In many ways, a study of steel is a study of history. From agriculture to architecture, from warfare to exploration, advances in using steel have led to gigantic leaps forward. Two new innovations from Xylem’s Goulds Water Technology® brand highlight the company’s focus on innovative solutions to contemporary pump users’ most pressing concerns.
Both make use of 316 stainless steel (316SS) in new ways to improve efficiency and improve customers’ bottom lines. The first—the e-HM series pump—is a highly customizable, energy-efficient pump for industrial applications, while the other is a new standard for what users can expect from impellers in vertical turbine pumps.
CUTTING COSTS WITH ECONOMICAL OPERATION
The e-HM stainless steel series horizontal multistage pump is a water pump for commercial and industrial applications that is up to 30 percent more efficient than most similar pumps on the market.
The technology of the e-HM series provides versatility in operations, flexibility in applications, and streamlined performance that helps customers achieve cost and energy savings in a single product. Operations managers seeking to run facilities as efficiently as possible need total system solutions that help meet regulations and codes such as Leadership in Energy-Efficient Design (LEED) standards.
Constructed of AISI 316 stainless steel, the e-HM series offers six models, as well as a one-piece or sleeve design, making it highly customizable. The product’s high-pressure boosting capabilities and space-saving footprint makes it suitable for a variety of configurations across a range of industrial applications, including:
- Food and beverage
- Industrial cleaning
- Industrial refrigeration
- Water treatment
- Custom OEM
The e-HM can be customized to individualized processes, helping customers solve space constraint issues without sacrificing quality or performance.
BUILDING ON PAST SUCCESS
The e-HM series is built on the advanced hydraulics of Xylem’s reliable e-SV vertical multistage product line, which was introduced in September 2010. The e-HM series has a maximum flow rate of up to 127 gallons per minute (8.01 liters per second). A balanced impeller reduces axial thrust by 40 percent, and a 20 percent thicker stainless steel pump body enhances durability and increases reliability. Reduced thrust and thicker pump bodies result in longer bearing and component life, which helps to reduce the customer’s total cost of ownership by up to 30 percent.
Pumping water in production-oriented applications such as washing, cleaning, food and beverage processing, and large-scale refrigeration, can be energy intensive, impacting both resource use and operational expenses. The e-HM pump also offers a broad hydraulic range, and a variety of configuration options that enables users to customize the pump to meet their specific needs, simultaneously improving performance and reducing carbon dioxide emissions as well as costs.
A NEW STANDARD FOR IMPELLERS
Bronze has been the industry standard material for casting industrial pump impellers for decades, and it’s easy to see why. Most metal casting processes—close to 70 percent of foundries worldwide—rely on sand casting molds, and bronze is a relatively durable and inexpensive material. However, as the push for greater efficiency continues, there arises both an engineering and economic need to explore new options. To that end, Goulds Water Technology and Bell & Gossett brand vertical turbine impellers will convert from their previous standard of silicon bronze to a new, high-grade investment cast 316 stainless steel (316SS) material.
This change will mark the first product line available on the market with high-grade stainless steel impellers as a standard. Pump users who have worried about the long-term damage due to pumping harsh materials now have a convenient alternative to costly repairs due to abrasion or replacing bronze impellers since 316 stainless steel is known for its enhanced ability to resist damage due to corrosion and abrasives.
The 316 stainless steel equipped vertical turbine pumps made by Goulds Water Technology and Bell and Gossett reflect a growing concern for greater efficiency over the life-cycle of the entire pumping system, both in terms of initial investment and day-to-day operations. The scope of the transition includes 5-inch through 14-inch models in select, high-volume product families.
A RANGE OF OPTIONS
Complimentary features and benefits of Xylem’s vertical turbine pumps in this size range include glass-lined cast iron bowls for strength, durability, and maximized pump efficiency over the life of the pump. The conversion will take several months and affect approximately fifty different vertical turbine impeller models. While several are already available in the 316SS material, the projected completion date for all models should be prior to the end of 2014. After the standards change is complete, bronze impellers will remain available upon request to customers who want them.
A PREMIUM ON PERFORMANCE
One of the purported advantages of bronze cast impellers was the material’s relatively light weight, which translated into greater hydraulic performance. However, the smooth surface finish of these new 316SS impellers enables this material transition to go forward without incurring additional hydraulic losses commonly associated with changing to stainless steel. Also, these pumps will maintain the same hydraulic performance standards as their predecessors.
“This conversion enables Xylem to offer a better corrosion- and erosion-resistant product than those currently available, without sacrificing efficiency or charging a premium,” says David Stover, marketing development manager, turbine products for Xylem’s Applied Water Systems business unit. “Exchanging the traditional sand cast bronze impeller material for the 316SS investment cast impeller will enable industry-leading hydraulic efficiencies without impacting customers’ budgets.”
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Nick Daddabbo is the product manager for commercial products and Bryan Duffy is the global vertical turbine product manager for Xylem’s Applied Water Systems business unit. Xylem is a leading global water technology provider, enabling customers to transport, treat, test, and efficiently use water in public utility, residential and commercial building services, industrial, and agricultural settings. To learn more about Goulds Water Technology brand vertical turbine pumps, visit goulds.com/turbine-pumps. For more information about the Goulds Water Technology e-HM series, visit www.goulds.com/e-hm.
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MODERN PUMPING TODAY, November 2013
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