1 ME 313 Fluid Mechanics Laboratory

ME 313 Fluid Mechanics Laboratory

NAME- Ankita Sharma
ROLL NO. 10003001
Course instructor Prof. Vinod Narayanan

EXPERIMENT NO.4a
Centrifugal Pump








Date: 10/09/2012








2 ME 313 Fluid Mechanics Laboratory
Aim:
To obtain characteristics curves of given centrifugal pump at constant speed by plotting following
graphs:
Total Head Developed Vs Mass flow rate
Efficiency Vs Mass flow rate
Experimental Setup:
A variable speed centrifugal pump to obtain characteristics curves at different speed
Valves on suction and discharge line of pipe to adjust corresponding pressures at desired
levels
Mercury manometer to measure suction and delivery pressures
Energy meter to measure power consumed by the pump
Calibrated tank to measure mass flow rate of water
Water reservoir to supply water to the centrifugal pump
Tachometer to measure R.P.M. of motor
Stop watch.
Procedure:
The water reservoirs were filled with water to 90% of its capacity.
Open the valves on the suction and discharge lines of the pump fully and switch on the
pump.
By making use of speed regulator adjust the speed (RPM) of the pump within 50 of the
desired speed.
Remove air bubbles, if any, from suction and delivery pressure tapping lines and connect
them to the respective manometers.
Note down the suction and delivery manometer readings.
Close the valve at the bottom of the calibrated tank and note down the time required for the
water to rise between tow marks. Open the valve at bottom of the calibrated tank as soon as
the water level reaches the top mark.
Note down the energy meter reading.
Repeat the above procedure for different values of volumetric flow but at a constant speed.

Observations:
S.N. Time taken to fill the
measuring tank t
(s)
Height of mercury
level in first pipe
R
M1
(cm)
Height of mercury
level in second pipe
R
M2
(cm)
Height difference
of mercury
R
M
(cm)
Power
(kW)
1 99 64.1 89.3 25.2 0.061
2 101 64.7 89.9 25.2 0.059
3 105 65.1 90.4 25.3 0.057
4 111 66.5 91.9 25.4 0.056
5 132 71.8 97.4 25.6 0.055
6 172 77.6 103.5 25.9 0.054
7 301 80.8 107.2 26.4 0.049


3 ME 313 Fluid Mechanics Laboratory
Calculations:
Following is the list of Formulas used in the calculation:
a) Volumetric flow rate/Discharge (Q): Volume discharged per unit time
Q =

Where, Volume of the measuring tank = Area of cross section of tank (A
c
) Height of water in
measuring tank
b) Mass flow rate ( ) :

Where, V: volume of the calibrated tank

Density of the fluid

c) Total Head (H): (

) (

) (

)
Where,

Mercury levels in manometer pipes 1 & 2

Density of mercury
d) Fluid Horse Power (F.H.P.):

e) Brake horse power of the pump (B.H.P.): [

f) Efficiency of the pump ()

Relevant assumed/Given data:
Density of water at ambient conditions, = 1000 kg/m3
Acceleration due to gravity, = 9.80 m/s2
Volume of calibrated tank, = 11 litres
Energy meter reading when the pump is run empty, kW1= 8 W
Constant speed around which experiment is based = 4100 RPM
Calculation Table:
S.N. Mass flow rate
(kg/s)
Discharge
Q (l/min)
Total Head
H (m)
Fluid Horse
Power
F.H.P. (W)
Brake Horse
Power
B.H.P.(W)
Pump
Efficiency
(%)
1. 0.111111 6.666667 30.95397 33.71919 53 63.62111
2. 0.108911 6.534653 30.95397 33.05148 51 64.80682
3. 0.104762 6.285714 31.0768 31.91854 49 65.13987
4. 0.099099 5.945946 31.19963 30.31255 48 63.15115
5. 0.083333 5.000000 31.4453 25.69081 47 54.6613
6. 0.063953 3.837209 31.8138 19.94725 46 43.36359
7. 0.036545 2.192691 32.42796 11.61848 41 28.33775

Sample Calculation:
Consider the first reading:

4 ME 313 Fluid Mechanics Laboratory
Volumetric flow rate-
Q =

Mass flow rate

Total Head (

) (

) (

) (

) (

)
Fluid horse power

Brake horse power [

Pump efficiency

%
Graphs:

Plot: Total Head Vs Discharge


Plot: Pump Efficiency Vs Discharge
30
30.5
31
31.5
32
32.5
33
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
T
o
t
a
l

H
e
a
d
,

H
(
m
)

Discharge, Q(l/m)
Total Head Vs Discharge
20
30
40
50
60
70
2.002 3.002 4.002 5.002 6.002 7.002
P
u
m
p

E
f
f
i
c
i
e
n
c
y
,

(
%
)

Discharge, Q(l/m)
Pump Efficiency Vs Discharge

5 ME 313 Fluid Mechanics Laboratory
Results:
The characteristics curves, i.e. total head Vs discharge and pump efficiency Vs discharge, are
plotted for the constant value of motor speed (RPM = 4100). They are similar to the typical
curves normally obtained for centrifugal pumps.
From the plot of total head (H) Vs discharge (Q), it is observed that total head increases with
an increase in volumetric or mass flow rate.
From the plot of pump efficiency () Vs discharge (Q), it is observed that efficiency increases
when flow rate increases until it reaches the Best Efficiency Point (BEP), and then it
decreases with further increase in flow rate.
It is also observed that the value of power consumed is higher for the higher values of
volumetric flow rate (Q).
Inference:
The total head increases with a decrease in volumetric/mass flow rate because as the
discharge decreases, value of discharge pressure increases and hence water can be supplied
at greater heights because of the larger force. Head becomes zero at maximum flow rate.
Efficiency increases when flow rate increases until it reaches the Best Efficiency Point (BEP),
and then it decreases with further increase in flow rate.
The power input is proportional to the flow rate for the centrifugal pump.
At zero flow-rate, the power input is not zero; this amount of power is to overcome the
rotor inertia of motor and centrifugal pump as well as mechanical frictional loss.
Sources of Error:
The motor speed control knob is very sensitive to adjust hence its difficult to maintain the
motor speed at a constant value throughout the whole experiment.
Other possible sources of errors are human errors like error while observing the time taken
to fill the measuring tank using a stopwatch or while observing the height of mercury level in
manometer pipes.
Precautions:
Use clean water, free from foreign material, in the sump tank.
Use all the controls and switches carefully.
Do not disturb the pressure gauge connections.
Before starting the experiment, priming must be done. Pump should never be run empty.
Frequently grease/oil the rotating parts.