Numerical study of the dimensionless characteristics and modeling experiment of a molten salt pump that transports viscous fluids

摘要

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to study the dimensionless characteristics of a molten salt pump and propose an approach to carry out the modeling experiment by using water instead of molten salts. Design/methodology/approach - External characteristics of the pump were estimated by using the steady flow model and compared with the experimental results. By taking water as the working fluid, the pathlines in the volute of the model pump were validated by the results obtained of high-speed photography. According to the derived dimensionless characteristics of the molten salt pump, the modeling experimental schemes were proposed. Adopting the validated numerical simulation model, the performance of the molten salt pump was studied in detail. Findings - The modeling experimental schemes designed according to the dimensionless characteristics are theoretically feasible. However, to carry out the experiment successfully, factors such as rotational speed, geometric size, flow rate and head should be taken into account. The flow in the pumps is similar under the similar operating condition and the external characteristics of the similar pump can be converted to each other. Compared with transporting water, the decline of the head and efficiency is within 5 per cent when the viscosity is lower than 0.01453 Pas. The pump is not suitable for running under the critical Reynolds number of 1.0 × 10~7. Originality/value - The current work revealed the relationships among the dimensionless performances of a molten salt pump and proposed a critical Reynolds number Re_(Qcr) for the pump running.