Peristaltic Hose Pump for Pipeline Coating with Hot Wax and Sand Mixture

We are frequently approached by customers with hard to pump fluids that they are having difficulty finding a solution for. Problematic characteristics include high viscosity, abrasiveness, and high concentrations of solids. This will almost certainly require a positive displacement pump, especially when there is a combination of these traits in one liquid. 

Some products require altering to ensure they can be pumped; one such example is wax. In its natural state, wax is a solid and it therefore requires heating to change it to a flowable liquid. This is typically performed inside a tank or heating vessel, once the optimum temperature is reached, the wax can flow into the pump for either transferring to another location on site, for spraying or another process.

Application Background

We were approached by one of the World leading technical consultancies to the oil and gas industry with a unique requirement. They supply technical advice and services for all upstream operations, including onshore and offshore oil and gas exploration, production, delivery, storage, and processing. One of their processes involves coating the insides of pipework with a hot wax and sand mixture, normally 5 to 10% concentration. They heat the wax in a large tank to 70°C to lower the viscosity enough to ensure it flows, they then need a wax pump to move 1000L/hr while producing 6 bar pressure to spray it through nozzles evenly across the pipework. 

Low Maintenance Positive Displacement Pump Design

Our FMP30 peristaltic pump is an excellent solution for this application due to its seal-less and valveless design. They are outstanding at handling viscous, abrasive and solids laden fluids as there is only one component internally that encounters the fluid, this is the rubber hose. Also referred to as hose or squeeze pumps due to the peristalsis pumping action, the internal rollers rotate at a slow speed and squeeze/contract the hose to force the fluid through at pressure (View our Peristaltic Pump animation). The motor speed is reduced via a gearbox making the operating speed of the unit very low, this extends the life of components when handling abrasive products such as sand, a huge benefit with this application.

Considerations for Abrasive Fluid Handling

The unique pumping action enables self-priming, the absence of a mechanical seal allows dry running without damage and the lack of valves means there is no risk of clogging, all extremely useful characteristics when handling difficult fluids or for difficult installations. As the internal rubber hose is the only wearing part, it makes maintenance quick and simple while the stocking of spare parts is low cost. 

Wax turns to a solid once cooled, this is something that could easily occur if the operator forgets to clean the unit and leaves the wax inside, the hose therefore adds another huge benefit for this client as is it the only component that needs to be changed in the event this happens. If this were to occur in other designs then it would involve the costly replacement of major parts or even possibly a complete replacement, making the handling of wax a very risky venture. To reduce downtime as much as possible, we advised this customer to keep a spare hose in stock along with silicone grease for lubrication to ensure the unit is quickly back in action should wax accidentally be left inside the pump to set. 

A summary of Peristaltic Pump Advantages: 

• Self-priming up to 8 metres vertically from dry.

• Low cost and simple maintenance due to only one wearing part.

• Reversible pumping, excellent for filling and emptying containers or the draining of hose/pipework.

• High viscosity fluids up to 55,000cst.

• Valveless design ensures non-clogging, a huge benefit when handling sludges containing large concentrations of solids particles.

• Gentle and slow pumping action for handling abrasive, shear sensitive and delicate products.

• Seal-less design enables dry running without damage.

• Various hose material options for the handling of a wide range of liquids and chemicals.

• Wide range of accessory options including leakage sensor, onboard variable speed drive, vacuum assisted priming, pulsation dampener, Halar (ECTFE) anti corrosive coating, screw feed hopper and mobile trolley. 

Below is the specification of the wax pump that was installed: