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How does a centrifugal pump raise a fluid's pressure?

An impeller adds kinetic energy, then a diffuser converts it to pressure.

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  1. It accelerates fluid with an impeller ✔
  2. It traps a fixed volume
  3. It cools fluid until it contracts

Why: A spinning impeller accelerates the fluid. As the fluid slows in the diffuser, part of its kinetic energy becomes pressure energy.

Huh, didn't know that: A centrifugal pump's flow rate changes with system head even when shaft speed stays constant.

The dad joke
The impeller got ahead by going in circles.
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References

Answer: It accelerates fluid with an impeller. A spinning impeller accelerates the fluid. As the fluid slows in the diffuser, part of its kinetic energy becomes pressure energy.

  1. US Department of Energy, Improving Pumping System Performance www1.eere.energy.gov/manufacturing/tech_assistance/pdfs/pump.pdf
    Centrifugal pumps work by adding kinetic energy to a fluid using a spinning impeller.
    Checked 2026-10-10.

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