Experimental and numerical investigations of head-flow curve instability of a single-stage centrifugal pump with volute casing

Unstable or flat head-flow curves can cause problems in parallel operations or in flat systems. Despite the considerable efforts that have been devoted to the study of head-flow curve instability in single-stage centrifugal pumps with volute casing, the cause of such phenomenon is not sufficiently understood. In this study, we investigated the variation of hydraulic losses based on the relationship between velocity distribution and entropy generation fields. Steady-state and unsteady simulations were obtained for a pump with an impeller outlet diameter of 174 mm, and the unsteady results are more coincided with the experiments. Results showed that the losses mainly focused on the blade suction surface and volute tongue, as well as in the region of the volute discharge at high flow rates. The entropy generation rate of the pump casing at partial flow rates changed slightly with a decrease in flow rate, whereas the energy losses in the impeller increased steeply when the flow rate dropped to 35 m3/h (the design flow rate was 60 m3/h). The losses in the impeller were mainly concentrated on the region near the inlet and outlet and were lower near the impeller inlet than near the impeller outlet, where a counter-rotating vortex was developed near the blade trailing edge. The vortex caused a drastic increase in the entropy generation rate on the pressure surface and in the flow passage. Such increase was the main cause of the head-flow characteristic instability.