Drum pump, barrel pump, and transfer pump refer to

pump A pump is a device that moves fluids (liquids or gases), or sometimes Slurry, slurries, by mechanical action, typically converted from electrical energy into hydraulic or pneumatic energy. Mechanical pumps serve in a wide range of application ...

s that are used to empty

barrel A barrel or cask is a hollow cylindrical container with a bulging center, longer than it is wide. They are traditionally made of wooden stave (wood), staves and bound by wooden or metal hoops. The word vat is often used for large containers ...

tanks A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; t ...

, IBCs and

drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...

. Many liquids used on manufacturing and processing plants are delivered in 100 or 200 litre barrels and are too heavy to tip to empty the liquids inside. Drum pumps range from simple

siphon A siphon (; also spelled syphon) is any of a wide variety of devices that involve the flow of liquids through tubes. In a narrower sense, the word refers particularly to a tube in an inverted "U" shape, which causes a liquid to flow upward, abo ...

based devices to sophisticated highly-engineered machinery.

Considerations

* Function - Is the purpose simply to empty the drum completely in one operation, to allow dispense-on-demand operations, or to provide a metered flow to a subsequent operations? Flow rate, pressure, control systems, etc. need to be specified. * Liquid being pumped - Product viscosity determines the type of pump mechanism. Heavy viscous liquids usually require

positive displacement pump A pump is a device that moves fluids (liquids or gases), or sometimes slurries, by mechanical action, typically converted from electrical energy into hydraulic or pneumatic energy. Mechanical pumps serve in a wide range of applications such ...

ing head. * Special product characteristics - Acids, corrosives, or reactive liquids need special materials in the drum pumps. Food and pharmaceutical liquids also need special materials as well as a means of regular cleaning and sanitizing. Flammable liquids require special handling.

Manual

Low cost manual pumps are used when product dispensing is periodically needed. Crank and lever driven pumps are available. Double-action piston drum pumps can be self priming, delivering liquid on both the forward and the back stroke.

Powered

Unlike a submersible pump with the motor submerged, a drum pump has a drive motor above the container. Electric and pneumatic motors are available. The motor is attached to the vertical shaft at the top of the tube outside the drum and the pumping element is located at the end of the shaft inside the drum. This configuration allows the drum to be emptied without tipping and so reduces the risk of spills and operator injury.

Hot melt drum pump

Some materials are solid at ambient temperatures and must be melted to allow pumping. This might include open-head drums of

hot-melt adhesive Hot-melt adhesive (HMA), also known as hot glue, is a form of thermoplastic adhesive that is commonly sold as solid cylindrical sticks of various diameters designed to be applied using a hot glue gun. The gun uses a continuous-duty heating el ...

, heavy grease, etc. Several systems have been developed which use a heated platen placed on the material; the melted material is then pumped through a

heated hose Heated hoses are hoses used for transporting liquids or molten materials where integral heat is needed for temperature control. Heated hoses are suitable for environments from -40°C to 80°C and can be used in explosion proof, explosion-proof zo ...

to its destination.

References

* Hicks, Tyler G. and Theodore W. Edwards. ''Pump Application Engineering''. McGraw-Hill Book Company.1971. *

External links