ASM Failure Analysis Case Histories: Failure Modes and Mechanisms
Failure of a Bronze Pump Impeller by Cavitation Damage
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Published:2019
Abstract
Two water pumps were taken out of service because of reduced output. Visual inspection revealed considerable material loss in both impellers, which were 25.4 cm (10 in.) in diam x 1.3 cm (0.5 in.) wide and made from a cast bronze alloy. Several similar water pumps operating under nearly identical conditions, drawing water from an open tank through a standpipe, had no observable failures. Etched micrographs 100x of samples taken from the impellers showed clean, pockmarked, severely eroded surfaces, characteristic of cavitation damage. Investigation also revealed that considerable quantities of air were being drawn into the system when water...
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Member Sign InFailure of a Bronze Pump Impeller by Cavitation Damage, ASM Failure Analysis Case Histories: Failure Modes and Mechanisms, ASM International, 2019, https://doi.org/10.31399/asm.fach.modes.c0046414
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