This idea is very simple but slightly silly.

Build a centrifugal pump using a cylindrical sponge as the turbine.
-- goldbb, Apr 12 2010

Maybe explain your reasoning? I'm having trouble figuring it out.
-- rcarty, Apr 12 2010


Yeah, lay it out. The sponge would spin, I guess, because it is a turbine. Water in the sponge would fly out to the periphery. It would get dry. But would that generate low pressure in the center to suck more in?
-- bungston, Apr 12 2010


Thanks, [bungston] that tells me more than the idea did.
-- baconbrain, Apr 12 2010


Is that like inflammable?
-- rcarty, Apr 13 2010


I will give bun, for the first rotating sponge idea I have read on the HB.
-- bungston, Apr 13 2010


sbunge +
-- Mustardface, Apr 13 2010


I wonder if there is a way to make a sponge with a valve action to release fluid in only one direction, so that a compression / expansion cycle would pump fluid.
-- RayfordSteele, Apr 13 2010


Bungston, I'm not expecting it to be self-priming...

As centrifugal force removes water from the periphery, it creates low pressure which sucks water from the center outward. As water is removed from the center, it will be replaced with water from whatever our water source is.

If air enters the pump, I wouldn't expect it to be able to produce enough pressure to move that air out.
-- goldbb, Apr 13 2010


If there is no air, just a spinning thing with an intake pipe in the middle, it seems like it would work as well or better without the sponge.
-- bungston, Apr 14 2010


Goldbb, could you please explain?

(a) What did you mean. please reply to the many hypothesis given here. (b) Why the sponge if rotating empty would work just as well. Or maybe you didn't mean a centrifugal pump? (Please see Pump on wikipedia).
-- pashute, Aug 24 2011


We've had these for years in England.
-- MaxwellBuchanan, Aug 24 2011


we have?
-- not_morrison_rm, Aug 27 2011


So what's the difference between this and a couple of rotating pipes that inhibit water flow?
-- Voice, Aug 27 2011


The sponge would make the water spin in the container, so its speed could gradually increase as it heads towards the outside. Water at all radiuses would be spinning and contribute centrifugal force to the pressure. With a smooth outer pipe spinning the water, it may not spin much until it gets closer to the outside.

[RayfordSteele] it is kind of cheating but you could use non-spongy valves embedded in a flat plastic sheet, and cover both sides in sponge.
-- caspian, Aug 28 2011



random, halfbakery