Affinity Laws

What are the Affinity Laws?

The affinity laws are a set of forumlas that predict the impact of a change in rotational speed or impeller
diameter on the head and flow produced by a pump and power demanded by a pump.

If you know the shape of a pump performance curve at a certain speed or with a certain impeller
diameter, you can use the affinity laws to predict the performance of the same pump at a different
speed or with a different diameter impeller with a high degree of accuracy.

There are three affinity laws:

Law 1: Flow is Proportional to Shaft Speed or Impeller Diameter

This law means that as shaft speed or impeller diameter changes, flow changes by the same
proportional amount. In other words, if shaft speed increases by 10% then flow at the same head will
also increase by 10%. This law is expressed with the following formula:

Q1/Q2 = (N1/N2) or (D1/D2)

Where Q is equal to flow, N is equal to shaft speed, and D is equal to impeller diameter.

Law 2: Pressure is Proportional to the Square of Shaft Speed or Impeller Diameter

As shaft speed or impeller diameter changes, pressure changes in proportion to the square of the
change in shaft speed or impeller diameter. In other words, if shaft speed increases by 10% then
pressure at the same flow will increase by 21% (1.102). This law is expressed with the following formula:

H1/H2 = (N1/N2)2 or (D1/D2)2

Where H is equal to head, N is equal to shaft speed, and D is equal to impeller diameter.

Law 3: Power is Proportional to the Cube of Shaft Speed or Impeller Diameter

As shaft speed or impeller diameter changes, horsepower changes in proportion to the cube of the
change in shaft speed or impeller diameter. In other words, if shaft speed increases by 10% then
pressure at the same flow will increase by 33.1% (1.103). This law is expressed with the following
formula:

P1/P2 = (N1/N2)3 or (D1/D2)3

Where P is equal to power, N is equal to shaft speed, and D is equal to impeller diameter.

Use of the Affinity Laws

Application of the affinity laws to predict the impact of changes in speed can produce highly accurate
results. However, as the diameter of an impeller changes the efficiency of the impeller also changes.
Therefore, application of the affinity laws to calculate the impact on pump performance of a change in
impeller diameter are helpful but not always highly accurate.

The affinity laws (Also known as the "Fan Laws" or "Pump Laws") for pumps/fans are used in hydraulics,
hydronics and/or HVAC to express the relationship between variables involved in pump or fan
performance (such as head, volumetric flow rate, shaft speed) and power. They apply to pumps, fans,
and hydraulic turbines. In these rotary implements, the affinity laws apply both to centrifugal and axial
flows.

The laws are derived using the Buckingham π theorem. The affinity laws are useful as they allow
prediction of the head discharge characteristic of a pump or fan from a known characteristic measured
at a different speed or impeller diameter. The only requirement is that the two pumps or fans are
dynamically similar, that is the ratios of the fluid forced are the same. It is also required that the two
impellers' speed or diameter are running at the same efficiency.