What exactly does a vortex breaker do?

[Smackavelly]

I understand that a vortex breaker inhibits the suction/draining liquid from forming a vortex but what exactly does a vortex do to a pump? In other words, what is the adverse affects of not having a vortex breaker? will the vortex travel along 20ft of 20" pipe configured with 3 90deg ells?

 

[Artisi]

A vortex will pump the pump "off" performance by either allowing air to enter the pump if it is surface vortex or resulting in a miss-match of flow onto the impeller blades or a combination of both.

Not having a vortex breaker may not present any problem as the formation of a vortex at the inlet to a pump depends on a number of factors which are not always present in any given installation.

I could see it possible for a vortex to travel 20ft along a pipe even with the 90 ells. A fully developed vortex can contain considerable energy and will quite often show as an increase in a pressure gauge reading located on the inlet pipe. Actually this is one method of showing that a vortex is present in an inlet line leading up to a pump inlet.

 

[Artisi]

Just adding to my previous post, re vortex travellig along a 20 ft pipe - having seen both threads you posted I will change that comment slightly to say what what you are seeing is pre-rotation of the inlet flow and probably not vortexing, plus the comment should read that pre-rotation can be seem with a pressure guage in the inlet line - NOT vortexing.

 

[BigInch]

Possibly being induced, or worsened, by the configuration of the 3 ells. Got a diagram of that suction line?

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[electricpete]

So what's the difference between vortexing and pre-rotation ?



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[pennpiper]

The difference is in the "Terminology"
Both terms refer to the "Coriolis" effect.