Cutter pumps are a type of positive displacement pump that functions in a similar way to chopper and grinder pumps. Commonly employed at municipal and industrial wastewater treatment plants, they deal with raw sewage and act as the first line of defense for the rest of the system downstream. A cutter pump’s main job is solids handling - cutting solids into manageable sizes.
Cutter pumps specialize in keeping the system from clogging. It uses strong, sharp blades which spin at an extremely high rate, effectively cutting what enters the pump suction. These pumps are good at preventing most clogs, and handle rags well, but struggle with really long rags and stringy materials.
The image above shows a cutter pump manufactured by Cornell.
After the solids are cut up, it flows through the impeller at a fixed rate and exits through the discharge port where it is transported to another part of the treatment process.
Cutter pumps are more efficient than chopper and grinder pumps, but this higher efficiency level comes at a cost as they don’t handle the large and heavy materials as well as chopper pumps do.
Cutter pumps offer more versatility because of their design. A cutter pump’s blade is an individual component that is powered by the rotating impeller, whereas in chopper and grinder pumps, the slicing component is fixed and/or built into the pump. This allows for retrofitting where upgrades and changes are needed in pre-existing systems.
Another advantage of cutter pumps is the large range of flow rate. The cutter pumps can function anywhere from below 1HP to over a couple hundred HP depending on an operation’s requirements. This extra versatility and efficiency make cutter pumps adequate for most treatment systems where clogging prevention and solids handling is needed.
Comments