coorstek
suction & discharge
stabilizers
T R I P L E X
Suction and
Discharge
Stabilizers
T E C H N I C A L
B R I E F
Introduction
Why reciprocating pumps require pulsation stabilizer:
• Early failure of plungers, valves, seats, springs, and
packing
• Piping and connection fatigue
• Loss of pump efficiency
• Excessive downtime
These are the more common problems in the fluid ends and
piping systems of reciprocating pumps that result in
unnecessarily high maintenance costs as well as unsafe
conditions. The cause? Pulsation.
What is Pulsation?
A pulsation (or pressure surge) is a variation in pressure
within pumping systems caused by the inertia of the fluid
column being accelerated and decelerated. The magnitude
of these pressure surges depends upon the characteristic
of each particular pumping system. The number of
plungers (pistons), bore and stroke length, crank angle,
and piping configuration are generally the more important
factors to consider. Multiple pumps with common suction
and/or discharge headers tend to experience additional
problems with overlapping pressure surges and harmonic
interference. Regardless of the magnitude, most positive
displacement pumps used in the industry today encounter
pulsation.
Suction
The majority of pulsation problems can be prevented by
first correcting the suction side of the pump. In order for
the pump to operate smoothly, it must have a consistent,
even flow of liquid into the suction. In other words, the fluid
must remain in contact with the face of the plunger at all
times. The very nature of the action of a plunger is
C-SERIES
ST-SERIES
SG-SERIES
SGM-SERIES
Suction & Discharge Stabilizers
thermal
mechanical
(Suction cont’d)
detrimental to complete cylinder fill and that, coupled with the
inertia of a fluid column, results in incomplete cylinder fill (or
cavitation). Acceleration head is the pressure required to
overcome inertia effect and accelerate fluid as the pump suction demands. With a high acceleration head that is not compensated for, the fluid breaks contact with the plunger and a
vacuum exists within the cylinder. This occurs just before
mid-stroke. As the plunger decelerates, the fluid rushes in,
filling the void and building a high pressure on the plunger
face. Upon the reversal of the plunger, higher pressure causes abnormal valve action that can be detected throughout the
system. These pulsations exist even when the suction is pressurized to a higher level.
The installation and proper tuning of a CoorsTek suction stabilizer will help to create steady, non-varying flow conditions
into the fluid end of the pump – thus steadying the system
pressure as well. The CoorsTek cartridge immediately absorbs
the flow surge that occurs after midstroke and again when the
plunger reverses direction. The energy is processed by compressing the nitrogen-charged rubber cartridge in the
CoorsTek unit. Not to be confused with the less efficient
“surge accumulator” models, the CoorsTek cartridge actually
compensates for each pressure variation as it occurs. This
allows the unit to stabilize the flow of fluid into the fluid end
and to overcome acceleration head with maximum efficiencyresulting in a complete cylinder fill.
®
Discharge
Difficult piping configurations on the discharge side,
especially multiple pumps with a common header,
usually result in severe pulsations in the piping system. This
also affects downstream components such as meters,
wear
electronic
fluid
gauges, valves, and the flowline itself. The CoorsTek discharge stabilizer absorbs and evens the flow from the pump
with the same type of cartridge function as the suction stabilizer. It also helps to eliminate harmonic interference in multiple pump/common discharge installations.
Solution
In addition to lower maintenance costs and reduced downtime
due to system failure, the stabilized pumping system permits
increased pump speeds and yields higher volumetric efficiencies. To achieve desired results in your pumping systems, we
provide a full line of CoorsTek pulsation stabilizers.
Fluid stopping &
starting as plungers
reverse direction
Velocity variations
become
pressure fluctuations
Discharge Piping
Fluid End
Valves open &
close with each
stroke
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
0
Acceleration Head
Suction Piping
Peak Acceleration
Relative Flow Velocity
semiconductor
Peak Deceleration
Triplex, single acting.
(throws set at 120°
produce an overlap of
60°) 6 pulses per
crankshaft revolution
at 300 rpm produces
30 pulses per second.
30
60
90
120 150 180 210 240 270 300 330 380
Crank Angle (Degrees)
Maximum Relative Fluid
Acceleration : 107%
Maximum Relative Fluid
Deceleration 82%
A Flow Variation of
Approximately 25% exists.
Pulsation Stabilizers
100-U
300-G
CoorsTek, Inc.
7700 South Bryant Street
Oklahoma City, OK 73149 USA
300-T
600-T
800.572.5791 toll free
405.601.4371 tel
405.208.4510 fax
600-G
600-GM
900-GM
900-M
1200-GM
1200-M
FFS
oilgas@coorstek.com
www.coorstek.com
CoorsTek and Amazing Solutions are registered trademarks of CoorsTek, Inc.
© 2006 CoorsTek F0601 8510-1033 Rev. D
Head Office:
6120 Davies Road
Edmonton, AB
T6E 4M9
Phone: (780) 485-2010 • Toll Free: (866) 707-7867
Fax: (780) 485-1938
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