Abstract: By applying slot techniques to the impeller of axial-flow pump and choosing an appropriate slotted airfoil as a basis of the slotted impeller, a new type of blade is designed. Based on the commercial CFD software ANSYS CFX, numerical simulation of conventional axial-flow pump and axial-flow pump with slotted blades is carried out to analyze the hydraulic performance and flow characteristics under different conditions. The simulation results show that the slot technique can improve performance of axial-flow pumps under the condition of small flow and decrease pressure pulsation at the impeller’s inlet.  Experiments are performed on two types of axial flow pumps. The obtained hydrodynamic characteristics indicate that an axial-flow pump with slotted blades outperforms conventional axial-flow pumps under small flow conditions, indicating that the slot technique can indeed improve axial-flow pump’s performance.

Key words: hydrodynamic characteristics, numerical simulation, slot technique, axial-flow pump