Impeller pump for industry and food processing

An impeler pump gently and pulsates with little energy to transport aqueous to viscous media. It draws in up to approximately 3 m of head and operates in both directions of flow. Linn pumps supplies impeler pumps in Industrial version with a casing made of brass or AISI 304 stainless steel and in Hygienic design made of stainless steel, with flow rates of up to 333 l/min. They are used in mechanical engineering, the chemical industry and food technology.

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Overview of Models

Industrial impeller pump with integrated drive

Industrial version as an aggregate

Delivery rate: up to 333 l/min
Delivery head: up to 30 m
Impeller material: Neoprene / Nitrile (NBR) / Hypalon (CSM) / EPDM

Types of pumps

Food impeller pump with integrated drive

Hygiene version as an aggregate

Delivery rate: up to 333 l/min
Delivery head: up to 30 m
Impeller material: Sanitary with FDA certificate, white or black

Types of pumps

Free shaft end

Delivery rate at 1500 rpm: up to 333 l/min
Delivery head: up to 30 m
Impeller material: Sanitary with FDA certificate, white or black

Types of pumps

What is an impeller pump? Functioning principle and advantages

An impeler pump is a displacement pump with a flexible rubber impeller called the impeler. When rotated, the wings of the impeller are deformed by an eccentric inner contour of the housing and return to their original position, creating chambers that are filled and emptied. On the suction side, the space between the wings becomes larger and the medium is sucked in. On the pressure side, it becomes smaller and pushes the medium out. The pump is therefore inherently self-priming, promotes virtually pulsation-free flow, and treats the medium particularly gently. Because the delivery medium lubricates and cools the impeller, the pump should only run briefly dry.

Compared to rotary or Gear pumps Impeller pumps combine several features in one pump. They self-priming, circulate in both directions, are gentle on sensitive products and tolerate small amounts of gas. This makes them well suited for transfer operations, viscous media and for hygienic processes in the food, beverage and cosmetics industries.

Working principle of an impeller pump with a flexible impeller in the housing

When is an impeller pump the right choice?

Impeller pumps are the right choice if at least one of the following requirements is a priority:

Self-priming operation with suction head or tank drainage
Gentle handling of delicate products (e.g., small pieces, fruit pulp, emulsions, pastes)
Reversible operation, e.g., for draining residual fluid from lines
Hygiene-clean and trauma-free design with CIP capability
Viscous fluids where centrifugal pumps reach their limits
Media that can be easily cleaned between batches

Where impellers encounter their limits

Impeller pumps are less suitable for highly abrasive media, very high pressures, or continuous high-pressure circuits. In these cases, gear pumps or multi-stage rotary pumps Most often, a high-solid content media is only to a limited extent suitable for an impeller pump. The pressure reaches approximately 3 bar, and with increasing viscosity the flow rate decreases. The impeller itself is a wear part; its service life depends on the material, medium, temperature, and idle times.

Fluids for impeller pumps

Industrial applications

Water and aqueous solutions
Cleaning and rinsing agents
Cooling lubricants and emulsions
Oils, lubricating oils, light heating oils
Solvents (with compatible impeller materials)
We assess the compatibility of many chemical products on a project-specific basis.

Food and hygiene applications

Milk, cream, yogurt
Juices, syrups, and beverages with or without pulp
Pastes, sauces, flavorings
Cosmetics and personal care products
Pharmaceutical intermediates subject to hygiene requirements

For food, beverages and cosmetics, the hygiene version is used. The housing is made of stainless steel, the impeller is a sanitary impeller with FDA certification, in white or black. The pump is built with minimal dead space and can be completely disassembled without tools. Typical applications are described on the page Food pumps for hygienic processes.

Materials and Impeller Selection

Pump performance, media compatibility, and service life depend significantly on the impeller material. Linn pumps supply impellers in seven designs, each tailored to the medium, temperature, and hygiene requirements. The sanitary impellers for food products have an FDA certificate and are available in white or black. The following temperature specifications are guidelines and are tested project-specifically.

Code	Material	Deployment	Max. temperature
N	Neoprene	General use	70 °C
OIL	Nitrile	Oil and oil products	80 °C
HY	Hypalon	Chemical products	110 °C
EPDM	EPDM	Corrosive products	80 °C
S	Sanitary	Food	100 °C
ST	Sanitary	Food, higher temperatures	130 °C
BL	Sanitary, white	Food	100 °C

In the industrial version, the housings are available in brass or stainless steel sizes up to F-5; the J series is only available in stainless steel. The stainless steel is AISI 304. For hygienic applications, we use smooth, non-corrosive stainless steel housings with sanitary impellers with FDA certification. To determine which impeller material is suitable for your specific medium, we assess it during design based on the medium, temperature, and chemical resistance.

Feed quantity, pressure and drive

The industrial version is available in six types. A-5 delivers up to 11.6 l/min, B-5 up to 20 l/min, E-5 up to 38 l/min and F-5 up to 75 l/min, each with a brass or AISI 304 stainless steel housing. J-10 and J-20 are available only with stainless steel housings; they can deliver up to 166 and up to 333 l/min. In the hygiene version, R-5, R-10 and R-20 with up to 75, 166 and 333 l/min are available. The maximum discharge height varies depending on the type between 20 m (J-20, R-20, R-20 SJ) and 30 m (A-5 to F-5, R-5, G SJ).

The units run with an IEC-standard motor, optionally as a 230-V single-phase motor or as a 230/400-V three-phase motor. The flow rate is adjusted via the speed, for example with a frequency converter. If a drive is already present in your system, connect a hygienic pump with free end of wave on a motor or transmission. The types G SJ, R-10 SJ and R-20 SJ deliver 1,500 rpm to 75, 166 and 333 l/min.

Maintenance and impeller replacement

Wear parts are primarily the impeller and the sliding ring seal. How often you need to replace the impeller depends on the medium, temperature, speed, and dry running times. The hygienic version can be disassembled without tools and inspected completely during installation. This reduces cleaning and replacement time. To ensure the impeller lasts a long time, we select the material to match the medium and design the suction line so that the pump draws in quickly.

Frequently asked questions about impeller pumps

What types of impeller pumps does Linn-Pumpen offer?

Our impeller pumps are available in several designs for industrial and hygienic applications:

Units with IEC standard motor
Compact units with a directly attached motor, intended for mechanical engineering, plant construction and mobile applications.
Impeller pumps with free shaft end
For attachment to existing drives or gearboxes, e.g., in systems with their own motor or gearbox concept.
Connection variants
Depending on the type, threaded and flanged connections are available for industrial applications or hygienic connections (e.g., clamp, milk thread) for food and cosmetics processes.
Designs
- Industrial impeller pumps for cleaning agents, coolants/lubricants, oils, solvents, and many chemical products.
- Hygiene designs in stainless steel for food, beverage, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical applications.

What flow rates and pressures do your impeller pumps cover?

Flow rates
Depending on the type, the flow rate of the impeller pumps from Linn pumps ranges from up to 11.6 l/min for the A-5 to approximately 333 l/min for the J-20 and R-20.

Pressures / Delivery head
The impeller pumps are designed for low to medium pressures designed:

Delivery head typically up to approx. 30 m, accordingly until Approx. 3 bar differential pressure (depending on media and speed).
In addition, other pump types are generally used for higher pressures.
(e.g., centrifugal or gear pumps) are used.

The volume flow, differential pressure, medium, temperature, and pipe lengths are among the factors that are crucial for a clean design.

What viscosities and temperatures can impeller pumps handle?

Viscosity
Impeller pumps convey Aqueous to highly viscous mediaAs viscosity increases, the flow rate decreases, power requirements increase, and the achievable differential pressure decreases.

Temperature ranges
The permissible media temperature depends primarily on the impeller material and the sealing materials.
Typical ranges in the program of Linn pumps (guidelines):

Neoprene: approx. 5 to 70 °C
Nitrile (NBR): approx. 5 to 80 °C
EPDM: approx. 5 to 80 °C
Hypalon (CSM): approx. 5 to 110 °C
Sanitary (S): up to approx. 100 °C
Sanitary white (BL): up to approx. 100 °C
Sanitary for higher temperatures (ST): up to approx. 130 °C

Are impeller pumps self-priming and suitable for filling/emptying?

Self-priming
Impeller pumps are designed self-priming and achieve suction heights of up to approx. 3 mThis feature is particularly useful when emptying drums, IBCs, or tanks if the pump cannot be installed in a flooded position.

Dry running during start-up
Short dry running phases during suction cannot be completely avoided due to the design.
However, as with other flexible impeller pumps, prolonged dry running should be avoided as it can lead to overheating and wear of the impeller and mechanical seal.

Reversible operation
Many impeller pumps can be driven by change in direction of rotation can be operated in both conveying directions.
This makes impeller pumps particularly suitable for:

Filling and emptying drums, IBCs, and storage tanks
Switchable product and returns in process lines
Circulation mode with alternating flow direction (e.g., flushing/backwashing).

Which materials are available for impeller pumps?

Industrial version

Housing: up to construction size F-5 brass or AISI 304 stainless steel, series J only AISI 304 stainless steel.
Impeller: Elastomers such as neoprene, nitrile (NBR), Hypalon (CSM), or EPDM.
Selected according to medium, temperature, and chemical resistance.

Hygienic design

Housing: Stainless steel with a hygienic, smooth surface.
Impeller: Sanitary impeller with FDA certificate, white or black. The white impeller (BL) is suitable up to approx. 100 °C, for up to approx. 130 °C there is the ST version available.
Connections: depending on the type, e.g. clamp, milk thread or other hygienic connections.

This allows impeller pumps to be specifically tailored to the medium, cleaning requirements, and relevant standards in Food, beverage, cosmetics, and pharmaceutical applications adjust.

Have the impeller pump serviced

For the design we need the medium, the temperature, the viscosity at operating temperature, the desired flow rate, the differential pressure, the suction height and the line lengths. For food and cosmetics, please also specify the hygiene requirements and the desired connections. You do not need a type designation. With Linn pumps, please contact the dedicated technical contact persons directly. Examples of transferring from a barrel and container are shown on the page. Drum and IBC filling.

Request technical specifications

Do you still have questions or need support?

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Impeller pump for industry and food processing

Overview of Models

Industrial version as an aggregate

Hygiene version as an aggregate

Free shaft end

What is an impeller pump? Functioning principle and advantages

When is an impeller pump the right choice?

Where impellers encounter their limits

Fluids for impeller pumps

Industrial applications

Food and hygiene applications

Materials and Impeller Selection

Feed quantity, pressure and drive

Maintenance and impeller replacement

Frequently asked questions about impeller pumps

What types of impeller pumps does Linn-Pumpen offer?

What flow rates and pressures do your impeller pumps cover?

What viscosities and temperatures can impeller pumps handle?

Are impeller pumps self-priming and suitable for filling/emptying?

Which materials are available for impeller pumps?

Have the impeller pump serviced

Products

Linn-Pumpen GmbH