Air lift pump : investigation of variable parameters

Abstract

In most wells, pumping is necessary to draw water from the well. When the ground water level is close to the surface as in shallow wells, the pumps may be located above ground or in pump pits and the water raised to the pump by suction. However this is not always practicable since normally the distance from the pump to the water level is greater than twenty-five feet and thus the atmospheric pressure will not be enough to drive the water up to ground level. Thus in the deeper wells special types of pumps are required. These are plunger pumps, piston and cylinder pumps, centrifugal pumps and air lift pumps. In these cases power heads are located at the surface and may be driven by steam, electricity or internal combustion engines. In this project the air lift pump is going to be examined in detail followed by tests to study its behaviour. The air pump was invented by Carl Lascher in 1797. This system fell into comerative desuitude for many years and has only recently been revived and improved.