ................................................................... 5
A. Reciprocating
Pump .............................................................................. 6
A.1 Piston Pump ............................................................................. 6
A.2 Diaphragm Pump ........................................................................ 6
B. Rotary
Pump ..................................................................................... 7
B.1 Gear Pump ............................................................................... 7
B.2 Lope Pump ............................................................................... 9
B.3 Screw Pump ............................................................................. 9
B.4 Vane Pump ............................................................................. 10
2. DYNAMIC HEAD PUMPS
(DHP) ....................................................................... 11
2.1 Centrifugal
Pump .............................................................................. 11
Types of Centrifugal
Pump ........................................................................ 13
Centrifugal Pump
Performance .................................................................... 15
How to Control the pump flow
rate? ............................................................. 16
The Best Efficiency Point
(BEP) .................................................................. 16
Cavitation ...........................................................................................
18
Net Positive Suction
Head ........................................................................ 19
Pump
Grouping ...................................................................................... 20
Why isn’t the flow
doubled? ...................................................................... 21
Series or
parallel .................................................................................. 22
Motor selection and cavitation
probability ....................................................... 23
Speed vs. valve
control ............................................................................ 24
Priming ..............................................................................................
25
Centrifugal pump
installation ...................................................................... 25 3 | P a g e
What is a pump?
A pump is a mechanical device that is used to give energy to a flowing liquid
such that the liquid can overcome the resistance in the hydraulic system.
Simply the pump converts mechanical energy into hydraulic energy given to
the flow.
Applications
• Pumping oil and petroleum derivatives from production or storage site to
the market.
• Pumping drinking/waste water to/from homes.
• Firefighting applications.
• In any automobile exists at least three pumps of different types:
 Lubrication pump.

 Cooling water pump.

 Fuel pump.

PUMPS TYPE 4|Page

POSITIVE DISPLACEMENT Pump
PDPs displace a fixed amount of liquid from suction side to discharge side.
These pumps give very high pressures but little flow rates. So they are used
in fluid power applications to pump oil in heavy duty machines (cranes,
excavators, etc.).
Dynamic Head Pumps (DHP)
DHPs increase the kinetic energy of the flow which is then converted to
pressure. These pumps give very large quantities at low pressures. So they
are used in liquid transportation to pump e.g. to pump water from treatment
stations to homes.
COMPARISON 5|Page
1. POSITIVE DISPLACEMENT PUMPS
The pump delivers a fixed amount of liquid (displacement) whatever the
system pressure.

The flow rate of any PDP can be given by the following formula: 𝑄=
The decrease of flow rate at high pressures occurs due to increased leakage.

𝜂𝑣𝑉𝑑𝑁60 Where; 𝜂𝑣 = volumetric efficiency that compensates for pump

𝑉𝑑= volumetric displacement of the pump (depends on the pump geometry,

leakage, slip, (=100% for zero leakage pump)

equals the chamber volume for piston pump and the space between teeth

𝑁 = pump speed (rpm)

and casing for gear pump) (m3)

The figure shows the change of pump parameters (Q, 𝜂𝑣,𝜂𝑂𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑙𝑙, Psh) with
Performance of PDPs
pump man-metric pressure and speed. The volumetric efficiency decreases
as the pressure difference increases. This is due to increase of leakage
through pump clearances at high pressures. Also, as the pump speed
increases the liquid can be displaced by minimum leakage i.e. the volumetric
efficiency increases. 6 | P a g e
1.2 TYPE OF POSITIVE DISPLACEMENT PUMP
A. Reciprocating Pump
A.1 Piston Pump
The piston pump is the simplest and may be oldest type of pumps. This pump
produces very high pressures and can pump slurries and heavy liquid. It
consists of a piston that reciprocates inside a cylinder. As the piston retards,
the volume of the space increases and a new amount of liquid is sucked
through inlet check valve. As the piston advances, the volume decreases and
hence delivers the liquid through the outlet check valve.
A.2 Diaphragm Pump
The pump will function when a diaphragm is forced into reciprocating motion
by mechanical linkage, compressed air, or fluid from a pulsating, external
source. The pump construction eliminates any contact between the liquid
being pumped and the source of energy. This eliminates the possibility of
leakage, which is important when handling toxic or very expensive liquids.
Disadvantages include limited head and capacity range, and the necessity of
check valves in the suction and discharge nozzles. 7 | P a g e
B. Rotary Pump
Rotary pumps operate on the principle that a rotating vane, screw, or gear
traps the liquid in the suction side of the pump casing and forces it to the
discharge side of the casing. These pumps are essentially self-priming due to
their capability of removing air from suction lines and producing a high
suction lift. In pumps designed for systems requiring high suction lift and self-
priming features, it is essential that all clearances between rotating parts,
and between rotating and stationary parts, be kept to a minimum in order to
reduce slippage. Slippage is leakage of fluid from the discharge of the pump
back to its suction.
B.1 Gear Pump
External Gear Pump: It consists of two meshing gears that rotate inside a
fit casing. As the teeth separate, the space between them increases and
sucks a certain amount of liquid. The trapped liquid moves with the teeth till
they get in contact again and the space between them become zero. The
only way the liquid has is the delivery port.
With the large number of teeth usually employed on the gears, the discharge
is relatively smooth and continuous, with small quantities of liquid being
delivered to the discharge line in rapid succession.
An external precision gear pump is usually limited to a maximum working
pressure of 210 bars (21,000 kPa) and a maximum speed of 3,000 rpm. Some
manufacturers produce gear pumps with higher working pressures and
speeds but these types of pumps tend to be noisy and special precautions
may have to be made. 8 | P a g e
 Internal Gear Pump: An internal gear pump works on a similar principle
except the two linking gears sizes are different with one revolving within the
other. The rotor is a larger gear and also an inner gear, and it has the teeth
projecting inside.
A permanent semi-circular formed divider otherwise spacer seals the void
shaped through the off-center mounting location of the idler & performs like a
seal among the ports like inlet & outlet. When the gears appear from the
mesh on the pump’s inlet side, they make an extended quantity. Fluid
supplies into the cavities as well as trapped with the teeth of gear because
the gears continue for rotating next to the casing of the pump. The trapped
liquid can be moved from the inlet side to the discharge side in the region of
the casing.
When the gears teeth become linked Disadvantages
on the discharge surface of the pump,  Four bushings in liquid area
then the amount can be decreased &  No solids allowed
the liquid is forced out beneath force.  Fixed End Clearances
Inner gear pump plans only utilize spur
gears. Advantages
 High speed
 High pressure
 No overhung bearing loads
 Relatively quiet operation
 Design accommodates wide variety
of materials