One Pump, Many Benefits

Though there are many types of pumps—including positive displacement, centrifugal, lobe, gear, screw, hose and piston/plunger—there is one option that combines versatility with reliability.

A hybrid displacement pump, known as an air-operated double-diaphragm (AODD) pump, requires little maintenance and can handle a vast variety of fluids in the harshest of environments.

AODD Pump Features & Advantages

AODD pumps defy classification. In terms of pressure versus capacity characteristics, as well as portability, they resemble a centrifugal pump. The similarities end there.

AODD pumps are powered by air (some models are also offered with natural gas capability), which keeps the pump diaphragm balanced while pumping. This extends diaphragm life over that of mechanically operated diaphragm pumps, which means low maintenance and less downtime.

In addition to requiring little maintenance, air diaphragm pumps offer many other benefits. They:

• Require no electricity and can be fully grounded to ensure safe operation of the pump.

• Pump solid-laden fluids without damaging the pump or the product.

• Are self-priming and can dry-run.

• Can be run in continuous or intermittent cycles without damaging the pump or the system.

• Have a low initial purchase price and require no additional setup controls, making them a great value compared to other pumping technologies.

• Deadhead safely with no pump or product damage and seamless restarting.

• Are shear sensitive and don't shear or separate product.

• Are submersible (some models); they can be submerged completely without safety or performance issues.

• Have a seal-less design and require no expensive mechanical seals or packing.

• Offer variable flow and head pressures and perform without sophisticated controls.

• Have a variety of porting options, including bottom discharge to address a wide range of fluid characteristics

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The basic workings of an air diaphragm pump.

AODD Pump Applications

The versatility of AODD pumps allows them to be used in a multitude of markets, including:

Aerospace Automotive Building products Ceramics Chemical Coatings and paint Construction Food and beverage Marine Mining Packaging Pharmaceutical and personal care Pulp and paper Oil and gas Wastewater

Comparing AODD Pumps Against Other Industrial Pump Types

A pump that fails to meet your application or environmental requirements can have a devastating effect on your business. You can experience leaks, loss of flow, unplanned downtime, lost revenue, safety risks for your employees and even environmental issues if fluid escapes your facility.

Because pumps are vital to keeping your systems running properly, it's crucial that you select the type that best meets your needs.

The chart below helps break down common application requirements and pump types:

Whether you need an air diaphragm pump for pumping electroless nickel in your plating shop, or you need to package lubricants from your processing tank, or you simply just need it to power-wash some concrete, one of the most important factors when buying air diaphragm pumps (or anything for that matter) is price. In the current market, there is no “secret” that makes any pump brand better than another - for the most part, they all pump within the same standard range of specs. But the sales strategy employed by manufacturers is almost always the same: there is the manufacturer and then there’s the distributor. Interestingly enough, it is this exact cookie-cutter strategy that is so commonly used in the business that gives reason to such high-pricing for air diaphragm pumps.

Let’s take a well-known pump brand to use as an example: Graco. Graco itself is primarily focused on the manufacturing side of the air diaphragm pump market. They produce their own line of pumps that are branded with the Graco logo and they then sell these pumps wholesale to different distributors. These distributors in turn sell them to direct consumers or often to retailers, who then hand them off to end-users.

The thing is, for every name that is involved in the selling process, from the time it is manufactured until it reaches the end-user, adds to the final cost of the pump itself, and the farther down this slippery slope you go, the greater your pockets tend to suffer. In addition to this, in many cases the manufacturing facilities happen to be oversees, where they get charged with tariffs before they’re even touched by a distributor.

So, now that the problem has been identified, the solution seems quite simple (and it is): cut out the middle man. Very few companies manufacture, stock, AND distribute their own pumps. It just tends to be too much work for a lot of places. But Plating International is an exception. We manufacture our own line of air diaphragm pumps in our own production facility and then we store those pumps in our warehouse facility (located in Franklin Park, IL) for direct shipment. When you buy from Plating International, you don’t have to worry about paying ridiculously high prices for air diaphragm pumps because we’ve managed to completely cut out the middle-man! We guarantee our prices are cheaper than any other name-brand pump on the market: Wilden, Graco, ARO, Sandpiper, Tuthill… you name it! Check out our air diaphragm pump page for more info or contact us today for a quote!