Question

A pump is used to transport water to a higher reservoir. If the water temperature is 20°C, determine the lowest pressure that can exist in the pump without cavitation.

Answer 1

Answer:

Normally, the water pressure inside a pump is higher than the vapour pressure: in this case, at the interface between the liquid and the vapour, molecules from the liquid escapes into vapour form. Instead, when the pressure of the water becomes lower than the vapour pressure, molecules of vapour can go inside the water forming bubbles: this phenomenon is called cavitation.

So, cavitation occurs when the pressure of the water becomes lower than the vapour pressure. In our problem, vapour pressure at 20^{\circ}20° is 1.706 kPa. Therefore, the lowest pressure that can exist in the pump without cavitation, at this temperature, is exactly this value: 1.706 kPa.