⎪ Water, wastewater and pumping solutions ⎪
“The benefit is that we can install WARMAN DWU pumps in one pump station on one level, minimising installation, management and maintenance requirements. “We can also place pumps on different lev- els, each pumping directly into the next pump 140 m above, for example,” Koorts explains. “Either way, he adds, using a WARMAN DWU pump means that fewer pumps are needed to achieve the necessary dewatering, and they will last longer.” Engineered to order “While a client might ask us for a solution for moving water from where it shouldn't be to a disposal or reuse location, we at Weir are strong in engineered-to-order solutions, because every mine site is different and every installation has to be customised to suit the need. It's also essential to understand, with the client, not only what the problem is now, but where dewatering will be required in five years. Are the pits going to be deeper? How do we locate the pumping units so that they can be fit for the life of the mine?” “So many clients have pumping solutions for different stages. And we know that in a year or two, this will change. We prefer to plan the best way forward from the start to minimise the number of changes required as mining progresses,” Koorts tells MCA . While land-based, electric motor- driven WARMAN ® DWU pumps are most common in underground mines, these pumps can also be interfaced with diesel
engines or mounted on pontoon barges. “We can interface to almost anything, underground or above ground. As well as pontoon barges, we can manufacture skid-mounted, trailer-mounted, or any other preferred format,” he says. Maintenance features As with WARMAN ® slurry pumps, a core design principle of the WARMAN ® DWU pump is ease of maintenance. “We have applied our learning from slurry pumps to the WARMAN ® DWU pump as well, so whenever maintenance is required, which is not often, it has been made eas- ier: the motor can easily be decoupled, the bearings are easier to remove, and we can offer service exchanges, where we can remove a pump and replace it with a standby unit or one we have re- paired earlier,” Koorts tells MCA . “For anyone still using a clear-water pump for removing dirty water, the WARMAN DWU pump is a fantastic solution. It is sure to deliver a substan- tially better total cost of ownership than a clear-water pump solution, and these pumps remain efficient for lon- ger, are far easier to maintain, offer a much longer life and use far fewer consumables. “In comparison, using a clear-water pump for dewatering dirty water is a bad idea,” he concludes. https://www.global.weir
continuously drain water from access and production areas. “Some of our deep mines are 3 000 m deep, so high-head or multistage pumps are needed to get that water out. Traditionally, high-head clear-water pumps have been used to remove this water, but suspended solids and raised SGs cause these pumps to wear out very quickly. This leads to high re- furbishment or replacement costs. So Weir has designed a hybrid, the WARMAN DWU pump, that delivers the efficiency and high head benefits of a clear-water pump, but with the additional wear benefits of our slurry pumps,” says Koorts. At the start of the WARMAN ® DWU pump design, Weir’s range of high-chrome, corrosion- and wear-resistant alloys, most notably AO5 and A11, is used. Well proven in the WARMAN ® range of slurry pumps, these materials are also ideal for extending the life of WARMAN ® DWU pumps. From a reliability and extended-life perspective, WARMAN ® DWU pumps also feature a robust ‘bulked- out’ bearing assembly design that delivers the harsh-environment benefits embedded in WARMAN ® slurry pumps: substantial radial and axial force handling, abrasive slurry han- dling, and reduced maintenance downtime for bearing replacements. “This gives the WARMAN DWU pump the longer wear life, but these pumps also offer efficiency performance that is far closer to that of clear-water pumps. This is a fantas- tic product for a wide range of dewatering applications, most notably underground,” Koorts adds. In addition, the WARMAN DWU pump competes with traditional clearwater pumps in high-head pumping applications. It can accommodate heads of around 140 m in a single stage while achieving flow rates of 100-1 000 m 3 /h, depending on the pump size chosen. The DWU pump features a high-pres - sure casing capable of withstanding up to 7 000 kPa (1,000 psi). This enables pumps to be connected in series in a multistage arrange- ment, allowing a much higher total discharge lift to be achieved, potentially up to 480 m of head from a multistage configuration.
WARMAN ® DWU pump features • A new compact design using common parts, 90% of which are interchangeable with the mechanical end of WARMAN ® WBH ® slurry pumps. • A one-piece frame aids the correct alignment of bearings, seals and impeller. • Rigid bearing frames minimise vibrations and distortions from external piping loads. • Large capacity bearings are capable of withstanding high loads, ensuring improved bearing life. • Optional oil or grease lubrication at lower speeds. • External cooling fans to dissipate heat, thus keeping the bearings cool. • Impeller release collar to ease impeller removal (larger models). • Lifting lugs on all major components. • Improved assembly and disassembly procedures. • Pump shaft sealing options include packaging, mechanical and expeller seals.
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