MINIMUM STARTING SPEED

When the pump is started, there will no flow of water

until the pressure difference in the impeller is large
enough to overcome the gross or manometeric head.
Therefore a centrifugal head or pressure head caused
by the centrifugal force on the rotating water will be
(u22-u12)/2g.

u22  u12
 Hm
2g
2 2
 D2 N   D1 N 
     Hm
 60   60 
PRIMING
When a centrifugal pump is not running for sometime,
the water present in the pump casing and suction pipe
flows back to the sump and these spaces get filled with
air. Now when the pump motor is switched on and
pump starts running, the head developed equals H
=(Vu2.u2)/g of air.
Since ρair<<<ρwater the head generated cannot produce
spontaneously the vacuum required to start the
pumping action then the water cannot be sucked in
along the suction pipe to reach the impeller , for making
the pump deliver water, there is need to make the pump
section free from air and fill these space with water .
 PRIMING

The entire operation of completely filling the

suction pipe, casing and delivery pipe with the
liquid to be pumped is called priming. After
proper priming and keeping the delivery valve
closed, the pump is started, the shaft off head
(head generated when no flow of liquid) builds
up and delivery valve is generally opened.
 PRIMING DEVICES
a) Pouring water: Water is poured in the pump through
priming funnel. Air vent is opened to provide exit to the
air. It is closed after the priming is over.
b) Connection with main waterline: - The pump may
be connected with the city water main which can be
opened to fill the impeller and suction pipe in order to
prime the pump.
c) Priming chamber:-in small pumps a priming chamber
may be used on the delivery side of the impeller. When
the pump is stopped, some water is store in the tank and
this can be used to impeller and the suction line before
restarting.
d) Vacuum producing devices: - An injector using high
pressure water, stream or compressed air is employed to
create vacuum at the top of the casing. So that water is
sucked into the suction pipe and the impeller.
BLADE SHAPE
The shape of impeller blades is changed depending on
the blade angle β2 which has a significant influence on
the conversion of energy. The different blade and
velocity vectors are represented in fig
 Direction of outlet relative velocity is fixed byβ2 and
velocity vector depending upon blade configuration.
For backward curved blade the tangential component
Vu2 is reduced for a given impeller speed, the impeller
will have a low energy transfer is maximum for
forward curved blade. However, the absolute velocity
V2 at impeller outlet is also increased. a high value of
V2 is not desirable as its conversion into static
pressure cannot be very efficiently carried out in the
casing section.
So losses are maximum for forward curved blade.
Normally backward blade with (22˚-32˚) is employed
except in the case where the high head is the major
consideration.
SLIP FACTOR
The ideal head developed considering infinite
number of blades in the impeller through which the
water has to pass.In practice the impeller must have
only a finite number of blades, due to inertia effects,
the liquid which is trapped between the impeller
blades is reluctant to move round with the impeller.
This results in a difference of pressure force across
the blade, there being a high pressure (+) on the
leading face and a low pressure (-) on the trailing
face. This difference of pressure, called vane loading,
increase with an increase in the number of blades.
 Due to deviation in the flow path, the tangential
component gets reduced from Vu2 to Vu2`. The difference
(Vu2-Vu2`) is called slip of the impeller. the slip factor is
defined the ratio of whirl component with fluid deviation
to the whirl component without fluid deviation further due
to real fluid effects( friction and separation on the wall of
disc , shrouds, and blades) the radial velocity may not
uniform around the periphery of the impeller.
The net effect of slip and non-uniform velocity is to reduce
the Euler head. 
Vu 2
Slip factor (σ) = By stodola relation   1  
Vu 2 z

(z is the number of blades)

Slip factors increases with the increase in the number of
blades and becomes unity when there are infinite no. of
blades.
AXIAL THRUST IN CETRIFUGAL PUMPS
Axial thrust is a force casting parallel to the axis of the pump
shaft, caused due to the following reason:-
(a). The water while passing through the impeller is rotating with a
forced vortex , but that the outside the surrounding other
component are in the rest condition , this cause a differential
static thrust acting parallel to the axis of pump shaft and
towards the impeller inlet.

(b). Liquid enters the pump axially and is then deflected from its
original path to a radial direction. The dynamic action of liquid
causes a force to act on the pump in the direction of flow of
inlet. To enable the pump to withstand the thrust, the following
methods may be employed.

1.For small pumps

(1) Providing a thrust ball bearing in the direction of axial thrust.
(2) Inserting a cast iron ring in the casing which should fit in with
a similar ring cast integral with impeller.
2.For large pumps
Where the axial thrust is heavy.
(1) Use of double suction impeller Suction on two sides
of the impeller neutralizes the thrust. But this method
can be only for single stage pump.
(2) Provision of reliving holes are provided in the
impeller to allow suction pressure to act on both
sides.
(3) A balance plate fitted at the end of the pump shaft.
3. For Multi Stage Pump
The number of impeller are made generally even, this will
facilitates to arrange the inlets of the half of the impeller in
the opposite direction. These will balance the axial thrust
produced by the other half numbers of the impellers.
PERFORMANCE OF PUMPS-
CHARACTERISTIC CURVE
A pump is usually designed for a particular speed,
flow rate and head, but in actual practice the
operation may be at some other condition of head,
and for the changed condition the behavior of the
pump is less efficient than the quantity the value of
velocity of flow of liquid through impeller will be
changed.
Characteristic curve are usually prepared for the
centrifugal pumps are main and operating
characteristic curve, constant efficiency curves,
constant head & constant- discharge curve
Main characteristic curves of centrifugal pump
Operating characteristics: During operation the pump
must run at a constant speed. Normally, this is the designed
speed. The particular set of main characteristics which
correspond to the designed speed is mostly used in
operation and is therefore known as operating
characteristics
 Muschal Curve or Constant
Efficiency Curve
With the help of data obtained from the above curve, a
series of constant. Efficiency curve can be obtained. They
facilitate the job of the salesman and enable the
prospective customer to see directly the range of
operation with a particular efficiency,
Constant Head and Constant
Discharge Curve
It is quite possible that a pump may be required to
deliver water at a certain height, in which case it is
fixed. If for some reason the speed varies, discharge will
also be affected.