FIGURE 2
Gate Valve
Gate valves consist of two separate valves, one to control flow from
the hopper and another to control
flow into the line. As Figure 1 shows,
the gates are arranged so that the
FIGURE 1
Swing Tube
piston on the return is connected
to the hopper while the gate to
the pump line is
closed. During the
f o rw a rd stroke the
gate to the hopper
closes and the gate
to the line opens,
allowing the concrete to be pushed
into the line.
Rock Valve
A rock valve is a
single element that
the other (Figure 3). During the return stroke the swing tube is positioned so the intake cylinder is
open to the hopper and the piston
on the forward stroke is connected
to the line. When the travel of the
pistons re ve r s e s, the swing tube
shifts to align itself with the pumping cylinder.
one to the pump line opens, allowing the concrete to enter the pump
line. The two cylinders act in unison; while one is filling the other is
pumping.
Mechanical. Some ball-va l ve
piston pumps have pistons that
are driven mechanically instead of
h yd ra u l i c a l l y. In a mechanically
Ball Valve
FIGURE 5
Hydraulic. A hydraulic-powe re d
piston pump with a ball valve has
two balls for each cylinder. When
the intake cylinder draws concrete
from the hopper, the ball located
between the hopper and the cylinder opens, allowing concrete to
pass. At the same time, this suction
draws the other ball to the pump
line, closing it off (Figure 4). Conversely, when the piston is pushing
FIGURE 4
C Tube
The C tube is a valve that connects the face of each cylinder with
the line through a pipe that is bent
FIGURE 6
Glossary
Piston - The piston is made of rubber or other hard material and
travels inside the cylinder. The piston seals the inside of the cylinder to
eliminate seepage and is driven by a hydraulic cylinder rod to exert pressure on the concrete.
Cylinder - Contains the concrete that is being pumped by
the piston.
Hopper - The part of t h ep u m p that receives and holds c o n c re t eb e f o re it
is sucked into the pumping cylinder.
Grate - Keeps l a rg e objects o u to f t h eh o p p e r for safety reasons.
Agitator - Device in the hopper, usually revolving paddles, that remixes
concrete and ensures optimum concrete flow toward the cylinders.
180 degrees (Figure 6). On the intake stroke, one cylinder is open to
the hopper for filling. When the piston reverses, the C tube moves over
to connect the cylinder with the
pump line. While one cylinder is
connected to the line by the C tube
the other is open to the hopper for
filling.
PUBLICATION #C940629
Copyright 1994, The Aberdeen Group
All rights reserved