Simerics Inc. has officially released the extended External Gear Pump template in its PumpLinx software. The External Gear Pump template has been fully tested and is ready for application to help in the design of Gear Pumps by modeling cavitation, pressure, and flow. Studies show a strong correlation between PumpLinx's predictions and results observed during laboratory tests.

An external gear pump is a positive displacement pump with side-by-side interlocking gear sets. When the gears rotate, the fluid is transported around the periphery and expelled as the teeth merge. It is commonly known that numerical modeling of external gear pumps is extremely difficult. One reason is the complexity of dynamic meshing between the gears. A second reason is the difficulty of modeling very small (e.g. 5 microns) clearances, and a third is the accurate modeling of cavitation.

PumpLinx is able to meet all three challenges using its new External Gear Pump template. PumpLinx's approach is new and unique. It maintains topography of the grid (as opposed to creating a new grid topography for each time-step), while allowing it to slide and deform. Communication at the sliding interface is then handled by precision matching.

PumpLinx has been specifically developed for the design of fluid pumps and motors. Key advantages of PumpLinx include automated grid generation, robust and accurate cavitation model, ease-of-use, very fast turn-around time, and reliable results. PumpLinx's cavitation module has been throughly validated against real engineering test cases.

The External Gear Pump template is now available along with other PumpLinx templates (Axial/ Centrifugal Pumps, Crescent Pumps/Motors, Gerotor Pumps/Motors, Piston Pumps/Motors, Vane Pumps/Motors,and Propellers / Fans/ Jets).

For more information, please visit the Simerics website at www.simerics.com