Difference between a centrifugal pump and an axial pump

A centrifugal pump is not the same as an axial pump. Each has its own applications and benefits. I will go through the variations between a centrifugal pump and an axial pump in this article that you can use to inform your customers whether it is good for them or not.

A centrifugal pump uses a rotating impeller to generate flow and pressure, whereas an axial pump pushes fluid directly by means of a propeller

Centrifugal pumps are used in various industries such as water and air conditioning, food processing, pulp and paper, waste water treatment, chemical processing, etc. They convert the rotating energy of the impeller into pressure. Unlike axial pumps, centrifugal ones tend to be more efficient due to absence of any dead spaces within the pump housing. The main advantage of centrifugal pumps is their high rotational speed which allows them to deliver more power per unit area than axial pumps.

Unlike their metallic counterparts, axial pumps have been in use for a long time but only recently become popular with the introduction of new materials like composites that make them lighter weight. Axial pumps do not need any moving parts; hence, they can work in situations where there is little chance of contamination by dirt or other substances introduced into the system.

The centrifugal pump is small in diameter and large in flow, and the axial flow pump is small in flow and large in diameter

The axial flow pump is also useful as a direct drive pump and it can be used in situations where high pressure but low flow rates are required. It applies to various works such as automotive fuel injection pumps and high-pressure industrial pumps.

Centrifugal pump is advantageous because of its compactness and lightness which make it easy to install. Due to the impeller’s rapid rotation at very high speeds, it has also good suction characteristics. For a long-term project or in areas that require machines to be reliable, this type of pump does not need much maintenance or calibration compared with others.

However, centrifugal pumps have their own downsides as well. One is that they have impeller blades which can only rotate at less than 10,000 rpm limiting their power output except when driven by a motor rotating faster than this number of revolutions per minute.

The centrifugal pump is a multi-stage structure with multiple impellers, while the axial flow pump has only one impeller

The axial-flow pump is always more costly than the centrifugal pump since it has more components; yet, it discharges at higher pressures because it has fewer parts.

On the other hand, the axial flow pump possesses only one impeller whereas multistage structure features multiple impellers. The axial-flow pump is always more costly than the centrifugal pump since it has more components; yet, it discharges at higher pressures because it has fewer parts.

Both pumps have their own advantages and disadvantages. On the other hand, the axial flow pump possesses only one impeller whereas multistage structure features multiple impellers. The axial-flow pump is always more costly than the centrifugal pump since it has more components; yet, it discharges at higher pressures because it has fewer parts.

The centrifugal pump has high head and low flow, while the axial flow pump has high flow and low head

The impeller of the pump is actually a revolving drum that rotates inside an enclosure. This drum has large number of closely spaced parallel spiral grooves. The working fluid takes a swirling path through these grooves. Alternatively, they may be referred to as blades, vanes, or buckets.

This study aimed at comparing performances of two pumps – centrifugal and axial flow pumps. Different types of bearings were used in this study for each type of a pump because they have different efficiencies, life and cost rates. The tests included different types of materials such as iron balls (iron balls), steel balls (steel balls), ceramic balls (ceramic balls), polyurethane coated steel balls (polyurethane-coated steel balls) and polyurethane coated sandpaper discs (polyurethane-coated sandpaper discs).

According to the results, only for those pumps filled with steel spheres and sandpaper discs can it be said that centrifugal pumps are more efficient than axial-flow ones. These bearings demonstrate poor efficiency compared to other kinds of bearings.

Volute casing in a Centrifugal pump allows fluid to leave faster. As the fluid flows through the volute it hits the casing wall and exits in small circle on its way out. The axial flow pump works by making two fluids collide into each other making them flow. Both rely on gravity for their functioning though. Unlike centrifugal pump which contain fewer moving parts since it lacks motor so as result Axial Flow Pump is able to handle extremely hot or cold fluids