Flow Reversing Pump Apparatus

An apparatus able to impart work to a fluid and redirect said fluid, said apparatus comprising:

• an impeller with an impeller inlet through which said fluid flows as an impeller inflow in a first direction in a meridional plane defined by said apparatus;
• blades of said impeller that are established downflow of said impeller inlet, that define an impeller axis of rotation, and that are configured to contact and redirect said impeller inflow along a toroidal flowpath to generate an undiffused impeller discharge that has both axial velocity components and tangential velocity components,
• wherein said axial velocity components are in a substantially reverse direction that is substantially 180 degrees opposite said first direction,
• said apparatus further comprising a diffuser with curved diffuser vanes that redirect said fluid so as to reduce said tangential velocity components, said diffuser established around and defining a diffuser axis that is aligned with said impeller axis of rotation, said diffuser having a diffuser inlet through which said undiffused impeller discharge flows and a diffuser outlet through which a fully diffused outflow flows,
• wherein said diffuser inlet has an inner-most annular portion thereof that is the annular portion of said diffuser inlet that is radially closest to said diffuser axis, wherein, when viewed in said meridional plane, said inner-most annular portion of said diffuser inlet is a first radial distance from said diffuser axis,
• wherein said diffuser outlet has an outer-most annular portion thereof that is the annular portion of said diffuser outlet that is radially furthest from said diffuser axis, wherein, when viewed in said meridional plane, said outer-most portion of said diffuser outlet is a second distance from said diffuser axis, and
• wherein said second distance is greater than said first distance.