Twin-shaft pumps with thermal breaks

A twin-shaft pump comprising:

• a pumping chamber;
• two rotatable shafts each mounted on bearings;
• each of the two rotatable shafts comprising at least one rotor element, the rotor elements being within the pumping chamber and the two rotatable shafts extending beyond the pumping chamber to a support member;
• the support member comprising mounting means for mounting the bearings at a predetermined distance from each other, the predetermined distance defining a distance between the two rotatable shafts;
• and
• at least one thermal path along structural elements connecting the pumping chamber and the mounting means;
• a first thermal break and a second thermal break in at least one of the at least one thermal path for impeding thermal conductivity between the pumping chamber and the mounting means, such that the pumping chamber and mounting means can be maintained at different temperatures;
• wherein the first thermal break and the second thermal break comprises a portion of the thermal path where at least one physical property is different to a physical property of an adjoining portion of the thermal path such that thermal conductance of the thermal break portion is more than 20% lower than the thermal conductance of an equivalent thermal path length of the adjoining portion;
• wherein:
• the first thermal break comprises a hollow portion of each of the rotatable shafts between the pumping chamber and the bearing, and
• the second thermal break comprises a material of a lower thermal conductivity than a material forming the adjoining portion of the thermal path and comprises a portion of each of the rotatable shafts between the pumping chamber and the bearing being formed of a material of a lower thermal conductivity than a rest of each of the rotatable shafts.