What is a slurry pump? | Working, Types, Maintain, and More

Slurry Pump Meaning

A slurry pump is a centrifugal pump. Manufacturers typically use highly wear-resistant materials for the impeller and volute, resulting in very high abrasion resistance. Mining companies often use it to pump slurries with high solids content, such as ore pulp, mud, and mining wastewater.

How Does A Slurry Pump Work？

While a variety of slurry pumps are on the market, the working principles are the same. People usually use ultra-high pressure casings and adopt a volute design. 

Inside the casing, drive mechanisms rotate the shaft and bearing assemblies. Impellers are situated in the shaft and the rotating blades help generate the centrifugal force required to move the slurry.

Once the drive mechanisms are activated, bearings ensure that the shaft is turning smoothly and consistently. During this process, the rotating impeller converts the mechanical energy of the drive device into kinetic energy, generating a continuous centrifugal force.

The pump then draws mud or slurry into the pump through centrifugal force. The high-speed rotating impeller pressurizes the slurry and discharges it through the outlet.

To clearly understand the working principle, please watch the following video, which details how a slurry pump works in just one minute.

Why Choose Slurry Pumps: Design and Features

Slurry Pump Design: Based on hydraulic model test data, the slurry pump has optimized impeller design and widened flow channel. Combined with advanced wear-resistant materials, the pump has become an ideal choice for metal, mining, chemical and other applications that require reliable handling of abrasive liquids.

Wear resistance: Compared with ordinary pumps, slurry pumps use more advanced wear-resistant materials, which makes the pumps have higher abrasion and corrosion resistance and longer service life.

Adjustable Clearances: Workers can often adjust internal component clearances to reduce tolerances based on operating conditions.
Large cross-sections can prolong wear, and simply adjusting internal clearances can extend wear time and improve efficiency.

Optional Materials: There are many options for the materials of components in contact with the fluid, such as metal alloys, elastic rubber and wear-resistant ceramics to extend the wear time and service life of the pump.

Sealing: In order to prevent leakage, slurry pumps generally provide a variety of sealing forms, such as mechanical seals, gland seals, and expeller seals to minimize the risk of leakage.

Slurry Pump Diagram

Applications for Slurry Pumps

Slurry pumps are employed in drainage, mining, agriculture, dredging, and industrial (mineral treatment) applications.

Mining: Slurry pumps play a vital role in the mining industry, handling everything from crude minerals, cyclone feed, tailings transport, to wastewater transportation. Slurry pumps can easily handle the harsh mining environment.

Dredging: During dredging operations, the riverbed is filled with solid materials such as silt, gravel, sand, and garbage. Slurry dredging pumps can smoothly extract these materials from the riverbed and discharge them to shore.

Agriculture and Animal Husbandry: Slurry pumps not only provide a stable water supply for agricultural irrigation but also transport cattle and sheep manure and viscous fluids in the livestock industry.

Chemical and Petroleum: Thanks to their excellent abrasion and corrosion resistance, chemical slurry pumps are able to withstand the corrosion of strong alkalis, strong acids, and viscous media, effectively transporting corrosive fluids.

Types of Slurry Pump

• Centrifugal Slurry Pump
• Horizontal Slurry Pump
• Vertical Slurry Pump
• Submersible Slurry Pump
• Positive Displacement Slurry Pumps

1. Centrifugal Slurry Pump

What is the best time to make use of a Centrifugal Slurry Pump?

Centrifugal slurry pumps are employed for liquids with high flow rates are required, if the mix contains abrasive or large hard or soft solids in high concentrations that can reach 100M pump head. Positive displacement pumps may also be utilized for slurry but need to operate at a lower speed to minimize the wear of the pump.

2. Horizontal Slurry Pump

Horizontal slurry pumps are the most common type of pump. As the name suggests, they are positioned horizontally, offering greater stability and ease of maintenance.

Due to their more stable structure, horizontal pumps are suitable for high-flow, high-pressure pumping environments and are ideal for long-term operation.

3. Vertical Slurry Pump

Vertical Slurry pumps can be highly customizable pumps that are designed to minimize maintenance and operating expenses. They need less floor space than horizontal pumps. They also have fewer wear parts and are made of the form of rubber or hard metal.

Vertical sewage pumps are specially designed to handle abrasive slurries. The pump head can be immersed in the liquid to extract sewage from the sump. Even if the sewage contains a large amount of solid particles, the sewage pump can still transport it smoothly. 

4. Submersible Slurry Pump

Submersible pumps are pumps that can be completely submerged and serve their intended function. Pump motors are usually installed in a water-tight chamber that is which is filled with oil to prevent water ingress.

The majority of the motors within these pumps are electric, operating on direct current or alternating current.

5. Positive Displacement Slurry Pump

Positive displacement slurry pumps differ from centrifugal pumps in that they rely on periodic changes in pump volume to transport liquids. Examples of positive displacement pumps include screw pumps, diaphragm pumps, and piston pumps.

Positive displacement pumps continuously squeeze fluid to the pump outlet through the compression of internal components. Positive displacement pumps can provide very stable flow and pressure, making them suitable for applications requiring consistent flow and pressure.

Which Pump Is Used For Slurry? | Selection Guide

Different types of applications will necessitate different slurry pumps. In general, the weight of the slurry determines the type of pump, its design, and the capacity of the slurry pump required. The designs can be easily divided into medium, light, or heavy slurry.

Light slurries are usually caused by accidental or unintentional introduction of particles, such as when using hard water or other solutions with a volume concentration of less than 5%, such as fly ash and mine drainage. At this time, a light slurry pump is undoubtedly the most suitable.

Medium-density slurries generally refer to slurries with a volume concentration between 15% ~ 20%, such as those containing lead, limestone, and phosphates. Medium-duty slurry pumps are recommended for these applications.

Large-particle, highly abrasive slurry refers to slurry with a volume concentration greater than 30%. Large particles or high-concentration particles require medium or heavy-duty pumps to transport the slurry, such as dredging rivers, transporting large-particle ore slurry, and transporting high-concentration mud.

The pumping environment and particle concentration determine which slurry pump you use. No matter which slurry pump you choose, vertical or horizontal, strict calculation is required. If you have difficulty choosing a slurry pump, you may wish to contact Kingda experts to obtain free transportation solutions.

How to Maintain Your Slurry Pump?

Slurry pump maintenance is essential during operation. Only regular maintenance can maximize the lifespan of a pump and reduce total operating costs. The following are essential maintenance items:

1. Check for any noise during operation. Any unusual noise may be due to impeller cavitation or loose parts.
2. Check for normal flow. If the flow is below the target, check the pipes for blockages and check the valves for proper function.
3. Regularly refill the oil tanks of moving components with lubricating oil to prevent wear due to lack of lubricant.
4. Check for excessive bearing temperatures. If so, shut down the pump immediately and inspect the pump shaft for quality issues.
5. Check for vibration in the pump. If so, shut down the pump for maintenance to prevent damage caused by excessive vibration.

How to Assemble a Slurry Pump?

Pump assembly requires meticulous attention to detail. First, you must understand the functions of each pump component, such as the pump casing, bearing assembly, impeller, and volute.

Second, careful attention to detail and tolerances is crucial during installation. Pump assembly requires considerable experience, but don’t worry! Watch the video below to learn how to assemble a pump and get expert advice!

FAQ

Slurry Pump Components

1. Slurry Pump Parts Name

There are many pump accessories. The following are the main spare parts and accessories, pump casing, impeller, bearing assembly, stuffing box, plate liner, cover plate, etc. Please see the picture below for detailed description.

2. Slurry Pump Impeller

The impeller is a key component of a centrifugal pump. It’s the pump’s rotating part that generates centrifugal force, thereby pumping a steady flow of water.

Impellers are typically made of wear-resistant alloys, rubber, or ceramics to maximize wear life, improve production efficiency, and reduce costs.

3. Slurry Pump Mechanical Seal​

Mechanical seal is a device installed on the pump shaft to prevent pump leakage. The dynamically operating pump shaft is prone to liquid leakage. Mechanical seal can achieve the effect of no leakage, and is more convenient to install and replace, and has high wear resistance and shock resistance.

4. Slurry Pump Motor​

The pump motor is the most important power source. The motor generates mechanical energy through the rotation of the rotor. The impeller connected to the pump shaft converts mechanical energy into kinetic energy, which draws liquid into the pump and discharges it from the outlet after pressurization.