GEA Develops a Large Rotary Lobe Pump For Sensitive Products
GEA is expanding its NOVALOBE pump range with the large-volume GEA Hilge NOVALOBE 60. The robust rotary lobe pump is specifically designed for pumping and dosing highly viscous media, also with large particles. This new development meets the hygiene standards of the EHEDG guidelines for applications in the pharmaceutical, chemical and food industries.
GEA Product Manager Ulla Främke says: “Producers’ equipment tends to get bigger, so the performance of components need to be increased. That’s why we’ve almost doubled the chamber volume to 2.1 liters per revolution for the new NOVALOBE.” The new pump can pump particles measuring up to 41 millimeters, as is necessary with fruit yogurt or fish and meat salads.
The GEA Hilge NOVALOBE is part of the GEA VARIPUMP line – which stands for versatility and flexibility. All pumps of this line can be easily converted. Ulla Främke adds: “Our customers want pumps that can be used extremely flexibly for various media and pumping requirements, and that are robust and optimized in terms of operating costs.”
That is why the pump experts at the GEA center of excellence in Bodenheim have chosen a compact and robust design. Through the pump’s robust construction, the shaft overhang and clearance in the pump have been minimized. The pump’s compact design and the rigid shaft geometry reduce the risk of galling to an absolute minimum.
A year of successfully field-testing the NOVALOBE 60 in a sugar factory confirms its strengths in daily operation: Production managers at the factory found it easy to operate the rotary lobe pump and wearing parts could be replaced without any retrofitting. The internal mechanical seals can be replaced from the front without removing the pump. These seals are lubricated and cooled optimally, thereby significantly extending the product life time. GEA ensures hygienic cleanability and sterilization with its choice of seals, extremely high surface quality (up to Ra ≤ 0.4 µm) and complete drainability in vertical position.
Patented rotor mounting design
When the pump is running, the extremely quiet operation is clearly noticeable. GEA achieves this with its patented rotor mounting design. Precision-ground cylinders for the location and accurate connection of rotors and shafts minimize clearance and reduce vibrations as well as noise. Various rotor profiles are available for the NOVALOBE depending on the application: The single-bladed “uni-wing” is suitable for very doughy media containing large particles. The twin-bladed “bi-wing” rotor is the robust standard variant for most applications. A rounded, four-lobe rotor “multilobe” helps to convey shear-sensitive products at low pulsation.
“We will now introduce the available options to the market one at a time,” says Främke. “The GEA Hilge NOVALOBE 60 is part of the VARIPUMP line because it can be used in a number of specialized applications and can be tailor-made for our customers: for example, we offer a heated pump casing for products that would solidify at ambient temperature, or pumps with integrated pressure relief valve.”
