WEAR

ELSEVIER Wear 199 (1996) 36-44

Measurement of erosion due to particle impingement and numerical

prediction of wear in pump casing
Yuan Zhong, Kiyoshi Minemura
Nagoya University, Furo-cho,Chikusa-ku,Nagoya 464.01, Japan
Received17 August1995;accepted7 March 1996

Abstract

Erosion damage of wear-resistant materials due m sand particle impingement is measured and correlated based on Bitter's erosion model
to clarify the effects of particle impinging velocity and angle, particle size and concentration on the wear. Using the empirical formula for the
correlation and calculating impinging velocities of sand particles on a casing wall of a pump, successive erosion of the wall is numerically
calculated to demonstrate the viability of the prediction method proposed in our previous study.

Keywords: Erosiondamage;Particleimpingement;Numericalprediction;Pumpcasing;Trajectory;Turbomachinery

1. I n t r o d u c t i o n wear is thought to be caused by direct impingements, random

Turbomachines are increasingly being applied to extensive
industrial fields and tend to be operated at a higher rotational
speed and under multiphase flow conditions. When the
machines transport fluid containing solid particles, their ero-
sion becomes serious. Therefore, to maintain high perform-
ance over a long time, it is desirable to establish a definite
design method by paying attention to the wear.
Erosion of turbomachines due to entrained particles had
been experimentally investigated many times over the past
years, and the results obtained until the early 1970s were
surveyed by Truscott [ 1 ]. Since then there have been many
studies [2,3]: erosion by solid particles with higher imping-
ing speeds (over 100 m s - i) in a gas turbine has been inves-
tigated by Tabakoff [4]; compound erosion of sand and
cavitation [ 5,6], and wear due to the sand particles from the
Yellow River [7,8] have been investigated.
With regard to the erosion of a wall surface due to particle
impingements, Bitter [9] has theoretically analyzed elastic
and plastic behaviors of the contacting surfaces and con-
firmed experimentally the relationship between the particle
impinging velocity and angle. More simplified relationships
have been proposed by Neilson and Gilchrist [ 10] and Finnie
[11]. All these have been reviewed by Hashimoto [ 12].
Bitter's model has also been checked recently by Shimizn et
al. [ 13], who measured the erosion of copper due to the
impingements of glass spheres. On the other hand, Roco et
al. [ 14] have proposed a unique erosion model in which the
0043-1648/96/$15.00 1996Publishedby ElsevierScienceS.A.All fightsreserved
Pll S0043-1648 (96) 06974-8
impingements,and friction of the sliding bed. When applying
all these models, however, dependence of the wear on elastic
and plastic characteristics of the particle and wall materials,
called erosion coefficients, must be determined in advance
by corresponding experiments. The existing coefficients,
however, are limited either to soft and ductile metals (copper,
aluminum) or to hard and fragile materials (glass, annealed
steel); that is, there are no available data for the metals usually
employed in turbomachinery. Moreover, the wearing effects
of particle velocity, concentration, size, and shape as well as
local flow behavior have scarcely been investigated so far.
Since these factors are indispensable for predicting erosion
of turbomachinery, the wear is first measured in this study
using the same method as Shimizu et al. [ 13]. Based on the
measured values, Bitter's model is confirmed, and an empir-
ical formula for the erosion coefficients is proposed.
With regard to the numerical method of predicting erosion
of tarbomachinery, Roeo and Addie have proposed a method
using their own erosion model [15]. In this method, the
terminal velocity of a particle is used for the impinging veloc-
ity and a diffusion-convection equation is solved to obtain
particle concentrations necessary for the model. They also
compared the calculated wear with the values measured by
detecting the reduction in resin painted on a casing wall [ 16].
But the advisability of using the terminal velocity and the
diffusion equation is in question. A novel and consistent
approach has been proposed by the authors [ 17] based on
Bitter's erosion model and calculating impinging velocities
 E Zhong, g MinemuraI Wear 199 (1996) 36--44
of particles on the wall by considering the spinning caused
by collision with the wall and other flying particles. The
calculated results agree well with Roco's experiment. In this
paper, this method is extended to simulate a progressive
change in the wall surface gradually worn down by the par-
ticle impingement, and to demonstrate the effects of particle
diameter and flow capacity on the wear rate of a radial-flow
pump casing.
2. Experimental details
2.1. Apparatus
Fig. I shows the experimental apparatus, which is basically
the same as that employed by Shimizu et al. [13]. Solid
particles stored in a feeding tank are released through an
electromagnetic slide-valve on the bottom of the tank into the
center of a horizontally rotating disk (diameter: 119 ram).
Centrifugal force causes the particles to fly radially along two
radial guide vanes on the disk. Thus they impinge on a set of
test pieces fixed with holders on a standing frame around the
disk. The velocity of particles flying from the disk can be
controlled by altering the rotational speed of an invertermotor
driving the disk. To determine the effect of particle concen-
tration on erosion, the flow rate of the particles is altered with
a series of nozzles installed just behind the slide-valve. By
alternating nozzles having different opening sizes, we meas-
ure the effect of particle concentration on erosion. The feed-
ing tank and the rotating disk are installed in an airtight
container which is evacuated (6 cm Hg) in order to eliminate
the effect of air resistance on the flying particles. Part of the
upper window of the container is made of transparent acrylic
ol~ervation window
lnver~r ~ Exhaustv~lw
far p m t c ~
Fig. I. Testdevice.
37
resin through which particle trajectories can be observed with
stroboscopic lighting.
2.2. Procedure
The test pieces were square bars 1 0 X l 0 X , - 3 0 m m in
size with one end cut off at varying angles (/3) of - 15, 0 ,
15, 30 and 57 . This angular surface alone was exposed to
particle impingement, while the other exposed surfaces were
protected by rubber fittings. A group of test pieces made of
cast iron (FC20) or wear-resistant stainless steel (SUS403)
and was fastened with holders around the rotating disk so as
to be eroded at the same time. Sand, used for concrete from
downstream of the Kiso River, served as particles for this
experiment. After putting the sand through sieves with 2 0 -
and 30 - mesh screens, the resultant particle diameter ranged
from 0.6 to I mm. The sand was found to be constituted of
quartz including chert (75%), amphibolite (19%) and feld-
spar (6%). Since chert is a kind of quartz and quartz is the
hardest material, the physical properties of quartz were taken
as representative of the sand, and the specific weight of the
sand was taken as 2.65. To verify the effect of particle size
on erosion, steel balls used for shot blasting (specific weight:
7.2 with diameters of 0.4, 0.6 and 1.0 ram) were employed
in this experiment instead of sand.
Each test piece was weighed before testing with an elec-
trical scale (accuracy + 0.1 rag). The feeding tank was filled
every time with a fixed amount of particles and the total
erosion time of the particles was measured. The pieces were
then removed from the holders and weighed to obtain ~ e loss
in weight, i.e. the degree of erosion. This procedure was
repeated several times. Since the weight loss became nearly
constant after one or two runs, the values in this range were
averaged to obtain the wear.
In this experiment, impinging velocity Vand particle con-
centration Cv varied in the range of 10-29 m s - t and 0.05-
0.20, respectively. Their methods of evaluation are described
below.
2.3. Impinging velocity and angle
Impinging velocity V is geometrically determined based
on photographs taken of particle trajectories, in much the
same way as Shimizu et al. [ 13] did. Let the trajectory CE
be known, where the particle is supposed to leave the disk
(radius ra) at C and impinge on the test piece at E (radius
rE), as shown schematically in Fig. 2. By observing a rectan-
gle ABED with the diagonal_~ corresponding t___othe particle
path in a rotating system (AD = r ~ o s 0 - rd, A B = re sin 0),
we obtain the relation -A-D/V,=-KB/Vo, where Vr and Vo
( = oJra) are the radial and circumferential components oftbe
flying velocity. Since the flying velocity is constant due to
the evacuated space, the impinging velocity V is thus deter-
mined as a function of angle 0, by
V= (cord/sin 0)~/1 + (fairs) 2 - 2(rdlrE)cos 0 ( I)
38 Y.Zhong.K. MinemuraI Wear199 (1996)36--44
Teat piece Mean path
_ I l:.>.-.i-ff~a~l.
Fig. 2. Velocityrelations.
where 0is the angle between radii vectors OA and OE around
the center of rotation O.
While ap_.__~icle is in flight, point A on the disk moves to
C, so that A B = AC, or re sin 0_~..rd(~:+_~0), in which g is the
angle between the radii vectors 0(2 and OE. Since ~:becomes
definite from the particle trajectory, 0can be found, hence V
can be determined.
The pictures show that the particles scatter along a mean
trajectory within a confined region, as schematically shown
by broken lines in Fig. 2. Since the mean trajectory is quite
similar to a logarithmic spiral ( r = raka, where k is a constant),
such particle trajectories are approximately expressed with a
constant m as r = (rdk)% which reduces to O=a log r - b ,
(a,b constant). The coordinates of the scattered particles are
substituted in this equation after a polar coordinate system is
constructed with the origin O at the axis of the rotating disk,
Thus the constants a and b can be determined using the least
squares method. These constants obviously depend on the
rotational speed of the disk.
Since the velocity V in Eq. (1) indicates only the value at
the radius rE, i.e. on the center of the surface of the test piece,
V varies from the leading to the traiiing edge of the surface
and is also dependent upon the trajectory displaced due to
particle scattering. But the length of the edge is rather small,
the radius rE is relatively large, and the scattering is relatively
small. Thus, the values at the center of each piece are repre-
sented as the impinging velocity. By assuming that the par-
tiele scattering to the mean trajectory is a normal probability
distribution, the margin for error of the representative value
will be expressed with a three-fold standard deviation and a
dependence on the length of the surface.
After the flying angle 0 is obtained, the impinging angle a
on the test piece having cutting off angle fl, can be calculated
as a = f l + O + K , in which K is the departure angle of the
particle from the disk, or K= tan- ~{cos 0 - (to/rE)/sin 0}.
2.4. Bitter's erosion coe.Oicients
Let A 0 be the angle enveloping a test piece from the center
of rotation on a rotating surface. The mass of the particles
impinging on the piece Mp can be obtained from the mass of
the particles charged in the feeding tank My, as Mp =
Co~/v( A 0/2~r). Since the particles scatter in a vertical direc-
tion beyond the thickness of the pieces, the ratio of the par-
ticles impinging on the test piece to the total number of
particles released is taken into consideration as (7= in the
aboveequation. Under the assumption ofanormal probability
distribution of particles in a vertical direction, the ratio C=
can be evaluated with the vertical length eroded on the test
piece holder Al and with the height of the test piece.
When a test piece reduces its mass by Am due to erosion,
its wear amount per unit mass by particle impingement Wis
thus obtained as W= Am/Mp.
According to Bitter [9], the amount of wear Wdue to the
particle impingement is formulated as the sum of two factors:
the deformation wear Wdowing to fatigue damage from plas-
tic deformation repeated with the normal component of
impinging velocity V,; and the cutting wear Wc doe to the
cutting off with the tangential component of impinging veloc-
ity V,, that is,
W = Wd"l-Wc (2)
where
w~ = (I/2)Mp(V.~- K,)21ed
f 2MDB( V.~- K, ) 2{ V~ - B ( V.~- K, ) 2e J ~~.~ ) / V~.~
/for a<ao
Wc=I (I/2)Mp{V2-K2(Vni-KI)3/2}/,sc
~ f o r ~z>%
The terms B, Kj and K2 are constants depending on the mafe-
rial properties of the particle and wail, such as density, Pois-
son's ratio, Yonng's modulus and elastic yield limit. This
formulation assumes that the wear occurs only when V.
exceeds the critica! ve!ocit7 Ki, corresponding to a wall defor-
mation velocity for the elastic yield limit. It further assumes
that the tangential component of the rebounding velocity
becomes zero when the impinging angle a becomes greater
than critical angle Oto.The terms ~d and e= are called erosion
coefficients and their values should be determined by exper-
iment, though ab can be calculated from ~=.
2.5. Particle concentration
Let A T be the time of erosion for the total amount of the
particles in the feeding tank My. Since the impinging area of
the particles ~(A/)2/4 is sweeping with a speed of re~a, the
volumetric concentration of the particles on the area, Cv, is
evaluated as
 E Zhong, K. Minemura I Wear 199 (1996) 36--44 39

MT/ pp
C~ = ('n A/Z/4)rEo AT
3. Measured wear rate and discussion
3.L Relation between impinging velocity and angle
When the test pieces made of cast iron (FC20) and stain-
less steel (SUS403) are eroded by the impingement of sand
particles (dp=0.6-1.0 mm), the reduction in the wall mass
per unit mass of the impinging particles, W ( m g k g - I ) ,
depends on the impinging angle a as shown in Fig. 3(a) and
Fig. 3(b), respectively. In the figure, the @ symbol indicates
the data for the averaged values at the representative radius
of the piece (rE), and the thick vertical solid lines denote the
scattering range of the data. The range of probability error,
as described in Section 2.3, is denoted by quadrilaterals
enclosing each data item.
When substituting the measured values into Eq. (2) and
determining the empirical coefficients ed and e~ with the least
squares method, the resultant relation of Eq. (2) is drawn as
a thick solid line in the figures, showing that the measured
values are well expressed by Bitter's erosion model. In the
figures, the deformation wear and cutting wear are also drawn
as a thin solid line and a broken line, respectively. Wdaccounts
for a major portion of the wear for FC20, while Wc does
likewise for SUS403. The wear is seen m occur when the
impinging angle a becomes larger than about 10 and reaches
a maximum at about 50. These characteristics hold for a
variant velocity V as well as for particle concentration ,.
Since ductile metals such as copper and aluminum reach their
maximum at ao--30 , while hard and brittle materials such
as glass reach their maximum at ao = 90 [ 1 ], the cast iron
and stainless steel used are found to have an intermediate
property between those two extremes.
Fig. 3(c) shows the results when the cast iron (FC20) is
eroded by shot-blast steel balls (dp=0.4 ram), instead of
sand particles, at an impinging velocity of V= 14.2 m s - i.
Although the wall material remains consistent, the maximum
wear alters to peak at a = 9 0 , and the portion of Wd on the
wear is much increased due to the increased density of the
panicles, showing that the resultant characteristics are
changed into those of hard and brittle materials.
3.2. Effect of impinging velocity
In all cases, evaluated wear coefficients ed and ec are
decreased with an increase in V, as shown in Fig. 4. This

FC20 vs. Sand I SUS403 w.Sand

fd= I.I,X l012j/m3 ~..6.03 X 10ttJ/m3 ftp=4.lgX 1012j/las ec =I.U X t012j]m3
dp ::0.6-1.0 nun ~6.C d p=0.6-l.Omm
V=22n ~ , ~ v==~/s z'J I
a0-57.1"
~15 c~=o.n

I0

5.(

% 15 30 45 60 7.5 90
(a) a (deg) (b) a (deg)
@ FLY20vs. Steelball

I ~-1.88 1012j/m3 ~-4.63 I01=J/m~

d p :=0.4mm
Oe~4' V=14.2n~s
~, ao -26.4~ ~ I~

o. 15 30 ,
45 ' >60
- / , - . ,75
90
(c) a (deg)
Fig. 3. Dependenceof wearon impingingangle. (a) FC20vs. sand. (b) SUS403vs. sand. (c) FC20vs. steel ball.
40 It'. Zhong, K. Minemura/ Wear 199 (1996) 36--44

d 4,
xtd~
45,
~4J~
~ ~ .
,
dp=0.4m m , SUS403 vs.Sma
dp=0.6"1.0 ram V=14~m~,~
Cv ~=0"2 Cv=0.i l
1.9~

~ d ~ vs. ~_n.d
0.6~ dp =0.6-1.0 mm 0.~ ~ ~ c O~~.6.-1.0 ~
, , ~, Cv=0.1,1
10 15 ~0 25 30
v (m/s) t I
0.05 0.1 01.2' Cv
Fig. 4. Effect of impinging velocity.
Fig. 6. Effect of panicle concentration.
X 10z:
62 FC20 vs. St~l l~licle According to existing reports, the relationships between W
V= 14.2m/s and dp vary greatly [ 1 ]. Hashimoto [ 12] has summarized
the results; W increases with an increase in dp, but there is a
critical value for the particle diameter; i.e. with the increase
o
~ 3.! in dp beyond this critical value, the wear will increase,
Ii1
decrease or remain constant depending on the elastic and
2.6 plastic characteristics of the materials and the wearing envi-
I ronment. Since this critical value is considered to be much
1.3 smaller than the cases dealt with in this experiment, the results
~d presented in Fig. 5 are not inconsistent with the existing data.
0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0
dp (==) 3.4. Effect of particle concentration
Fig. 5, Effect of particle size.
Fig. 6 shows the measured relationship between the ero-
means that the higher the particle velocity V the more the sion coefficients and particle concentration Cv. Both 8d and
materials are eroded. The curves drawn in the figure denote e~ are seen to increase as Cv increases.
the relation given by the empirical formula described later According to experiments with a sand pump [1] (Cv<
(Eq. (3)), and are found to be well in agreement with the 0.15), the wear is reported as WccC~s2 independent of the
experiment. The resultant wear coefficients are expressed as material. On the other hand, it is reported that, with an
~d,Oc (~ V --0.45 increa3c in Cv, the wear increases within a dilute Cv and then
According to the wear of hydranlic machines [ l ], the wear decreases when Cv rises beyond acritical value. Experimental
is expressed as Wcc V 2"2- -3.o (V: circumferential velocity results on pumps by De Bree et al. [2] are similar, showing
of impeller). The wear is also expressed as WR V 2's- -3.o a critical value of about 0.05. Since Cv in this experiment is
for erosion due to fluid jet on the material of $35C or SUS40 greater than this value, the increase in ed and e~ along with
[8]. Since Bitter's formula is approximately expressed as the increase in C~, i.e. wear decreases as C v increases, is
WctVele, the relationship in Fig. 4 can be expressed as consistant with De Bree's results.
Wc V z4s, being very close to the existing data mentioned
above. 3.5. Empirical formulation

As seen in Figs. 4--6, it is clear that the relations among the

3.3. Effect of particle diameter
When the test pieces of FC20 are eroded by the steel balls
at a velocity V = 14.2 m s - 1, the resultant erosion coefficients
depend on particle size dp, as shown in Fig. 5. The value 8d
remains almost unaltered by dp hut 8 increases with an
increase in dp. This means that the larger the particle diameter,
the smaller the degree of cutting wear and the greater the
degree of defotanation wear becomes. The solid lines in the
figure indicate the relation by the empirical formula.
erosion coefficients for impinging velocity V, particle diam-
eter dj, and volumetric concentration of the particles Cv are
almost the same irrespective of differences in the wall and
particle materials and in the sand particles and steel balls.
From these results, the relationships might be unified into an
empirical formula, as
ed, e,: = a( 1 + bCv) [ 1 + c(dp/dro ) e } ( VIK 1)f (3)
where dpo is taken to be 0.8 mm as a mean value of the sand
particles, the terms a, b, c, e and f a r e material constants and
 Y. Zhong. K. Minemara / Wear 199 (1996) 36-.44 41

Table I
Empiricalconstantsin F.q.(3)
Input Data, t=O [
Wall and particle a (J m - 3) b c e f
Mesh Gener~ion [
SUS403and sand ra I 1.5x 10~2 -0A5 t
Cal. of Water Flow Field [
ec 5.23X 10~z -0.45
FC20and sand ~'a 3.1 x 1012 2.52 -0.45 Cal, of particle T r a j e ~ l
and I m p i n g i n g Velocity- [
,% 1.86X10'2 2.52 -0,45
FC20and steelball ea 4.6 X 10~2 2.52 0 0 - 0A5
~ 6.16x10'z 2.52 1.18 0.55 -0,45

K~ denotes the term in Eq. (2). When using the values of the
constants listed in Table !, Eq. (3) is in good agreement with
the measured values as denoted by the curves in Figs. 4-6,
with V between 10.8 and 28.8 m s -m, dp between 0.4 and
1.0 mm and C,, between 0.05 and 0.20.
The listed data are obtained under evacuated conditions to Fig. 7. Flow chart of calculation.
exclude the effects of drag and virtual mass forces. Also,
Bitter's model describes how the wear rate is related to
impinging velocity and material properties of both particles
Section B"~-"x
and wall. Thus, the data can be applied to gas-sand as well as
water-sand conditions if the particle impinging velocity is
evaluated from the equation of motion of the particles (see
Eq. (5)).

4. N u m e r i c a l prediction o f w e a r in casing
- TF
4.1. Method of predicting erosion

The numerical procedure to predict erosion is shown as a

flowchart in Fig. 7. In our previous paper [ 17], the progres-
sion of wear on a pump casing was simply estimated by
assuming the wear rate to be unaltered.
This paper reports on a special case of a spiral casing in a
radial-flow impeller pump in which the wear has already been
investigated experimentally and numerically by Roco et al.
[14] and calculated by us [17]. Though the procedure
described here is a two-dimensional problem, it is easily
extended to a three-dimensional one.
4.1.1, Mesh generation
The shape and dimensions of the casing are shown in
Fig. 8, where the finEe elements (simplex triangular ele-
ments) are drawn. Since the radial coordinate of each node
is located in equal segments, the shape of the casing wall can
easily be changed as i! undergoes erosion. The shape of the
wall is represented b~ a cubic spline-fit curve. Using this
curve, it can be deterrained whether a particle impinges on
the wall or not, and where the node coordinate of the impinge-
ment or that after repartitioning is located.
4.1.2. Waterflow fieM
Although the water flow inside the casing is turbulent, the
movement of the particles is predominantly affected by iner-
tia. Thus, we may assume that the flow is steady, incompress-
-,t rB.
Fig. 8. Geometryof casingand coordinatesystem.
ible and inviscid, and that it remains unaltered by the presence
of the particles due to their small size and low concentration,
as was the case in Roco's study and our previous study. In
the present case, the water velocity w has a potential ~b
(w=V~b) and can be determined by solving the Laplace
equation (V2~b=0) [ 17,18].
4.1.3. Trajectory of a solid particle
The governing equation of motion of a solid particle with
mass mp and velocity Vpcan be expressed as [ 16,17]
nlp dvp/dt = Fp + F d + F v + F L (4)
where Fp denotes the force caused by the pressure gradient,
Fd the drag force determined by the particle Reynolds num-
ber, Fv the virtual mass force, and FL the lift force due to the
velocity gradient and particle spinning.
BY uumerieaily integrating Eq. (4) under the assumption
that the initial vd,-,z.ity is the ~ame as the water velocity in
the initial se~.'.tion, the distributions of particle impinging
velocity and angle on the casing wall can be evaluated [ 17].
42 Y. Zhong, K. Minemara/ Wear199 (1996) 36--44
4.1.4. Erosion rate
Let Np denote the m~mber of impinging particles on the
wall per unit area and unit time. By replacing M v in Eq. (2)
with ~ = l, wear rate, that is, wear .per unit area W, can be
converted to wear rate pet- unit area W, as
#=#d+#o (5)
After recording the calculated impinging velocity and
angle on every control surface, the distribution of the wear
rate I~"can then be evaluated by the erosion coefficients, 6d
and ~c, estimated from Eq. (3).
4.1.5. Deformation due to erosion
As the wear proceeds, the shape oftbe casing wall ( density:
p~,) is also changed. After a time interval of A t, the volumetric
wear of a control surface j (area Sj).is (VjAtSJpw. Thus, the
mean depth of the worn surface hj is W~At/p~. Iftbe integrated
depth of hj exceeds a critical value ht, the wall surface is
displaced by ht to reflect the changes in the flow field and
impinging velocity. In this case, the shape of the boundary
expressed by a spline-fit curve is rewritten by the way dis-
placement takes place at the centroid of the control surface
by h l, and the coordinates of corresponding nodes are recal-
culated. In this calculation, hi is taken to be 1/10 of each
element height.
4.2. Calculated results and discussion
In our previous paper [ 17], the movement of spherical
particles having a diameter of dp= 0.27 mm and the specific
weight corresponding to sand ( = 2.65) was analyzed under
the rated flow capacity ( Q = 681 m 3 b - l ), and wear rate
was evaluated with the resultant distributions of particle
impinging velocity V. The results obtained coincided fairly
well with the values m~asured by Roco. In the calculation,
the particle movement was analyzed based on three models:
model I, in which the particles move without spinning and
mutual collisions; model II involves spinning only; and model
III involves both spinning and mutual collisions. From the
results, it is found that these additional effects scarcely affect
the erosion of the casing. To discover whether or not this
result is right regardless of the particle diameter, the calcu-
lation for three kinds of spherical particles having diameters
of alp=0.27, 1.0, 3.0 ram, respectively, are carried out in this
study.
In each case, it is assumed that the inlet value of particle
concentration C,o is 0.069, and that the particles distribute
uniformly in a circumferential direction. It is also assumed
that the easing is to be made of cast iron (FC20) and eroded
by sand (specific weight e = 2.65), and that the wear coeffi-
cie.n_ts~re gi,,en by Eq. (3).
4.2.1. Distributionofimpinging velocity
When applying model I to calculate particle trajectories,
the resultant impinging velocity Vis distributed in a confined
region, enclosed by various lines depending on particle diam-
0.8
Q=egt # / h C,= 0.069 /-~f~.
e - 2.~s ~ J . J
06
~0.4 I "f~'~'-=:='~"
g l~ ~ dp=l.Omm
0.2 ~ L "-'.] ;'-'3 dp=3.0mm
0.L I .
~ 0.2 .......... .~.~-%
(deg)
Fig. 9. Distribution of impinging velocity (effect of particle size).
eter dp. This is shown in Fig. 9, where O is the angle counter-
clockwise from the tongue, and the normal component Vn
and circumferential component Vt are expressed dimension-
lessly by the peripheral speed of the impeller u2. As described
in our previous paper, Vngenerally takes the maximum at the
first impingement and decreases every time the particle
impinges, finally diminishing to zero. On the other hand, V,
also takes the maximum at the first impingement and
decreases with repetition of the impingement. When the
rebounding distance of the particles diminishes, however,
their speed increases again to almost the initial value. Distri-
butions of the impinging velocities for dp= 1.0 :nm are
shaded and enclosed with a thick solid line.
The largest values, that is, the upper periphery of V, for
dp=0.27 and 1.0mm, approximately coincide with each
other. However, the values for dp= 3.0 mm increase greatly
over the whole range except in the vicinity of the tongue
( 0 < 4 5 ) . This is attributable to the fact that the inertia of
the particle increases in proportion to the cube of do. On the
other hand, Vt is remarkably small in the tongue area, while
in other areas Vt is large and increases with an increase of 0.
The values of Vt for dp= 0.27 and 1.0 mm are also the same,
and decrease with the increase of dp, owing to the increased
impinging angle due to greater inertia, whereas the values of
Vt and V, in the tongue .area remain unaltered for different dp.
The results calculated by model III are superimposed using
thin lines in Fig. 9. The resultant differences using this model
lessen when dp increases. However, the differences are trifling
in the range of dp> 0.27 mm, suggesting the entire applica-
bility of model I is independent ofdp. This is related to the
fact that the particles having greater diameter encounter less
mutual collision because of the fewer particles included in
the medium with the particle concentration unaltered.
Fig. 10 shows the effects of alteration in flow capacity Q
on the impinging velocity, when model I is applied to the
particle dp= 1 mm and at capacities of 4-35% of the rated
one (Q=681 m 3 h - J ) . V, is seen to be almost the same
 Y, Zhong, K. Minemura/Wear199(1996) 36-44 43

0.8 I'~ Q.~lOmS/la ~'.]Q~Y3Om3/h/e.

~
--- q-cl01Om
m q--~t,,'m ~ , ; C~68t ml/li clp-LOmm

g o.4

o.~

C,- 0.069
I
..r .....
b ~ tm 27o 36o

Fig. 12. Effectof flowrateon wearrate.

C: 6 ~o l~o ~o 360
o (deg) - - t=3ree~ - - t~12muetht[ ~ " ~
Fig. 10. Distributionof impingingvelocity(effectof flowrate).

0'21 modell modelm

[ . . . . . . dp-0.27 mm f.
L ~ -- dp=i.O mm
...... ,,=,.o_ I

"t
}o} / /

Fig. 13. Deformation of c~ing due to wear.

O (dee) no overall meaningful difference between them for all dp.

Fig. I I. Effectof particlesizeon wearrate (differencebetweenmodel! and
modelIll).
except in the vicinity of the tongue. With an increase of O,
V~decreases in the range of 65 < O < 180, while it increases
in the range of O > 180.
4.2.2. Distributions of wear rate
When the impinging velocity of sand particles is calculated
by model I, the resultant distributions of wear rates I~'for east
iron (FC) are approximately the same when alp_<1.0 ram,
and reach a maximum at the tongue area and exit region of
the casing (O--320), as shown in Fig. 11. When dp is
increased to 3 ram, however, W is almost doubled in the
whole region except for the tongue area. This insensitivity in
the tongue area is attributable to the fact that the larger par-
ticles have less opportunity for impinging when the particle
concentration remains unaltered.
The wear rate if" based on the impinging velocities calcu-
lated by model III is also superimposed using thin lines in
Fig. ! i. It can be seen that the difference between models I
and III lessen as dp increases. However, there appears to be
Since model llI consumes much greater computing time than
model I, it may be concluded that model I is sufficient to
predict erosion by particles of the usual size (dp > 0.27 ram).
Fig. 12 shows the effect of flow capacity on the wear rate
IT' when calculated by model I for dp = 1.0 mm. With an
increase in Q, if" increases in the vicinity of the tongue area
due to the increased value of V,, and in the exit region of the
casing due to the increased value of Vt.
4.2.3. Deformation of casing due to wear
When calculating the impinging velocity of particles cor-
responding to sand with a diameter ofdp ffi 1.0 mm by model
I, the resultant deformation of the casing wall made of cast
iron (FC20) progresses hourly as shown in Fig. 13. The
tongue area is seen to be locally eroded on a large scale and,
except for this area, the erosion depth progressively increases
in the direction of flow. These conditions appear quite similar
to those observed by Roco and Addie[ 16].
5. Conclusions
Erosion damage by particle impingements is measured to
formulate the wear coefficients based on Bitter's model and,
44 Y. Zhong, K. Minemura / Wear 199 (1996) 36-44
using this formula, the erosion d a m a g e to a p u m p casing is
calculated. The results obtained are summarized as follows:
1. The erosion data of east iron and stainless steel eroded by
sand particles confirm Bitter's erosion model.
2. Erosion coefficients e d and e o f Bitter's model increase
with a decrease in impinging velocity, and with an
increase in particle diameter and volumetric concentra-
tion. These effects are expressed, within the range meas-
ured, by Eq. ( 3 ) .
3. The effects o f spinning and mutual collisions of the par-
ticles on the w e a r rate decreases with an increase in par-
ticle diameter, though the difference is trifling.
4. The larger the particle diameter, the greater the erosion
rate becomes; though the effect of particle diameter on the
w e a r rate is fairly small for diameters less than 1.0 mm.
With an increase in flow capacity, the wear in the vicinity
o f the tongue and the casing exit progressively increases.
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