Effect of inlet splitter on pressure fluctuations in a double-suction centrifugal pump

In order to investigate the effect of inlet splitter on pressure fluctuations in a double-suction centrifugal pump, three research schemes, including no splitter (scheme I), a splitter along the flow passage centerline (scheme II) and a splitter above the flow passage centerline in the suction (scheme III), were designed. The flow in the pump was simulated by commercial code FLUENT. The viscous Navier-Stokes equations were handled with an unsteady calculation and the sliding mesh technique was applied to take into account the impeller-volute interaction. Based on the simulation results, the hydraulic performance and pressure fluctuations were obtained and analyzed in detail. The hydraulic performance agrees well with the experimental results. The pressure fluctuations under three schemes are different. The maximum amplitude of the pressure fluctuations in scheme II is the minimum. For monitoring points near volute tongue, rotating frequency and its harmonies are dominant under three research schemes. The maximum amplitude of pressure fluctuations of three schemes are all at the blade passing frequency. In particular, the maximum pressure fluctuation amplitude of scheme II was less than that of scheme I and scheme III, which illustrated that it is effective to reduce the peak value of pressure fluctuations in double suction centrifugal pump by installing a splitter in the suction properly