In the process industry there is a wide choice of types of pumps. Depending on the process for which the pump is used, the selection is limited. When a pump is used for dosing additives, for example, or for pumping water, the choice will quickly fall to gear pumps or centrifugal pumps respectively.
Centrifugal pumps
Centrifugal pumps are traditionally driven at speed. To achieve the desired volume flow, the pressure line is pinched. This is best compared to a garden hose that is connected to the tap, where the tap is fully opened and the hose is then pinched so that only a small stream of water comes out. This creates a higher pressure in the pipe that would not actually be necessary if the tap were to be opened only a little. At that moment, the pressure (and therefore the problem) is moved to the tap.
In fact, a lot of energy is used to build up a pressure, which is not necessary for a small stream. In this way, a lot of energy is wasted during the life of the pump over many years, because centrifugal pumps often have large installed capacities. 100 – 350 kW is not unusual. There’s a lot to save here.
Gear pumps
The speed of gear pumps is often controlled via frequency conversion of the e-motor. The speed of the gear pumps is adjusted with a flow meter or a “load cell” and a closed-loop control in such a way that the pump delivers the desired volume flow. Here, dosing accuracies of 0.1 … 5% can be achieved. As a result, no more pressure is built up than necessary and much more efficient and energy-efficient pumping can be done.
The gear pumps that Suurmond supplies all have relatively small installed capacities. These typically vary between 0.2 kW and 18.5 kW! In short: the gear pump solution offers significant energy savings over centrifugal pumps.
Your choice
Where centrifugal pumps often have large installed capacities, gear pumps are all very effective and efficient! Do you want to limit your CO2 emissions and save on energy costs? Then gear pumps are the best choice.
