Why do fruit particles break once they contact a high-shear pump, while a low-shear rotor pump can preserve the integrity of particles?

Transferring materials from one tank to another is usually just a trivial step. However, once the material contains solid particles such as fruit granules, this step quietly becomes a checkpoint that determines the success or failure of the whole batch. If the conveying method is improperly selected, particles will be crushed in the pump chamber and pipeline, resulting in turbid appearance and deteriorated taste. The entire batch of materials has to be scrapped, bringing considerable losses.

-Bonve Pump Industry Cam-style Twin Rotor Pump-

Why high-shear pump models tend to fail in particle material applications

For instance, centrifugal pumps convey materials by means of high-speed impellers and produce strong shear force. Particles are extremely prone to being shattered at the edge of impellers; when conventional screw pumps convey large particles, particles will be squeezed at the meshing position of rotors and blockage may easily occur. Many production lines choose pumps hastily in the initial selection stage, and problems only emerge after putting into production. Particle breakage is only a superficial phenomenon. More troublesome is that the suspension system is destroyed by strong shear, followed by material water separation and precipitation, making products fail to meet factory standards.

Low-shear conveying by rotor pumps: guarantee for intact particles

As the cam rotor pump is a positive displacement pump, its rotors rotate synchronously at low speed and push materials by volume change of the pump chamber. There are no high-speed impellers. Materials move steadily inside the chamber without suffering severe extrusion and tearing. A controllable clearance is reserved between rotors and pump body, so particles can pass through the pump chamber smoothly together with the medium and blockage rarely occurs. The shear effect can be further weakened by reducing rotating speed via frequency conversion, adapting to working conditions with larger particles. The conveying process will not disrupt the suspended state, significantly reducing stratification and sedimentation and keeping materials in their original state.

Low shear is not an inherent fixed attribute of pump models. Rotating speed matching must be considered during model selection. The larger the particles, the lower the rotating speed needs to be; higher rotating speed brings stronger shear and higher risk of particle damage.

Four key points for model selection in material conveying

·Particle size: Confirm the diameter of the largest particles contained in the medium first. The flow passage of the pump chamber must be larger than the particle size, otherwise blockage will easily happen;

·Medium viscosity: Jam and sauce have a wide viscosity range. The higher the viscosity, the lower the rotating speed should be to avoid motor overload;

·Sanitary requirements: Sanitary structural models are preferred for food-grade media, featuring smooth flow channels to facilitate CIP cleaning and eliminate dead zones where materials may accumulate;

·Seal selection: Paste and sugar-containing sauces tend to stick to sealing parts. Select sealing structures adapted to viscous media to reduce leakage and carbonization.

Key points to reduce wear and loss

Fill the pipeline and pump chamber with materials before startup. Dry running is most likely to damage seals. When conveying large-particle materials, adopt frequency conversion control to fine-tune rotating speed according to material conditions instead of running at full speed all the time. Clean the pump chamber promptly after shutdown to prevent sauce from drying and adhering, which would cause rotor wear during the next startup.

In working conditions such as jam and particle-containing sauce, the core requirement of conveying is not merely transferring materials, but maintaining stable product quality after delivery. With the feature of gentle conveying, low-shear rotor pumps guard the final quality checkpoint of products, reduce batch scrapping and keep production lines running stably.

Bonve pump always adheres to the philosophy of "Wholeheartedly Making Good Rotor Pumps," committed to providing global customers with customized conveying and mixing solutions. If you have technical inquiries, selection needs, case references, or other cooperation intentions related to Bonve rotor pumps, please feel free to contact us.  

Service Hotline: 0574-87588986 13586591794  

Official Website: www.bvpumps.com  

Business Email: market@bonvepumps.com  

We look forward to working with you to drive efficiency and innovation in industrial fluid transmission with precision technology.