High Toughness Cermets for Molten Salt Pumps
- Powdermet Inc., Euclid, OH (United States); Powdermet Inc
- University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States)
- High Temperature System Design, LLC, Saint John, IN (United States)
- Sulzer Pumps Equipment (South Africa)
Concentrated Solar Power plants using nitrate salts used cantilevered pump designs to avoid use of bearings in the 565°C salt; however, this necessitated the use of a sump that added additional cost, complexity, and thermal losses. Sump systems had their own complications, including risk of flooding the sump due to control issues either with level indicators or failures in the control valve responsible for filling the sump. Long-shafted pumps were developed and tested, and they outline the need to develop journal sleeves and bearings for new salt systems. Based on reports, pumps will need to be a vertical single- or multi-stage type, mounted to the roof of the molten salt tanks. Design and service for molten salt pumps above 550°C is relatively limited, and at temperatures up to 750°C there is no available design or service experience. Long-shaft pumps that extend to the bottom of the thermal energy storage tank will require bearing materials that are suitable to the given salt chemistry. Lubricity of proposed salts is unclear and need to be determined, especially for cold-tank pumps that require multi-stages for lifting the salt to the top of the tower. Materials, design, and maintenance are all major unknowns.
- Research Organization:
- Powdermet Inc., Euclid, OH (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Renewable Power Office. Solar Energy Technologies Office
- DOE Contract Number:
- EE0008383
- OSTI ID:
- 1804094
- Report Number(s):
- DOE-Powdermet--8383; G-3084
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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