Reliable, economical, and hermetically sealed, the compact Ecosmart pumps from Lewa GmbH have proved themselves in simple metering applications in water treatment, in refineries, and in food technology, as well as in demanding chemical and petrochemical applications. Since the model is available as a single head in four sizes but can only convey volume flows of at most 79 gallons (300 liters) per hour, the Leonberg pump manufacturer has now developed a multiplex design of the sturdy small pump. A combination of several drive units with identical or differing output reduces pulsation and enables multiple or recipe metering.
ecosmart_multiplex_1
In contrast with the multiplex drives from other suppliers, with the Ecosmart Multiplex up to six pump heads can be connected one after the other.
A WINNING PARTNERSHIP
Founded in 1952 as a family company by Herbert Ott and Rudolf Schestag, LEWA GmbH is the world’s leading manufacturer of metering and process diaphragm pumps as well as complete metering systems for process technology. Today, Lewa’s position in the pump market is secured by its integration into the Japanese compay Nikkiso. The global footprint allows the company’s engineers to explore the full range of metering pump applications. For example, Lewa products are primarily used in the oil and gas industry, in the area of gas odorization, refineries, and petrochemistry, but also in the manufacture of plastics, detergents, and cleaning agents. Additionally, Lewa has been able to branch out into such diverse fields as the cosmetics industry, in pharmaceutical and biotechnology, in the food and beverage sector, and in power supply.
Experts from the two partners created the Ecosmart Multiplex with more flexibility in meeting the requirements of the various fields in which the Ecosmart pumps are used, and to convey larger total volume flows. Thus the four different sizes, with piston diameters between 1/5 and 1 1/2 inches (6 and 42 millimeters), can b e combined with each other. Moreover, unlike multiplex drives from other suppliers, up to six heads can be connected one after the other, resulting in a total conveyed volume of up to 475 gallons (1800 liters) per hour. The maximum allowed working pressure is 80 bar.
ecosmart_Membranen
The PTFE sandwich diaphragm of the LEWA pump is equipped with a diaphragm monitor. This reliably indicates damage, while the pump still stays tight and can be operated for a short time afterwards.
VERSATILE BY DESIGN
This compact diaphragm metering pump is suitable for metering demulsifiers as a quality upgrade for crude oil, for example, or for injecting methanol for drying and deicing in the oil and gas industry, or for adding food coloring and flavors in the food and beverage industry.
Multiplex capability has now made multiple metering possible as well. That means that the same chemicals, or even different ones, can be added at different locations at the same time. This novel feature is especially significant for recipe metering in the food industry, for example when adding various coloring agents during the production of candy.
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The Ecosmart Multiplex pumps don’t need radial shaft seals between the elements, so they’re especially service friendly.
HIGH EFFICIENCY, LOW COST
Ecosmart pumps are generally characterized by high overall efficiency and low life cycle costs. This is due among other things to the sandwich diaphragm concept, which ensures that the pump can continue to operate for a limited time even with a defective diaphragm, absolutely safe and free of leaks. The diaphragm pump is protected by a pressure relief valve in the hydraulic system, to prevent overload. Above all, the multiplex design is very service-friendly, because it doesn’t require radial shaft seals between the elements. That eliminates the extensive repair work that has always been required for older pumps.
Depending on the load, only a part of the pump can be used, for example just two of the four pump heads can be turned on, with the remainder only used when needed. The flow rate can also be regulated automatically using electrical stroke adjustment. Compared to the Ecoflow series from Lewa, which has already been available with multiple drives for a long time, the Ecosmart is significantly more cost-effective, but limited to 80 bar.
This small pump comes standard in stainless steel, or in PVC for highly aggressive fluids. Custom requests, such as offshore paint, material test certificates, and API approval (American Petroleum Institute), can also be included. ■
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Thomas Boekenbrink is the product manager for LEWA GmbH. As a researching and productive company, LEWA develops technologies and works out solutions for a wide variety of its customers’ applications. He can be reached at thomas.boekenbrink@lewa.de. For more information, visit www.lewa.com.
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MODERN PUMPING TODAY, July 2013
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