Authors:
Philippe St-Louis
;
Bassem El Assaf
;
Guyh Ngoma
and
Fouad Erchiqui
Affiliation:
School of Engineering, University of Quebec in Abitibi-Témiscamingue, 445, Boulevard de l’Université, Rouyn-Noranda, J9X 5E4, Canada
Keyword(s):
Centrifugal Pump, Shaft Power, Efficiency, Stress, Strain, Wireless Strain Gauges, Load Cell Sensor.
Abstract:
This study involves an experimental investigation of a centrifugal pump driven by an electric motor to determine the pump shaft power using three different approaches for power quality control. The centrifugal pump is operated at a constant rotational speed while varying the flow rate. To evaluate the relevance and accuracy of the shaft power calculation, experimental tests are conducted using an existing centrifugal pump test bench. First, the pump shaft power is measured based on the electric power supplied to the pump motor. This shaft power depends on the efficiency of the electric motor, which can introduce uncertainty in the performance results when motors with different efficiencies are used. Second, wireless strain gauges are applied to the pump shaft to measure its strains, which are converted into torque, ultimately providing the measurement of power at the pump inlet. Third, a load cell sensor is used. The results indicate that wireless strain gauges can accurately measure
the shaft torque and allow for the measurement of shaft power with a very small relative error compared to the shaft power obtained from electric power and motor efficiency.
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