The 7 Secrets of Pump Reliability

Magnetic drive pumps (also called magdrive pumps) come in three varieties – canned motor pumps, all metal pumps, and plastic lined metal pumps. They are sealless and cannot leak into the environment. Long, repair-free service life depends on recognizing the limitations of these pumps. This article covers issues with using direct mounted, lined magdrive pumps experienced ‘in the field’. 

A motor brush is not a brush at all in the traditional sense. It is actually a carbon or graphite cube, commonly held in place by a spring, that acts as a conductor between the electrified stationary and rotating parts of a motor. The whole brush assembly is made up of a carbon block, one or more shunts, a spring and a holder. The carbon blocks are easily replaceable and are therefore intended as a wear part to prevent damage to more costly motor components.

ANSI is an acronym used to describe the American National Institute Pump Standard. The standard evolved from the American Voluntary Standard (AVS) that was first proposed by the Manufacturing Chemists Association in the nineteen fifties. It is a set of inch dimensional standards that describe the envelope dimensions of a back pull out, centrifugal pump.

"I have heard many different opinions as to whether funnels should be used for topping off an oil reservoir. Can you explain why funnels should or should not be used?" Across industry, it seems that if you are filling a machine or topping it off with oil, you will need to transfer the lubricant from a large container through a small fill port at the top of the machine. A funnel is designed to make this opening wider for adding oil. While funnels can make this task easier, they are not recommended because of their potential to introduce contaminants into the lubricant.

You cannot succeed without clearly stated goals, but you would be surprised at how many programs do not have clearly defined goals! If you believe your program has clear goals, take a moment right now to write some of them down on a piece of paper. If you can’t write them down, then you probably don’t have them! If you don’t have the right goals, you cannot come up with concise strategies and tactics for attaining them. You will not know what people, tools, data, analysis, etc., are required and you will not be able to easily measure if your goals are being met.

A pump’s efficiency can degrade as much as 10% to 25% before it is replaced, according to a study of industrial facilities commissioned by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and efficiencies of 50% to 60% or lower are quite common. However, because these inefficiencies are not readily apparent, opportunities to save energy by repairing or replacing components and optimizing systems are often overlooked.

On the design of a new machine which is to be run with a hydraulic motor, a determination of required speed and horsepower must be made so a model with suitable ratings can be selected. This article describes several methods of making such a determination. Designers who are experienced only in selecting electric motor drives need to be careful in designing hydraulic drives because of important differences between these two motors.