Sanitary pumps meet strict international hygienic criteria

Paul Boughton

Not all industries have the same requirements for productive equipment and thus for sanitary pumps. The Grundfos standard range of stainless steel sanitary pumps designed by Hilge comprises a wide range of state-of-the-art pump types for different sanitary applications within industries such as the food and beverage industry and the pharmaceutical industry. None of these industries are alike. They have different requirements for productive equipment, eg sanitary pumps and therefore different pumping solutions are necessary.

In addition, it is possible to customize the pumps for optimum function and performance in relation to the job at hand.

Efficient pumps

Grundfos offers a wide range of highly reliable and efficient pumps for use in specialised industries where high-grade sanitary pumps not only are required but are a prerequisite for a successful production.

All the sanitary pumps, both the standard range and customised pump solutions, are designed in accordance with the strictest hygienic design criteria.

Besides the hygienic design, the Grundfos sanitary pumps designed by Hilge are available with a wide range of special shaft seals, connections, impellers, surface roughnesses etc. upon request.

In general, pumps for use in sanitary processes are subject to much higher safety standards than pumps for use in other applications.

The Grundfos range of sanitary pumps is made in accordance with the strictest hygienic design criteria both for physical properties and with regard to preventing possible breeding grounds for bacteria and germs.

The design requirements and the surface finish of the materials used for both standard products and customised products are of the utmost importance and subject to a wide variety of national and international rules and regulations.

Among these are the GMP Rules and Regulations, FDA Regulations, 3A sanitary standard, EU Foodstuff Hygienic Guidelines, DINEN12462 Biotechnology, the recommendations of the EHEDG (European Hygienic Equipment Design Group) and QHD (Qualified Hygienic Design).

What you require is what you get

Customers place heavy demand on sanitary pumps and often special requirements calls for special solutions.

Strict requirements as to hygienic design mean strict requirements to construction of any component that comes in contact with the pumped liquid. Therefore the selection of materials and their surfaces with regard to cleaning and corrosion characteristics plays a crucial role when it comes to quality and safety of the entire process.

Depending on the hygienic design standard or surface finish required for the application in question, Grundfos offers different surface roughnesses from Ra=3.2-0.4µm.

Depending on the customer's need and the application, that is whether the pump is to be used in for example the pharmaceutical industry or in the food and beverage industry, it is possible, on the basis of his requirements, to design the best suitable pump for the specific pumping task.

Even when it comes to customised pumping solutions no compromises are made as to the choice of materials.

Grundfos uses AISI316L (DINEN1.4404/1.4435) cold-rolled and/or forged stainless steel for sanitary pump construction in order to ensure a homogeneous pore-free surface of all the sanitary pumps that leave the factories.

Sanitary pumps calls for high requirements as to the seal arrangement.

Shaft seals: the choice is yours

Depending on the customer's requirements, the application and the pumped liquid the shaft passage or seal can be located either internally or externally in a single or double arrangement with a connection for flushing water.

The single shaft seals are inboard mechanical seals with an optimum position in the pumped liquid in order to ensure lubrication, cooling as well as CIP (cleaning-in-place) and SIP (sterilisation-in-place).

The double seal arrangements are either a tandem or back-to-back seal arrangement. Double seal arrangements are typically used in connection with sticking liquids, liquids containing abrasive particles and dangerous liquids in order to protect the seal and ensure that its lifespan is not reduced.

All standard seals in the Grundfos sanitary range have seal faces of carbon/stainless steel and O-rings of EPDM. However, if a customer has special requests as to shaft seal materials other material combinations are available, eg SiC/SiC for pharmaceutical and biotech applications.

Grundfos has developed a wide varity of impellers and connections. These components are designed and treated in different ways according to international standards in order to handle any pumping task in the best possible way.

All impellers in the sanitary range are electro-polished stainless steel impellers.

Impeller designs

Depending on the specific application and the pumped liquid they are available in different designs: Semi-open impeller, closed impeller and free-flow impeller designs.

Each type is capable of handling a wide range of pumping tasks eg different viscosity liquids and liquids with a variable content of solids.

For pharmaceutical applications where it is a requirement that the surface finish Ra<=0.8/0.4µm only semi open impellers are used. However channel impellers are available upon request.

Because different applications require different installation versions, most types of the Grundfos sanitary pumps are available with a variety of connection options.

These include sterile threads to DIN11864-1PN16 and sterile flanges to DIN11864-2PN16. Besides, other connection types such as SMS, RJT, DIN or ISO clamp connections, Tri-Clover and ASMEBPE2000 are available on request.

One of Grundfos' principle tasks is to be able to protect customer's consumable products from contamination and to make sure that their production is safe and live up to the strict international requirements with regard to hygienic design.

No matter whether its customers order a high-grade sanitary standard product or a customised product they can be sure that it fully comply with the strict requirements as to hygienic design listed in the 3A Sanitary Standard, the EHEDG (European Hygienic Equipment Design Group) and Qualified Hygienic Design (QHD).

Customers who require absolute certainty that the delivered Grundfos product complies with the specifications of the order as to, for example, surface roughness, shaft seal, ATEX-approved sanitary pumps, etc, can order a certificate together with the pump. This means that if the pump is to be installed in explosive atmosphere, an ATEX- EC Conformity Declaration always has to be handed out together with the pump.

Enter 26 or at www.engineerlive.com/epe

Niels Fielsoe Petersen is Project Co-ordinator, GRUNDFOS Management A/S, Bjerringbro, Denmark. www.grundfos.com

 

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