The energy loss inside a centrifugal pump has a significant effect on its performance characteristics. Based on the structural characteristics of the humpback pectoral fin, a new tongue was designed to improve the performance of the centrifugal pump. The influence of three sinusoidal tubercle volute tongues (STVT) and one original volute tongue (OVT) on energy dissipation using the enstrophy analysis method was investigated. To accomplish this, the pressure fluctuations and performances of four centrifugal pumps were analyzed. The results indicate that enstrophy is primarily distributed at the impeller outlet and near the tongue. The total enstrophy of the profiles of STVT was smaller than that of the profiles of OVT. This difference was more obvious near the tongue. The reductions in the total enstrophy of the pumps were 8% (STVT-1), 8.2% (STVT-2), and 9% (STVT-3). The pressure fluctuations of the STVT profiles also decreased to different degrees. The average pressure fluctuations at the monitoring points decreased by 20.6% (STVT-1), 21.7% (STVT-2), and 23.3% (STVT-3). The performances of the bionic retrofit pumps increased by 1.5% (STVT-1), 2% (STVT-2), and 2.45% (STVT-3) under the design flow rate. This study guides the structural optimization of pumps.
Keywords: bionics; centrifugal pump; enstrophy; volute tongue.