Optimizing impeller geometry for performance enhancement of a centrifugal pump using the Taguchi quality concept

Abstract

This article discusses a research methodology for performance enhancement of centrifugal pump through Taguchi's parametric design concept. The objective is to find an optimum impeller design and geometry that makes the pump functionally reliable for winning customer's confidence. Computational fluid dynamic (CFD) analysis has been done to know how the flow pattern changes in the impeller when the pump is required to run at different operating conditions. The streamline analysis from CFD plots gives informative pictures of the flow field, which help the designer understand how the effect of deviation made in the impeller design specifications significantly influence the pump performance. CFD results match well with the predictions of the pump performance at the duty point as regard to head, discharge, and efficiency of the prototype model. The study infers that the CFD prediction tallies with Taguchi's experimental results.