Testing rig developed by Flow Process Research Centre to be used by international researchers

A pump efficiency testing rig, designed and built by researchers based at the Flow Process Research Centre, will be used to test the characteristics of paper pulp waste fluids and sewage sludges in Stockholm later this year.

The centre, which is based in the Civil Engineering and Survey Department at the Cape Town campus, is tasked with researching problems that relate to the flow of industrial fluids.

The researchers have expertise in making precise measurements of the viscous characteristics (called rheology) of complex fluids, and then relating these characteristics to the flow of industrial fluids and pumping systems.

The test rig, which is currently being shipped to Stockholm , will be used by CPUT and Swedish researchers to test the characteristics of these fibrous suspensions.

It is envisaged that by characterising the flow physics, including the process knowledge and using adaptive technology, an optimised pumping system can be obtained, thus resulting in energy efficiency.

Prof Rainer Haldenwang, who is managing the project, said it is a collaboration between CPUT and Innventia, a company in Sweden that specialises in research and development relating to pulp, paper, graphic media, packaging and biorefining.

The project is sponsored by Tillväxtverket, a Swedish Agency for economic and regional growth via the DemoEnvironmental Program, which is a government funding agency in Sweden .

Prof Haldenwang, along with Dr Veruscha Fester and Richard du Toit of the Centre, will travel to Stockholm in September and conduct tests alongside their Swedish counterparts.

Prof Haldenwang said the project came about in 2007, when he traveled to Stockholm to visit Dr Richard Holm, a Swedish researcher who has expertise in fluid mechanics, rheology and pumping of fibre suspensions.

Dr Richard Holm, who works for Innventia, visited CPUT in 2006 to attend a conference hosted by the centre.

“We started discussing collaboration and then applied to a Swedish funding agency for R2 million, which we then received at the beginning of 2008,” he said.

Researchers expect that the project will assist them in determining improved design features of industrial pump systems.

“A very specific sludge test facility in Stockholm will be able to produce different types and concentrations of sludges required for the tests. It is envisaged that by understanding the flow properties of the fluids pumped and monitoring the pump performance it will be possible to run centrifugal pumps more efficiently thus saving energy,” he said.

Dr Oswald Franks, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering, said the project is a great accomplishment.

“It’s not every day that we get to export devices like this to Europe , which is a developed continent,” he said.

Dr Franks said the project is in line with the university’s mission, which encourages researchers to collaborate with industry, both locally and internationally.

By Candes Keating

Photo: (top right)The team of researchers at the CPUT Flow Process Research Centre (left and bottom right) Details from the newly developed testing rig, that will be exported to Stockholm.

Written by CPUT News
Email: news@cput.ac.za