Positive Displacement:

The Peristaltic
Pump
Prepared By:
-Stephanie
Arbelovsky
-Andrea Hektor
-Christina
Hynes
December 17,
2004

Project Goals:
Create a constant flow
device for a point-of-use
water supply system in a
developing community.
Develop a system that
was sustainable,
affordable, and readily
available.
Experiment with various
drive mechanisms, such
as a clock, pendulum,
and a weight system.

Concept: Peristaltic
Pumps

Peristalsis a natural
process of involuntary
wave-like successive
muscular contractions by
which food is moved
through the digestive
tract.
Operates by batching a
certain volume of water
and forcing it along a
tube.
A rotor attached to an
external circumference
compresses and releases a
flexible tube with rollers,
creating a squeezing
action that draws fluid
through the tubing.

Peristaltic Pump

Positive Displacement
Pump (PDP)
3 Parts
Pump Head
Drive Mechanism
Tubing

Pump Head
Masterflex L/S
Easy-load
Worked only with
Masterflex
tubing
Torque required
entirely dependent
on tubing used

Tubing
Masterflex
Precision
Nontoxic
275 degrees to
-75 degrees
Fahrenheit
Longer life

Flow Rate
Torque

Flow Rate

Size

Pulses

Rotatio
ns

V/rotatio
n

Rotatio
n/

(ml)

(ml)

day

#18

180

60

238

3.967

5,042

#17

240

80

233

2.913

6,867

#16

480

160

144

0.900

22,222

#14

420

140

41

0.293

68,293

#13

777

259

16

0.062

323,750

Torque

No. of

Torque

Torque

Size

heads

kg-cm

oz-in

#18

8.6

120

#17

8.6

120

#16

3.2

45

#14

2.9

40

#13

1.4

20

Clocks
Two Types:
Electrical
Mechanical
Weights
Springs

Governed By Escapement
Mechanism
Why Not Have
Gears Turn
Pump Instead
of Clock
Hands?

Giving it
our best
shot with
Tinker
Toys!

LEGO MAN!

 To Make It Work:
Large gears 175 teeth,
medium gear 35 teeth,
small gears 25 teeth
Pendulum 107.5 cm long,
with escapement
mechanism on last gear
Period: 2.08 s
2 kg weight

Do-It-Yourself Kits
Woodworker Kit
Templates for gears

Home Assembly Kits

Can buy pre-cut clock housing
Weight/pendulum sold separately

Advantages
Able to vary flow
based on need
Can be scaled up &
down

Does not require

constant head loss

Self priming
Prevents backflow
Inside of tube is
only area in contact
with fluid
Low risk of
contamination

Easy & convenient

maintenance and
cleanup
Flexible staging
options can be
placed after filter

Disadvantages
Preliminary design is
expensive
Rotor, peristaltic
tubing, pendulum, etc.

Durability concerns if
cheaper, thin walled
tubing is used
Availability of
materials
Finding a drive
mechanism with
enough power to turn
the rotor

Recommendations for
Further Research:
Find a more practical
pump head
Use less expensive,
flexible tubing
Experiment with
pendulum mechanisms
in order to establish
steady flow
Evaluate flow rate
compared to size and
type of materials used

References and Thank

Yous

"Plant Extracts." [Online] Available http://www.sciences.com/scidata/edu.html

February 23, 1997.

How Pendulum Clocks Work [Online] Available

http://www.howstuffworks.com November 14, 2004.

Technical Info [Online] Available http://www.masterflex.com December 2,

2004

Technical Info [Online] Available http://www.barnant.com December 2, 2004

White, Frank M. Fluid Mechanics. McGraw-Hill Science/Engineering/Math; 5 th

edition December 2002.

Young, Donald F. ; Munson, Bruce R.; and Okiishi, Theodore H. A Brief

Introduction to Fluid Mechanics, 2nd Edition. John Wiley & Sons. October 2000.

CEE 454 website and class notes Available

http://ceeserver.cee.cornell.edu/mw24/cee454/
www.clockplans.com
www.murrayclock.com
http://www.ericharshbarger.org/lego/clock.html
(A heart-felt thank you goes out to Lego Man for providing inspiration.