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Flexible coupling is the give and take in pump applications
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Date Added: 16th November 2011
It's often the case in engineering applications that the connections within and between systems are shown to be the most important components. A Formula One sports car can have the best engine in the world ... but unless that power is transmitted efficiently to the wheels, it's not going to win any races. This is equally true in pump applications, and ensuring that you have the right flexible coupling between your motor and pump is vital to the efficiency, robustness and longevity of your overall system.
When considering your coupling options, it's important to be aware of and fully consider the four ways in which the driving motor shaft and the driven pump shaft may be misaligned:
- Parallel misalignment can occur in cases where the end faces of the two shafts are parallel, but the centre axes of the shafts are laterally displaced and therefore not in alignment.
- In angular misalignment, the two shafts aren't coaxial or parallel, and therefore come together at an angle, which might be either symmetrical or asymmetrical.
- End float can come about where either one, or both, of the shafts move ‘in and out' axially. This can occur mechanically in some systems (for example sleeve-bearing motors), while thermal expansion due to temperature variation may also contribute in some cases.
- Torsional flexibility can also arise when shock or vibration leads to torsional movement perpendicular to the shaft's axis.
A flexible coupling should accommodate and compensate for at least parallel and angular misalignment, however it's important to consider your application's unique requirements, and where possible take advantage of a four-way flexible coupling system that can handle each of the potential issues outlined above.
Altra Industrial Motion offers a wide range of coupling solutions, each of which takes into account the flaws and dynamics that exist in most real-world engineering applications - providing flexible coupling designs which acknowledge that operating conditions vary, temperatures fluctuate, and other environmental factors and changes can come into play all too easily.
It's vital to choose the coupling that best meets your needs. That means considering factors such as the torque and speed (a pump application running at a maximum 115 HP/100 RPM may have a different ideal coupling type to one running at 400 HP/100 RPM, while higher RPM applications will have different needs again), system component sizes and environmental factors.
Fortunately, Altra Industrial Motion can draw on decades of practical engineering knowledge and manufacturing excellence to ensure you find the flexible coupling solution that's right for you.
More from this supplier | More from this category: Power Transmission
More from this subcategory: Couplings