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http://dx.doi.org/10.5389/KSAE.2019.61.4.055

Experimental Study on the Effect of Air Chamber Size and Operation Parameters on the Performance of a Hydraulic Ram Pump  

Ngolle, Enongene Ebong George (Msc SMART Agric Engineering, MINADER)
Hong, Seong Gu (Department of Bioresource and Rural Systems Engineering, Hankyong National University)
Publication Information
Journal of The Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers / v.61, no.4, 2019 , pp. 55-61 More about this Journal
Abstract
Motor pumps cannot be used in those areas where electricity is not accessible such as remote rural areas in many African countries. Hydraulic ram pump is one of the solutions for supplying water for irrigation or domestic uses. The hydraulic ram pumps are working based on the water hammer effect for pumping without external power or electricity. This study was conducted to investigate the effect of air chamber volume and operation parameters on the performance of the hydraulic ram pump which was assembled with common plumbing parts. The experimental results showed the volume of the air chamber did not affect the performance such as discharge rate and head. When drive heights were 1.7 and 2.35 m, the maximum discharge heads were up to 7 m and 10 m, respectively. When the air chamber volume was 1 L, discharge rates were 0.23 and 2.12 L/min under the drive heights of 1.7 and 2.35 m, respectively. The average energy efficiency of the hydraulic ram pump assembled in this study was about 60% for all the experimental conditions.
Keywords
Hydraulic ram pump; air chamber; sustainable technology;
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