COMPUTATIONAL STUDY OF SOLID PARTICLE EROSION IN SUBMERSIBLE PUMPS, COMBINING CFD TECHNIQUES WITH A COMPUTATIONAL EROSION MODEL

N. Charalambous1, A. Tourlidakis2, S.Hadjiyannis3, K. Michaelides4

1. University of Western Macedonia Mechanical Engineering Department, Kozani, Greece, ncharala@cytanet.com.cy 2. University of Western Macedonia Mechanical Engineering Department, Kozani, Greece, atourlidakis@uowm.gr 3. CNE Technology Center, Ergates Industrial Estate, P.O. Box 16104, Nicosia 2086, Cyprus stavros.h@cnetechnology.com 4. HYDRUS Ltd, Ypsonas Industrial Area, Limassol, P.O. Box 50430, 3604 Limassol, Cyprus, kristis.m@cytanet.com.cy ABSTRACT This research work aimed to investigate the surface deterioration caused to the internal surface of a vertical multistage submersible pump by the impact of sand particles and the evaluation of various coatings through computational fluid dynamics analysis (CFD) and experimental testing. The experimental data of the mechanical testing of Plasma and HVOF metal coatings were introduced in CFD simulations and a number of different coatings were computationally examined after applying a constant solid particle mass flow into the computational flow domain. The particle impact conditions were determined a) by numerical simulations of the 3D flow field and b) by the particle trajectories which are described by the Langrangian model. The erosion model of Finnie was used for calculating the erosion rates in the pump components (i.e. impeller and diffuser) and different size of solid particles were used in order to specify the relationship between the erosion rates and the solid particles size. The computational and some of the experimental results are presented in this paper and can be used as reference for choosing a suitable metal coating for vertical multistage submersible pumps and for vertical centrifugal pumps in general. NOMENCLATURE CD:Drag coefficient d:Particle diameter D1:Impeller eye diameter D2:Impeller outlet diameter D3:Diffuser inlet diameter E:Erosion rate Fu:Forces acting on particles g :Gravitational Acceleration K:Restitution coefficient

mp : mass partilcle : particle impact angle N : number of particles f: fluid density R:Coriolis force Radius p: particle density T1: time required for 100000 impacts t: time difference T2: time required for 500000 impacts : time T3: time required for 1000000 impacts : rotational speed vp particle velocity k: erosion factor coefficient vf fluid velocity Xin particle position

INTRODUCTION Solid particle erosion is a phenomenon caused by the collision of solid particles in metallic surfaces and has been intensively studied in the past. Compressors, industrial boilers, pumps, pipes, turbine rotors, gas turbines etc. are usually facing problems of deterioration by solid particle erosion depending on the application. The study of the problem was focused on applications with air flow which involved high particle speeds, in many cases above 300m/s.The same problem is also crucial in water pump applications although the particle speeds are significantly lower. Pump users very often are facing severe problems with erosion and are forced to replace destroyed impellers and diffusers especially in cases where solid particles (i.e. sand) quantities in the flow are high. Most of the computational work for particle erosion studied was for piping systems [11], this study was performed for various parameters affecting the erosion rate such as the particle size, the particle impact velocity and the particle impact angle. All these parameters were also validated experimentally [2-3]. Also different erosion models have been utilized and proposed for calculating the erosion rates [11], these models were compared and their accuracy was determined experimentally. The flow of the particles inside a computational domain should be described in order to calculate the particles trajectories and the particles velocities which are affecting the erosion rate according to the models used. The flow is considered as a two-phase flow and the motion of the solid particles is described by using one of the three proposed models, the Lagrange model, the Eulerian-Eulerian model and the drift flux model [2-3]. In the current study, well established CFD techniques, a computational erosion model and experimental data based on mechanical properties of selected coatings were used in order to study the effect of solid particles collision on the surface of impeller and diffuser of a vertical multistage submersible water pump. The effect of the solid particles size was studied and the erosion rate resulting from the impact of solid particles with the blades, the hub and shroud surfaces of the impeller and the diffuser using the erosion model of Finnie was determined. This model is by far the simplest and most commonly used erosion model. Finnie proposed that erosive wear, is a direct consequence of a micro cutting of surfaces by the impacting particles. The particle size plays a key role in the erosion patterns since smaller particles tend to follow the flow while larger particles are more likely to impact on the surface. It was found however, that even the small particles up to 20m are also responsible for the surface deterioration of the pump components. The numerical simulations of the particle trajectories through the impeller and diffuser were based on the Langrangian approach and provide valuable information of the critical areas to be deteriorated. These areas tend to have increased erosion rates and usually need to be protected (i.e. coated) to prolong their life. The numerical simulation of the particles trajectories includes also the hydrodynamic forces acting on the particles and the velocity vectors of the particles before and after the impact. The major forces that are considered during the simulation are (a) centrifugal forces due to the impeller rotation, (b) Coriolis forces, (c) gravitational forces and (d) drag forces resulting from the movement of the particles in the fluid. Experimental data of the mechanical properties of various types of metal coatings were available through the initial experimental part of this research work. Using CFD model the interaction between the fluid flow and the particles traveling from the inlet to the outlet of the pump components was taken into account. The trajectories of the particles were determined and tracked by the CFD code therefore the collision areas between the particles and the metal coatings were found and by using the erosion model of Finnie the erosion rates were possible to be calculated. The results out of this study establish the base for the development of a new methodology for evaluating metal coatings to prolong the life of pumps as well as establish guidelines to determine the critical areas in terms of erosion for water pumps.

COMPUTATIONAL WORK The pump that was used for the particular research work was a vertical multistage submersible pump with mixed flow centrifugal impeller and semi axial diffuser (HYDRUS Model 6CB). The best efficiency point (BEP) of the pump at 2600rpm is at a mass flow of 10kg/s and 10.5m head per stage. The basic dimensions of the impeller and the diffuser are illustrated below, Eye Diameter D1(mm)=76, Outlet Diameter D2(mm)=110, Inlet Diameter D3(mm)=163, Outlet D4 (mm) =133

Figure 1: Impeller and Diffuser Dimensions (mm) CFD Model To study the particle erosion in the pump stage four steps were performed: grid generation, flow simulation, particle track calculation and erosion rate calculation. The grid generation was done using ANSYS-CFX-Turbogrid, which provides an efficient tool for generating structured hexahedral mesh, a good grid is important for the CFD analysis, but usually a good compromise between accuracy and computational time is required. The generation of the grid was based on previous studies of computational particle erosion studies [13]. Since the k- model is applied for the turbulence model a converged turbulence field must be achieved in order to predict the correct particle movement, only a grid that has a sufficient resolution, orthogonality near the walls and a reasonable grid expansion ensures the converged of the turbulence field. On the other hand nonorthogonality grids [14] produces wrong values for k and which cause particles to hit the wall with high speed or to be attracted by the walls, calculating high erosion rates. The computational grid used 300,000 grid nodes per flow passage. This grid was optimized and evaluated experimentally since it was used for calculating the stage performance, and compared with the experimentally available results. This comparison showed that the stage gives very good results especially at its design point, the generated error from the simulation was within the acceptable 2% margin therefore it was considered acceptable to proceed with the particle erosion simulation, since results within this error margin were generated for a reasonable computing time. The flow analysis was performed using the commercially available ANSYS-CFX. The water phase simulations are based on the implicit solution of the Reynolds-averaged Navier Stokes

equations in conservation and the k- turbulence model. Table 1 shows the boundary conditions for the simulation where the number of particles, the diameter and the particle mass flow were constant. The coupling of the two grids (i.e. the impeller and the diffuser) was performed by the GGI method (General Grid Interface). This method permits a general intersection algorithm to be applied in order to successfully connect two surfaces that may not physically fit together to form a well defined physical connection [5]. Table 1: CFD Boundary Conditions BOUNDARY CONDITIONS Impeller Rotational speed (rpm) 2600 Impeller Reference Static Pressure (bar) 1 Particle Transport Drag (CD) Function of particles Re number Number of Particles 30000 Particle Diameter (m) 20-70 Turbulence model k- Fluid Mass Flow (kg/s) 10 Particle Mass Flow (kg/s) 1 Particle Inlet Domain Impeller Inlet Particle Outlet Domain Diffuser Outlet Impeller-Diffuser Interface GGI The simulation of the particless trajectories was performed utilizing the Langrangian equations. Within the particle transport model the total flow of the particle phase was modeled by tracking a small number of particles through the continuum fluid. Simulating the particles in the flow, one way coupling between the flow and the particles was considered. A simulation was also completed for coupling between the flow and the particles and the result indicated that the flow is not significantly affected by the particles and there was not significant change of the flow velocity, in the inlet and outlet of the pump which indicates that blockage effects were not present. Therefore for optimisation of computational time the one way interaction between the solid particles and the flow was an acceptable approximation. The simulation used was a steady state simulation, since the tracking of the particle is applicable also for steady state simulations. The positions of the particles in the computational domain were calculated using the forward Euler integration of the particle over time,
X in = X io + v o p i t (1)

t t ) + F all (1 exp( )) ( 2) In the calculation of all the forces acting on the particles, variables such as density, viscosity and velocity are needed at the position of the particle. The density of the particles during the simulation was constant =2300kg/m3. The remaining variables were obtained by calculating the element in which the particle is travelling, calculating the computational position within the element, and using the underlying shape functions of the discretisation algorithm to interpolate from the vertices to the particles position.
v p = v f + (v o p v f ) exp(

The forces acting on the particles were calculated during the simulation by Equation (3) dv p 1 d 3 f dv f d 3 f dv f dv p 1 2 mp = f d C D v f v p (v f v p ) + + ( ) + d 3 ( p f ) g dt 8 6 dt 12 dt dt 6 3 r d p d 3 ( p f ) ( R) v p + Fu (3) 6 6 The sum of the forces acting on the particles are responsible for the particles acceleration into the fluid domain. The first term of the equation is the drag force and it is influenced by the drag coefficient and also by the size of the particle. The Drag Coefficient in the CFD model was determined in relation to the Re number. For Re>1000 was constant and set to 0.44 since this average value was proposed for high Re number based on previous studies [9] and for 1000>Re>1 was calculated by equation 4. 1 32 1.5 C D = [( ) + 1]1.5 ( 4) Re
The second term of the equation (3) is the force applied on the particle due to the pressure gradient in the fluid surrounding the particle caused by the fluid acceleration and this force is significant when the fluid density is similar or greater than the particle density. The third term used is the force to accelerate the virtual mass of the fluid in the volume occupied by the particle, which is important when the displaced fluid mass exceeds the particle mass. The fourth term is the buoyancy force due to the gravity of a spherical particle. The fifth term is the centripetal force which is present in rotating frames of reference such as in the impeller. The final term is the Coriolis force which is present only in the impeller.

Computational Erosion Model The erosion model that was used in the simulation was the Finnie model which conceives erosion as micro-cutting process. According to the Finnie model the important functions are (a) the particle impact velocity, (b) the wall properties where the particles are colliding, (c) the angle of particle collision, E = kv n (5) p f ( )
E is the dimensional mass, vp is the particle velocity and f() is a function that is related to the impact angle, 1 1 f ( ) = cos 2 tan > 3 3 1 f ( ) = sin( 2 ) 3 sin 2 tan < ( 6) 3 The velocity exponent n is related to the surface material and for metals it ranges between 2-2.4. The value of this exponent was set to 2, this was the value used by the model of Finnie when it was first introduced [3] and is still one of the most widely erosion models used. The important assumptions during the simulation were: 1) All the particles are entering from the impeller inlet, and exit from the diffuser outlet 2) The mass flow of the particles inside the computational domain is always constant 3) The shape of the particles is spherical 4) The restitution coefficient K which is related to the surface material, is always constant during the simulation and the value was such that allow the particles, after collision, to continue flowing into the computational domain until they exit from the diffuser outlet. This factor describes the action of the particles when they hit the wall and for a perfectly elastic collision it equals to 1. If this value is set to 0 then the particless tracking stops after the collision. By taking into account the properties of the coatings the total elastic deformation he and the total plastic deformation hp have been theoretically determined according to equation 8 5) The particles remain solid after the collision 6) Interference between the particles was

not taken into account, 7) The particle size remains the same for all the simulations and no agglomeration of particles occur. The erosion rate was calculated as the overall erosion of the surface over all particles and this gives the erosion rate in kg/s. However the results of erosion rate are presented in kg/s/m2.

Erosion rate = E N m p K =[

(7 )

0.8he 0.5 ] (8) (he + h p ) Computational Results Using Different Size Particles Initially simulations were performed by applying different particles sizes, 20m, 27m, 48.5m and 60 m and finally a more complicate simulation was performed with a range of particle sizes ranging from 20 to70m in a normal distribution inserted from the impeller inlet in order to simulate in more detail the actual effect of the particle size. The density of the particles used was set constant to = 2300 kg/m3. The simulation studying the erosion in the pump for different particles sizes was completed for all the coatings that were studied but in Figures 2 and 3 only the results of the 316 B coating are represented since the distribution erosion pattern is very similar for all other coatings used. For coating 316 B the erosion coefficients k was calculated using the experimental results and set 8.2 x 10-9.
1.20E-05
20 micro

Impeller

Erosion Rate (kg/m^2/s)

1.00E-05 8.00E-06 6.00E-06 4.00E-06 2.00E-06 0.00E+00 0.00

Inlet

27 micro 48.5 micro 60 micro 20-70 micro

0.20

0.40 Streamwise

0.60

0.80
Outlet

Figure 2: Variation of erosion rate with different particle sizes for the impeller in the streamwise direction.
3.50E-05 3.00E-05
20 micro

Diffuser

Erosion Rate (kg/m^2/s)

2.50E-05 2.00E-05 1.50E-05 1.00E-05 5.00E-06

27 micro 48.5 micro 60 micro 20-70 micro

0.00E+00 1 -5.00E-06
Inlet

1.1

1.2

1.3

1.4

1.5

1.6

1.7

1.8
Outlet

1.9

Streamwise

Figure 3: Variation of erosion rate with different particle sizes for the diffuser in the stream wise direction

Figures 2 and 3, as expected show clearly that the leading and trailing edge of both the impeller and diffuser are critical erosion areas. Figure 2, shows that the critical erosion area of the impeller is at approximately 60% of the streamwise distance between the leading and trailing edges. The trailing edge of impeller was expected to be identified as critical erosion areas since particles are colliding with the surface with relatively high velocities. The relatively high rotational speed of the impeller affects the particle velocity and this is the reason for increased erosion rates in these areas. As the particle diameter increases erosion rates are also increasing (See Figures 2,3), however simulations showed that this is more significant for the impeller and the interface region (impellerdiffuser), where the velocities are relatively higher and therefore the impact energy on the surfaces is increased, causing micro-cutting and deformation wear. On the other hand, in the case of the diffuser the importance of the particle diameter is more significant at the inlet where high speed particle are collide with the diffuser leading edge (Figure 4). As the flow inside the diffuser is decelerating this is affecting the particle speed which is steadily reduced until it reaches the diffuser trailing edge, where in this area the erosion rates are small, since particle energy is reduced. The specific semi axial diffuser is designed for reducing the flow speed and increasing the static pressure, therefore the blades have to be carefully shaped for reducing the flow speed. This reduction is usually accompanied with increased turbulence in this area affecting the particle speed the particles trajectories and the angle of collision. The smaller particles are affected more by this change and tend to increase the erosion rate compared to the bigger particles. Simulations shown that at the shroud surfaces, the solid particles tend to impact more frequently, therefore it is an area with increased erosion rates. The reason for this is that the primary force acting on the particles is the centrifugal force, due to the rotational speed of the impeller, therefore the centrifugal forces tend to force the particles to follow trajectories to the outer radius of the impeller and diffuser. This effect decreases as the particles are approaching the exit of the diffuser, where the centrifugal forces are decreased.

Figure 4: Particle collision in the diffuser and impeller leading edge for 27 m and 60 m

Figure 5: Particle collision in the diffuser and impeller trailing edge for 27 m and 60 m Experimental Results Mechanical Testing of Different Coatings The experimental part of the research work was focused on the mechanical testing of various Plasma and HVOF (High Velocity Oxygen Fuel) coatings which can be used in pump industry. A cermet coating applied by atmospheric Plasma process SX115 (44% complex borides - martensitic stainless steel matrix), a chrome carbide/tungsten carbide HVOF coating SX316 (37% WC, 11%Ni, 4% Co, balance Cr3C2) and a tungsten carbide HVOF coating SX314 (86% WC, 10% Co, 4% Cr) where used in the study. The experimental results gave useful information regarding the erosion rates (mm3/s) of six different coating layers. The determination of the fatigue properties characteristic was completed using an impact tester device. The device consists from a carbide ball of 5mm which periodically strikes the coating under a desired maximum load. Due to plastic deformation during the loading stage, the contact surface does not fully recover to its initial planar shape, a permanent concave imprint is formed which can be measured and evaluated appropriately. The impact tester is shown in Figure 6. Impact tests with impacts that vary (103 106) and loads between 300N 1000N were performed. Furthermore, the abovementioned experimental results were evaluated through 3D Surface Topography Analysis, where the removed material of the imprint was calculated. Initially the x and y length of the masked specimen area (chosen area) was measured. Then the percentage of valid points, which are the points within the imprints as compared to the points within the selected specimen area was calculated. The product of the length of imprint and the percentage of valid points, gives the projected area of the imprint. The mean depth of the imprint was obtained through integration of the imprint. The mean depth of the imprint is multiplied by the projected area thus giving the volume of the material removed during impact testing.

Figure 6: Inclined and perpendicular impact tester

The experimental results (See Figure 7) together with the Finnie model were used for calculating the k erosion coefficient factor that is depended on the coating material. Therefore the erosion rates that where calculated into mm3/s where transformed to kg/s. The impact tester velocity and the mass of the spherical carbide impacting on the coating surface where known during the experiment. The results from the inclined experiment were used because the Finnie model can not produce results for normal impacts, and also because, the collision of the particles to the surface of the pump are rarely normal. Most of the impacts of the particles and the pump surface were found in a range of angles between 15-25o.
Inclined impact at 18 degrees, impact load 500 N Erosion wear 115 0.000002 0.0000015 0.000001 0.0000005 0 100 500 1000 Number of impacts [x1000] 115B 314 314B 316 316B mm3/sec

Figure 7: Erosion rates of examined coatings after inclined impacts

The experimental results revealed that the coating 316 has the lowest surface deterioration and it is the most resilient than the other coatings.

Computational Study of Erosion Using Experimental Data for different Coatings After determine the k erosion factor coefficient of the different coatings as mentioned above, the data were introduced in the CFD erosion model to identify the critical areas and the erosion rates using specific particle size (25 m). The computational presented are showing the erosion rates from 18 simulations for the 6 different coatings.

2.50E-05

115 impeller 316Bimpeller 115B impeller 316 impeller 314 impeller

Impeller

2.00E-05 Erosion Rate (kg/m^2/s)

1.50E-05

314B impeller

1.00E-05

5.00E-06

0.00E+00 0.0
Inlet

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4 Streamwise

0.5

0.6

0.7
Outlet

0.8

Figure 8: Erosion rates in the impeller using different coatings studied

6.00E-05 erosion rate (kg/m^2/s) 5.00E-05 4.00E-05 3.00E-05 2.00E-05 1.00E-05 0.00E+00 1 1.2 1.4 1.6 1.8 2 streamwise
115 diffuser 316B diffuser 316 diffuser 314B diffuser 314 diffuser 115B diffuser

diffuser

Figure 9: Erosion rates in the diffuser using the different coatings studied
Figures 8 and 9 together with Figures 2 and 3 can be used to qualitevely correlate the experimental and computational results since all four figures present the critical erosion areas of both the impeller and diffuser. This used methodology for the computational erosion modelling of vertical multistage submersible pumps could be used as reference for the evaluation of coating materials for various applications, if the k erosion coefficient factor is known for various coatings. Moreover, Figure 8 and 9 are important since they provide results for the calculated erosion rates of the different studied coatings. As it was expected, the coating with the lowest erosion rate is the 316 followed by the 316B which has a different surface treatment during the coating processing [15]. Both coatings have good wear resistance characteristics and can be used for erosive applications of pumps. The 314 coating is the hardest of all the six coatings, but is also the coating with the lower fatigue strength; therefore it is concluded that only surface hardness can not always provide the wear resistance that is required. Results show that the balanced combination of toughness and hardness is important for an optimum coating in pumps.

Introducing the Parameter of Erosion Time in the Computational Study Using the impact tester, the coatings were also tested for different number of impacts (Figure 10). As the number of impacts increased erosion rates were changed. As the number of impacts increases the experimental erosion rates were also affected, therefore using the erosion model of Finnie the new erosion coefficient factors k were calculated in an effort to introduce the parameter of erosion time in the computational study.

10

For 100000 impacts it is assumed that the time needed is T1, for 500000 T2 and for 1000000 T3, and T3>T2>T1. Using the new calculated k erosion coefficient factors in the CFD model, new erosion rates were calculated and are presented in the following two figures. The erosion rates for all the six coatings are higher for T1 and in most cases as time increases the erosion rates are decreasing. For the coating 115, the erosion rate is higher for T3 than for T2. It is obvious that the coatings 316 and 314 have the best erosive wear resistance compared with 115 coating. As the erosion time increases also the number of particless impacts are increasing, under these conditions the penetration of an abrasive particle into the coating is reduced and therefore the erosion rates are decreased. Hardness is an important property for the coating and previous studies have shown that the material erosion rate depends on material hardness if it is lower than the abrasive hardness microcutting of the surface may take place, if material hardness is higher than abrasive hardness, clear removal of the material will not take place and the entire process has the nature of fatigue.But still hardness is not the only one criterion that should be taken into consideration when selecting a coating.Toughness of the coating material is also very important since as result of the particle impact on the material, crack nucleation and propagation can take place, these cracks can reduce significantly the erosion resistance as they decrease the resistance to shear force present during the impact of the particles at oblique angles. Therefore the coating 316 which is more resilient and tougher than the other two coatings (115,314) is more suitable for operation, in cases were high fatigue strength is required.
5.00E-06 4.50E-06 Erosion Rate (kg/s/m^2) 4.00E-06 3.50E-06 3.00E-06 2.50E-06 2.00E-06 1.50E-06 1.00E-06 5.00E-07 0.00E+00 0.00 Inle t 0.10 0.20 0.30 0.40 0.50 0.60 0.70 0.80 Outlet
T1 T2 T3

3.50E-06

Coating 316B

T1

Coating 316

Erosion Rate (kg/m^2/s)

3.00E-06 2.50E-06 2.00E-06 1.50E-06 1.00E-06 5.00E-07 0.00E+00 0.00 Inlet

T2 T3

0.10

0.20

0.30

0.40

0.50

0.60

0.70

0.80 Outlet

Streamwise

Streamwise

1.20E-05
T1

2.50E-05

Coating 314B

T1

Coating 314

Erosion Rate (kg/m^2/s)

1.00E-05 8.00E-06 6.00E-06 4.00E-06 2.00E-06 0.00E+00 0.00 Inlet

T2 T3

Erosion Rate (kg/m^2/s)

2.00E-05

T2 T3

1.50E-05

1.00E-05

5.00E-06

0.10

0.20

0.30

0.40

0.50

0.60

0.70

0.80 Outlet

0.00E+00 0.00 Inlet

0.10

0.20

0.30

0.40

0.50

0.60

0.70

0.80 Outlet

Streamwise

Stramwise

1.80E-05 1.60E-05 E rosio n Rate (kg/m ^ 2/s) 1.40E-05 1.20E-05 1.00E-05 8.00E-06 6.00E-06 4.00E-06 2.00E-06 0.00E+00 0.00
Inlet

1.20E-05
T1 T2 T3

Coating 115B
E rosio n R ate (kg /m ^ 2/s) 1.00E-05 8.00E-06 6.00E-06 4.00E-06 2.00E-06 0.00E+00 0.00
Inlet

T1 T2 T3

Coating 115

0.10

0.20

0.30

0.40 Streamwise

0.50

0.60

0.70

0.80
Outlet

0.10

0.20

0.30

0.40 Streamwise

0.50

0.60

0.70

0.80
Outlet

Figure 10: CFD erosion rate results in the impeller for the new Erosion coefficient factors (T1<T2<T3)
11

8.00E-06 E r o s i o n R a t e (k g / m ^ 2 / s )
E ro s io n R a te (kg / m ^ 2/ s)

1.20E-05

7.00E-06 6.00E-06 5.00E-06 4.00E-06 3.00E-06 2.00E-06 1.00E-06 0.00E+00 1

Inlet

Coating 316
T1 T2 T3

Coating 316B
1.00E-05
T1 T2 T3

8.00E-06 6.00E-06 4.00E-06 2.00E-06 0.00E+00 1

Inlet

1.2

1.4 Streamwise

1.6

1.8

2
Outlet

1.2

1.4

1.6

1.8

2
Outlet

Streamwise

6.00E-05 E r o s io n R a te (k g / m ^ 2 / s ) E ro s i o n R a te (k g /m ^ 2 /s ) 5.00E-05 4.00E-05 3.00E-05 2.00E-05 1.00E-05 0.00E+00 1.00

Inlet

3.00E-05

Coating 314
T1 T2 T3

2.50E-05 2.00E-05 1.50E-05 1.00E-05 5.00E-06 0.00E+00 1.00

Inlet

Coating 314B
T1 T2 T3

1.20

1.40

1.60

1.80

2.00
Outlet

1.20

1.40

1.60

1.80

2.00
Outlet

Streamwise

Streamwise

4.50E-05 4.00E-05 3.50E-05 3.00E-05 2.50E-05 2.00E-05 1.50E-05 1.00E-05 5.00E-06 0.00E+00 1
Inlet

E r o s i o n R a te (k g / m ^ 2 / s )

3.00E-05 E r o s i o n R a te (k g / m ^ 2 / s )

Coating 115B
T1 T2 T3

2.50E-05 2.00E-05 1.50E-05 1.00E-05 5.00E-06 0.00E+00 1

Inlet

Coating 115
T1 T2 T3

1.2

1.4

1.6 Streamwise

1.8

2
Outlet

1.2

1.4

1.6 Streamwise

1.8

2.2
Outlet

Figure 11: CFD erosion rate results in the diffuser for the new Erosion coefficient factors (T1<T2<T3) CONCLUSIONS Using commercially available CFD packages, the study of the erosion behavior of existing impeller-diffuser arrangement of a vertical multistage submersible pump was performed. The erosion process was simulated using the well established Finnie erosion model. The study of different particle diameters impacting on the surface of the pump component resulted to very interesting results, regarding the erosion rates in various critical areas of the impeller and diffuser. The forces that are acting on the particles and are also influencing the particles trajectories inside the pump are different in the impeller and in the diffuser therefore the erosion rates have different characteristics in these two components. Particles with higher diameter tend to increase the erosion rates inside the impeller, since they are reaching higher speeds resulting also to higher impact velocities. On the other hand where the flow velocity is decreased (i.e. diffuser) and the geometry of the flow path is instantly changing, the smaller particles are responsible for the higher erosion rates occurring in these critical areas.

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Using the experimental results of six different coatings that were studied with an impact tester, the erosion rates where calculated. Those results were linked with the computational erosion model of Finnie and the k erosion factors where determined and used in the CFD model to calculate the erosion rates, that are likely to appear in the pump components if it is operating under constant mass flow, constant particle mass flow, constant rotational speed and a specific particle inlet domain. The results indicated the erosion rates for the six different coatings. Finally the k erosion coefficient factors were calculated for a different number of impacts which linked the results with the parameter of erosion time. The new erosion rates where determined and have indicated the optimum coating having the appropriate properties (i.e. HVOF 316)

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The authors would like to thank, - The Cyprus Research Promotion Foundation which has sponsored the research program. - The Laboratory for Machine Tools and Manufacturing Engineering in the Mechanical Engineering Department in the Aristoteles University of Thessaloniki for providing the experimental results and - HYDRUS Ltd for providing data for the existing pump design for the study and allowed the publication of the results. REFERENCES 1. Llamar Kleis, Priit Kulu, Solid Particle Erosion, Springer (2008) London 129-168 2. M.Manickam, M.P. Schwarz, M.J. Mcintosh, CFD analysis of erosion of bifurcation Duct walls, Second International Conference on CFD in the Minerals and Process Industries,(1999),243-248 3. Gary Brown, Erosion Prediction in Slurry Pipe Line Tee Junctions, Second International Conference on CFD in the Minerals and Process Industries,6-8 December 1999 4. Awatef A. Hamed, W. Tabakooff, Richard B.Rivir, Kaushik Das, Puneet Arora, Turbine Blade Surface Deterioration by erosion, Vol. 127 ASME,(2005), 445-452 5. ANSYS-CFX 10, Flow Server User Guide 6. S.Y. Lee,R.A Dimenna, M.R Duignan, Designing a Scaled Erosion Test using with computational Fluid Dynamics Methods, WSRC-MS-2001-00500,(2001) 7. Finnie I., Erosion of Surfaces by solid particles,Wear,87-103, (1960) 8. Roco,M.C and Minagi, L.K.,Effect of particle size distribution and gravitation on wear in centrifugal pump castings, ASME,Paper No. 89-FE8, (1989) 9. Alcala,J.Giannakopoulos,A E. Suresh,S., Continuous measurements of load penetration curves with spherical microindeters and estimation of mechanical properties, J.Mater. Res.,Vol.13,No.5, (1998) 1390-1400 10. Cheng N.S. A simplified settling velocity formula for sediment particle, Journal of Hydraulic Engineering ASCE, 123(2) 1997 11. Asmund Huser and Oddmund Kvernvold, Prediction of Sand Erosion in Process and pipe components, Prc.1st North American Conference on Multiphase Technology, Banff, Canada 1998 Publ.No.31 pp.217-227. 12. B. Dobrowloski and J. Wydrych Evaluation of numerical models for prection of areas subjected to erosion wear, Fourth International Tribology Conference ITC 2006, 2006, vol.11, No.4, pp.735-749. 13. Asmut Huser and Oddmunt Kvernvold,Prediction of Sand Erosion in Process and Process and Pipe Components,Proc.1st North American Conference on Multiphase Technology Banff Canada 1998, Publ No.31 pp217-227 14. K.Haugen,O.Kvernold,A. Ronold and R. Sandberg, Sand Erosion of wear resistant materials: Erosion in choke valves,Wear 186-187 1995

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15. S. Hadjiyiannis, K.-D. Bouzakis, A. Asimakopoulos, E. Psimolophitis, P. Philimis, K. Michaelides, N. Charalampous, Investigation of the mechanical properties and the geometry of imprints made by impact testing for the determination of the fatigue behaviour of plasma and hvof coatings, 7th International Conference THE Coatings, Chalkidiki, October 1-3, 2008, pp. 247-257.

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