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Suction Capability and Cavitation

  • Johann Friedrich GülichEmail author
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Abstract

Definition of terms: “Cavitation” means the partial evaporation of liquid in a flow system. A cavity filled with vapor is created when the static pressure in a flow locally drops to the vapor pressure of the liquid due to excess velocities, so that some fluid evaporates and a two-phase flow is created in a small domain of the flow field. The vapor condenses suddenly (“implodes”) as soon as it is transported downstream into zones where the static pressure again exceeds the vapor pressure. With increasing extension of the cavitating zone with two-phase flow, the head and efficiency of the pump may be impaired, noise and vibrations excited and components damaged through cavitation erosion under certain conditions. When using the term “cavitation” the “cavitating flow” - i.e. the occurrence of local zones with two-phase flow - and “cavitation erosion” or cavitation damage must be well distinguished.

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  1. 1.VilleneuveSwitzerland

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