6/16/2017 Mixing101:FlowPatterns&Impellers|DynamixAgitators

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PostedonSeptember20,2013

Mixing101:FlowPatterns&Impellers
MIXING FLOW PATTERNS & IMPELLER TYPES
Inourarticleon4ImpellerTypesandTheirApplications(/4impellerstypesandtheirapplications),weprovidedanoverviewonthemost
commontypesofimpellersusedinindustrialmixing.Nowwellgointomoredetailabouteachimpellertypeandtheirinfluencesonthemixing
process.

Ourfocusonimpellersisduetothefactthattheyarethepartofthemixerthatdoestheactualmixing:astheyrotatetheycreatefluidflow.These
flowpatternsaretheprimaryconsiderationswhendesigningamixerbecausecreatingtherightflowpatterniscriticaltoachievingthedesired
result.

Themostcommonflowpatternsinmixingareaxial(downandup)andradial(sidetoside)flow.Theseflowpatternsalsodescribethegeneric
classesofimpellers:axialandradial.

1.AxialFlowImpellers
Axial(downandup)pumpingisanimportantflowpatternbecauseitaddressestwoofthemostcommonchallengesinmixingsolidsuspension
andstratification.Inthisprocessboththesuperficialandannularvelocitiescanbecalculatedtodetermineandcontrolthelevelofmixing.(Ifyour
axialimpelleriscausingswirlingorvortexing,checkoutourpreviousMixing101postingBaffledbyBaffles(/baffledbybaffles)?)

Herearesomeofthemostcommonaxialimpellers:

A.MarinetypePropellers

Viscosity:05,000cps

Commonlyusedonmarineboats,thepropellersareoftenusedinsmallportabledirectdrivemixerapplicationsbecausetheyre
economicalandefficient.However,inlargerapplicationstheyreseldomusedbecauseoftheirpriceandweight.

B.Pitch

Viscosity:050,000cps

Thepitchbladeimpelleristhemostversatileimpellerandwasthestandarduntilthedevelopmentoftheairfoil.Theyreusefulin
blendingtwoormoreliquidsandareeffectiveinlowbottomclearancewithlessliquidsubmergence.

TM
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6/16/2017 Mixing101:FlowPatterns&Impellers|DynamixAgitators
TM
C.Dynaflow (Hydrofoils)

Viscosity:03,000cps

ThisimpellerusestheBernoullisprinciple(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernoulli%27s_principle)inthedesignofitsblade.The
camberofthebladeincreasestheefficiencyoftheimpeller,reducingitspower/pumpingratio.Amoretechnicalbenefitisthelaminar
flowcreatedbythecamberofthisimpeller.Thiscamberreducesturbulence(shear)substantially.Thatiswhyitisselectedforshear
sensitiveapplicationsaswell.

2.RadialFlowImpellers
Unlikeaxialimpellers,radialimpellersarecommonlyselectedforlowlevelmixing(knownasaticklerblade)orelongatedtanks.
Theytypicallygivehighshearratesbecauseoftheirangleofattack.Theyalsohavearelativelylowpumpingnumber,makingthem
themostsensitivetoviscosity.Radialimpellersdonothaveahightankturnoverflowlikeaxialflowimpellers.

ImpellerSelection
Asyoucansee,thefirststeptomeetingyourmixingobjectiveistoidentifyyourdesiredflowpattern,whichisdictatedbytheimpeller.Next,you
mustconsiderthe4mainfactorsforconfiguringyourmixer(/4factorsforconfiguringyourmixer).Fromthere,youmustaddressthe
mechanicalrequirementsofyourmixingprocess:pumpingorflow.Themechanicalrequirementstoproduceflowortorqueperunitvolume,the
mostimportantrelationshipinmixing,areexplainednext.

MixingTermsGlossary
ShearStress

Parallelactingforcewhere2layersinsidethefluidslideagainsteachother.Thisisincontrasttocompression(perpendicularacting
force),tension(stretchingforce),andtorsion(twistingforce).

Viscosity

Internalfluidresistancethoughtofasthethicknessorresistancetoflowoftheliquid(i.e.waterhasviscosityof1centipoisevshand
cleaner,whichisaround3,000centipoise).

PowerNumber(NP)

Constantusedtocalculatepowerdraw,uniquetoeachtypeofmixingimpeller.

PumpingNumber(NQ)

Constantusedtocalculatefloworpumpingrate,derivedempiricallyforeachuniqueshapeofimpeller.

SuperficialVelocity

Velocityofthefluidbeingpumpeddownwardbytheimpeller.

AnnularVelocity

Rateatwhichtheliquidistravelingupwardsinsideatankpasttheimpeller.

SolidSuspension

Stateofasolidwhenitsparticlesaremixedwith,butdontdissolveinthefluidandarecapableofseparation(i.e.sandinwater).

Stratification

Separationof2immiscibleliquidsduetodensityvariation.Suchcircumstancesoccurnaturally:forexample,duetovariationsin
temperatureintheatmosphereortemperatureandsalinityvariationsintheocean.

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6/16/2017 Mixing101:FlowPatterns&Impellers|DynamixAgitators

Ifyouhavequestionswithyourindustrialmixerdesign...

REQUESTAQUOTE(/QUOTE)

Submitaquoterequestonline,orcallusdirectlyat18665632448(tel:18665632448)tofindouthowwecanoptimizethequalityofyour
applicationresults.

BrianJamestheauthor
DynamixAgitatorsincorporatesover45yearsofindustrialmixingexperienceintoitsindustrialmixermodelsandtheprocesses
theyarepartof.Ourmixersandagitatorsareconfiguredtosuityourprocessandapplication.

jamessays:
July17,2014atJ2014087Vam71234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment13)

howdoyoudeterminethedepthofaxialpropellertoeffectmaximummixing

Reply
BrianJames(http://dynamixinc.com)says:
July17,2014atJ2014037Vpm71234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment14)

Foraxialflowimpellerstheimpelleritselfneedstobeoffthetankbottomtoallowthetoptobottom(axial)pumpingtooccur.The
minimumdistancefromthetankbottomtoimpelleris0.5timestheimpellerdiameterthemaximumdistanceisgenerally2timestheimpeller
diameter,butideallytheimpellershouldbe0.67to1timesitsdiameterfromthetankbottom.

Forexample:
30diameterDynaflowimpeller
Min:15fromtankbottom
Max:60fromtankbottom
Ideal:20to30fromtankbottom

Reply

amirsays:
August9,2014atJ2014018Vpm81234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment15)

hi
Ihaveaqustionaboutstirringmoltenmagnesiumandwhatkindofimpelleruseforthat?
doyouknowanyarticleaboutthat?
thankyou

Reply
BrianJames(http://dynamixinc.com)says:
October1,2014atJ20140510Vpm101234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment19)

Doyouhaveanymoreinformationontheproductsuchasspecificgravityandviscosity?Anyinformationonthetanksize?Typically
wewouldgowithadynaflowbladeorpitchtypebladedependingontheapplicationdetails.

Reply

Klinssays:
August10,2014atJ2014048Vam81234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment16)

Hai,

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6/16/2017 Mixing101:FlowPatterns&Impellers|DynamixAgitators

WouldliketoaskfortheMarinetypepropellers,whatisthematerialthatwasusedtomakethatcarbonsteelorstainlesssteel?Anddoesthat
materialsuitableforcoagulation?

Reply
BrianJames(http://dynamixinc.com)says:
October1,2014atJ20140510Vpm101234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment20)

Ourpropellersaremadeof316SS.304SSisalsosuitableforcoagulation.

Reply

Devinsays:
September2,2014atJ2014079Vpm91234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment17)

Whichdepthofanaxialpropellerreducesfoamingissuesgenerally?

Reply
BrianJames(http://dynamixinc.com)says:
October3,2014atJ20140510Vpm101234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment22)

Thedepthoftheaxialimpellerisnotthemostimportantfactor,thetypeofimpellerandtherpmare.Inordertoreducefoamitwould
berecommendedtogowithanairfoiltypebladewhichislowshearandalowrpm(<300rpm).Furthermore,theimpellershouldbeplaced
aboutto1timestheimpellersdiameteroffthebottom.

Reply

DiegoPradillasays:
October1,2014atJ20140110Vpm101234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment18)

Hi,

Doyouhavethepumpingnumbers(Nq)forlaminarregime?,theonesreportedherearevalidforturbulentflow.Thanks

Reply
BrianJames(http://dynamixinc.com)says:
October3,2014atJ20140510Vpm101234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment21)

Pumpingnumbersareassociatedwithimpellerstypesandnotflowregimes,asmixerstypicallydontperformunderlaminarflow.Is
thereaspecificquestionyouhadassociatedwiththepumpingnumbers?

Reply

AdithyaSarveswaransays:
March9,2015atJ2015093Vpm31234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment23)

Hello,

IamdesigningamagneticstirringstationandIwaswonderingwhetheranyoneknewanythingabouthowtomaximizethestirringabilityofsucha
device.Oneobviousdifferencebetweenamagneticstirringstationandanormalmixeristhatthemagnetrestsonthebottomofthecylinder,
whereasinmostindustrialmixers,theimpellerissuspendedsomedistanceXawayfromthebottomofthecylinder.Sincethestirringmagnetisat
thebottom,howwillthisimpactthemixingabilityofmydevice?

Thanks,
Adithya

Reply
BrianJames(http://dynamixinc.com)says:
March10,2015atJ2015123Vam31234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment24)

Dynamixisengagedinthedesign&manufactureofmixerswithpaddletypeimpellers.Thankyouforyourquestion,but
unfortunatelywecannotcommentonyourspecificapplication.

Reply

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baskarsays:
March12,2015atJ2015043Vam31234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment25)

manihaveaquestion
thatiamdoingaprojectonimpeller
andineedsomespecificationstodrawanimpelleronPROE
cananyonedothatplzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Reply
Sarahsays:
July5,2015atJ2015097Vpm71234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment521)

Hi,

Iminterestedinaxialimpellersforoursmallcell.Theproblemwehaveisthatwehavecurrentlyemployedaradialimpeller(vane)andsolidskeep
cloggingonthewallandimpellerstops.Iwasthinkingmaybewecouldemployanaxialimpeller?Butwewanthighshearatthesametime.We
haveasystemwithtwoimmiscibleliquidsandgas.Andatalatertimesolidstarttoform.

Doyouthinkmixedflowpatternimpellerwouldbethemostideal?

Reply
BrianJamessays:
July20,2015atJ2015127Vpm71234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment601)

Foridealresultsyouwouldneedtouseanaxialflowimpelleratahigherspeed,whichproduceshighershear.Ourhighsolidity
airfoilimpellerwillaidinthegasdispersionandsolidssuspension.

Reply

RuveshanNaidoosays:
July13,2015atJ2015057Vam71234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment553)

Hi,

Iamworkingforapapermanufacturingcompanyandwasrequestedtodesignanexcelspreadsheettogivethebasicspecsforanagitatordesign.
Iamhavingaproblemfindingthepowernumberneededforadensityof1200kg/m^3withaviscosityof1cPs,usingapitchedbladeimpeller.What
factorseffectthepowernumberandisitpossible,inanyway,toalsocalculatethepumpingnumberwithouttheuseofgraphs?

Thanks.

Reply
BrianJamessays:
July20,2015atJ2015127Vpm71234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment600)

Attheconditionsthatyouvesupplied(SG=1.2&viscosity=1cps)assumingaturbulentflowregime,thepowerandpumping
numbersofastandardpitchimpellerwillbe1.62and0.86respectively.

Thepumpingnumberisameasurednumberforeachtypeofimpellerandtheresnoclearsetformulatocalculateit.
Thetwomajorfactorsthataffectthepowernumberare:
1.Thebladedesign
2.Iftheflowisturbulentorlaminar

Reply

Colesays:
December22,2015atJ20150612Vam121234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment1188)

Hello,

http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers 5/9
6/16/2017 Mixing101:FlowPatterns&Impellers|DynamixAgitators

Doesthelengthoftheshafteffectthemotorsperformance?Wehaveasetupthatisbarelyworkingforuswehavearoughly5ftshaftattached,
anditwouldbehelpfultouseashaftthatwasacouplefeetlongerbutweareconcernedthismayputadditionalstressonthemotorcausingitto
beincapableofmixingourmaterialstogether.Canyoupleasetellmeabouthowtheshaftlengtheffectsthemotorsperformance?

Reply
BrianJamessays:
April5,2016atJ2016084Vam41234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment1296)

Therearetwomainconcernswithincreasingyourshaftlength.First:The7shaftwillrequirealargerdiametertoaddressCritical
SpeedConcerns.SecondtheMotor/GearboxandBearingswillneedtobedesignedtosupporttheaddedstressofthelongershaft(Overhung
Load).

Reply

HarishKumarsays:
April5,2016atJ2016034Vam41234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment1293)

WeneedtodoironoreslurryandwatermixingandthanpumpingittoMixertousetheslurryinprocess.Wehave3250mmtankheight
and3250tankdiameter.Whichflowpatternissuitableaxialorradial?Aswewillusealltheproductofwholeplantinslurryformandthantoreuseit
inmixer.

Reply
BrianJamessays:
April5,2016atJ2016074Vam41234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment1294)

Limeslurrymixersshouldhaveimpellerswithairfoilbladesbecausetheypromoteaxialflowthatmaximizestheareaofinfluence.
Thediameteroftheimpellershouldbesizedat0.3to0.5impellertotankdiameterratiotobeoptimal.WetypicallyrecommendourDynaflow
airfoilbladeforlimeslurrymixing.

Reply

hebasays:
April6,2016atJ2016024Vpm41234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment1302)

whatisbestimpellertypeformixingsuspensionsofmediumviscositytakinginconsiderationthatthetanksize1200L,whatistheright
distanceoftheshaft,doweneedtwoimpellershaft?

Reply
BrianJamessays:
April25,2016atJ2016094Vam41234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment1321)

Thankyouforthecomment,anApplicationEngineerwillbeincontactwithyoutodiscussyourrequirements.

Reply

SunilTiwarisays:
April12,2016atJ2016054Vam41234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment1316)

Iwanttoselectmixingvesselforpharmaapplicationformakingsuspensionhavingviscosityfrom1to3000centipoise.Kindlysuggest
methedesignofimpllertobeselected.Itshouldbebottomdrivenortopdriven.

Reply
BrianJamessays:
April25,2016atJ2016094Vam41234(http://www.dynamixinc.com/mixing101thebasicprinciplesofmixingandimpellers#comment1320)

Thankyouforthecomment,anApplicationEngineerwillbeincontactwithyoutodiscussyourrequirements.

Reply

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