News | July 7, 1999

On-Line Pump System Design Program

John Kossik, Beacon Engineers

Although computer programs for engineering applications have been around since the 1980s, the advent of the World Wide Web has the potential to bring these applications to a far greater number of professionals. With the ease of use of scripting languages like JavaScript, and higher integration of browsers with other programs on our desktops, the Web can now become a powerful tool in helping engineers accomplish many of their day-to-day design tasks.

In the past, the best standards, engineering methods, design "know-how", and "shortcuts" were usually only available to those working in large engineering firms or production companies. This was the case because smaller firms did not typically have the available overhead time and/or expertise to develop and maintain these design tools. As a result, personnel at smaller firms ended up "reinventing the wheel" for many applications, never having access to information from prior experience. This problem is even worse now with larger firms streamlining staff, making it more difficult to maintain and generate the standards they had in the past. The solution to this is informative, interactive engineering applications available on the Web.

Beacon Engineers Inc. (Woodinville, WA) is in the process of developing applications to fill this need. Instead of trying to tackle extensive applications like full-blown process simulation (which are already covered extensively), Beacon's applications are small, easily accommodated on the Web, concentrating on many of the day-to-day chores that engineers must accomplish. The first application developed for this purpose facilitates design of pumping systems. This application can be found off Beacon's main site following the link to "On-Line Pump System Design," or it can be accessed directly at www.beaconengr.com/pumpin.htm.

You can design a pumping system online at Beacon Engineers' Web site.

All that is needed to run this user-friendly application is your browser. The main advantage of this application is that minimal information input is needed to generate a meaningful pump system specification. Basically, the only input required is the pump capacity, estimated piping lengths, and an estimated level of complexity of the suction and discharge piping. The program can estimate the piping line loss based on this input. This is particularly helpful in the early stages of a project, when the detailed piping configuration is not known. If, on the other hand, you have an application where the actual piping configuration is known, you can use the program to calculate the actual piping line losses by inputting the length of pipe, fittings, and valves it includes. Lastly, the user can bypass these piping loss calculations and input an actual line loss calculated by any other means (this can be helpful in cases were non-Newtonian fluids are being handled). The program also prompts the user to enter in pressure drops from other components that may be present in the system (i.e. heat exchangers, filters, control valves, etc.) and suggests typical values for these components via pull-downs.

Beacon Engineers believes web-based engineering software will close the "expertise gap" between large and small engineering firms.

Upon entering and submitting these system parameters, the program calculates all the information needed to determine the design conditions of the pump. These parameters include NPSH available, differential head, suction and discharge pressures, and brake horsepower. The output can be in two forms. The first option gives a detailed listing including all input conditions and all intermediate pressure drop calculations. The second option gives just enough information needed to complete a pump specification.

In addition to the core application, the site offers a typical pump schematic, pump terminology, technical references, and a link to pump manufacturers. All these functions make the application rigorous enough for use in most engineering design projects, as well as user-friendly enough for use by the novice to pump system design.

This application is supplied free for individual use off the Beacon Engineers site. The program mentioned above to calculate friction line losses using the pipe length, fittings, and valves can be accessed independently from the pump design program for line loss calculation problems that do not involve a pumping system.

Future online programs to be available on Beacon Engineers' site will deal with:

  • Self-venting Flow
  • Batch Vessel Heating and Cooling
  • Relief Valve Sizing
  • Rupture Disk Sizing
  • Orifice Sizing
  • Two-phase Flow
  • Packed Tower Design

John Kossik, a process engineer at Beacon Engineers, lives in Seattle, WA.

For more information: John Kossik, Beacon Engineers, 18940 Northeast 150th St., Woodinville, WA 98072. Tel: 425-742-9693. Fax: 425-883-2171. Email: jmk@beaconengr.com.