Two-dimensional CFD analysis of a hydraulic gear pump

Abstract

Development of a productive research and educational program through a strategic focus on technology development in emerging areas such as controls and computing has been one of the primary goals of the mechanical engineering program. Several main initiatives to facilitate the successful development have been implemented. A number of collaborative research and educational projects have been conducted or are in progress, including computational fluid dynamics (CFD) projects and simulation projects for intelligent hydraulic systems, a valve design project and a piston pump-based dynamometer project. This gear pump analysis is one of CFD projects that have been developing in the last few years. The physical model chosen for this analysis represents P-640 series external gear pumps manufactured by a local fluid power industry. FLUENT, commercially available CFD software, was used to analyze the two-dimensional flow of this industrial gear pump. The investigation produced significant information on flow patterns, velocity and pressure fields, and flow rates. The data clearly showed the phenomena regarding extremely high and low internal pressures that design engineers have encountered in the past. As expected, the accuracy of the computed flow rate for a given model increases as the outlet pressure decreases. It also increases as the speed increases. The results also confirm that the fluid gap size is the most pertinent parameter affecting the pump capacity. The development of computational projects and research positively affect undergraduate and graduate education in this small mechanical engineering program. The use of commercial CFD software enhances students' learning and understanding of complex flow phenomena. The experience obtained through this analysis will be incorporated by expanding the computer use in undergraduate design courses and graduate courses. © American Society for Engineering Education, 2007.