🔍 Key Concepts

• Wear rings in centrifugal pumps: purpose and location • Difference between radial alignment, shaft thrust, and leakage control • Why some pump parts are made sacrificial/replaceable instead of replacing the whole casing or impeller

💭 Think About

• Think about where wear rings are physically installed on a centrifugal pump and what surfaces they protect from rubbing against each other. • Which part of the pump would be most expensive and difficult to replace if its internal surfaces wore out due to contact with the impeller? • Ask yourself: does a small ring part really control alignment and thrust, or is it there to take wear instead of a larger component?

✅ Before You Answer

• Verify what surfaces actually contact each other when the impeller and casing clearances get small or eroded; which components are protected by wear rings. • Check which component of a centrifugal pump is normally designed as the replaceable wear surface during overhauls. • Confirm whether thrust bearings or wear rings are primarily responsible for handling shaft end thrust.