Nickel Pump Propeller

A major chemical company approached Highland Foundry Ltd with a request to custom manufacture a first effect propeller in a highly corrosive caustic line.

They had been extensively repairing these propellers for many years with their maintenance crews in an effort to both improve the efficiency and provide the necessary repair. The blade profile of the existing propeller had been modified to such an extent that the original profile was lost.

Meetings were set up at Highland to review all parameters of this project. All the quality issues were addressed in scope and acceptance criteria, and the dimensional profile was defined. Highland Foundry Ltd then prepared an engineering drawing to capture all the details. This included digitizing dimensional data and changing the shape of the blades. The chemical company reviewed and approved the proposal.

Award of contract included the construction of a new pattern, manufacture ofthe 1800 lb. casting in nickel (ASTM A494 Grade CZ100), radiography of the casting, then the pitching and polishing of the blades, balancing and finish machining.