Surge in water ring vacuum pumps
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Our company has one set of pressure swing adsorption units, comprising a total of 4 water ring vacuum pumps, which are divided into Group A and Group B, with two units in operation and two as backups. During normal operation, the water ring pump in Group A periodically evacuates the tanks that need to be emptied (under program control; the tank outlet valve is opened when the pressure in the tank reaches 50 KPa). Recently, it was observed that within 5 seconds after the outlet valve of the storage tank was opened, the water ring vacuum pump emitted intense abnormal noises and experienced vibration, before returning to normal after those 5 seconds. However, throughout the process, the pumping efficiency of the water ring pump remained unchanged. Subsequently, the working fluid of the water ring pump was replenished, and the abnormal noises and vibrations disappeared. Is it because of a lack of working fluid? Won’t a lack of working fluid affect the pumping effect? Will it cause vibration and unusual noises? I hope the experts here can give me some advice. Thank you!
It is caused by a lack of working fluid, similar to the vibration and abnormal noises that occur when a centrifugal pump gets vacuumed.
Insufficient working fluid, excessive temperature rise of the working fluid leading to evaporation, and uneven forces on the rotor causing vibration and abnormal noises~~~
During operation, the inlet of the water ring vacuum pump is a sealed pipeline, which is connected to a container; there is a pneumatic valve between the two. The container contains compressed gas, and the pneumatic valve opens at regular intervals, allowing the vacuum pump to start drawing in air. The vibration was very high during the few seconds when air was being drawn in, but it returned to normal a few seconds later.
It may be caused by a high pressure and large flow rate at the vacuum pump inlet during the switching, resulting in an instantaneous shock
These phenomena occur when a large amount of water is drawn in