Plastic pumps combat battery acid with minimum maintenance
GNB Inc. in Zanesville, Ohio, is a volume manufacturer of wet cell batteries in a wide range of sizes and ampere ratings for automotive and industrial applications. Vertical pumps operating in pits and storage tanks were rapidly attacked by the sulfuric acid and had to be replaced every few months. Pumps of a more acid-resistant material were needed to reduce excessive downtime, maintenance and original equipment costs. Pump materials options such as stainless steels, exotic metals and various non-metallics were evaluated for resistance to the dilute acid. The final choice was a cantilever-type sump pump with all wetted parts, including the impeller, casing and vertical piping of relatively insert polypropylene. The one-piece stainless steel motor/impeller shaft is protected by a heavy-wall plastic sheath which is easy to replace if necessary. The shaft is totally supported at the upper end by two oversize motor bearings, and a restriction bushing of low fraction Teflon fluoro-plastic, positioned just above the impeller, assures smooth, steady operation. There are no submerged bearings to burn out should the pump run dry. The polypropylene sump pumps have an average service life of ten years with the battery acid. Currently, three of the pumps are mounted in 4' deep pits and three with tail pipes are installed in vertical storage tanks to transfer the acid at 40-50 gpm to day tanks for the cell filling stations. The bearingless pumps have required very little maintenance since the first units were installed more than 12 years ago.
- Research Organization:
- GNB Inc., Zanesville, OH
- OSTI ID:
- 6972490
- Journal Information:
- Chem. Process. (Chicago); (United States), Journal Name: Chem. Process. (Chicago); (United States)
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
LEAD-ACID BATTERIES
PRODUCTION
POLYPROPYLENE
CORROSION RESISTANCE
PUMPS
CORROSION
COST
MAINTENANCE
SULFURIC ACID
CORROSIVE EFFECTS
TEFLON
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
ELECTRIC BATTERIES
ELECTROCHEMICAL CELLS
FLUORINATED ALIPHATIC HYDROCARBONS
HALOGENATED ALIPHATIC HYDROCARBONS
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
INORGANIC ACIDS
MATERIALS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC FLUORINE COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC HALOGEN COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC POLYMERS
PETROCHEMICALS
PETROLEUM PRODUCTS
PLASTICS
POLYETHYLENES
POLYMERS
POLYOLEFINS
POLYTETRAFLUOROETHYLENE
SYNTHETIC MATERIALS
360604* - Materials- Corrosion
Erosion
& Degradation
360105 - Metals & Alloys- Corrosion & Erosion