A pump for processing molten metal having an enlarged tubular body which houses a centrifugal lifting pump at its bottom end. The bottom end has a curved shape that aids in the formation and sustainability of: a) a forced vortex; b) a highly forced vortex; and c) a super forced vortex, depending on the application when it which receives the ejected molten metal from the lifting pump's impeller. The lifting pump is controlled to cause the vortex to climb up the inner wall of the body up to and out of an outlet formed in the upper end of the body. A recirculation centrifugal pump is mounted coaxially to and rotates with the lifting impeller.

A pump for processing molten metal having an enlarged tubular body which houses a centrifugal lifting pump at its bottom end. The bottom end has a curved shape that aids in the formation and sustainability of: a) a forced vortex; b) a highly forced vortex; and c) a super forced vortex, depending on the application when it which receives the ejected molten metal from the lifting pump's impeller. The lifting pump is controlled to cause the vortex to climb up the inner wall of the body up to and out of an outlet formed in the upper end of the body. A recirculation centrifugal pump is mounted coaxially to and rotates with the lifting impeller.

A pump for processing molten metal having an enlarged tubular body which houses a centrifugal lifting pump at its bottom end. The bottom end has a curved shape that aids in the formation and sustainability of: a) a forced vortex; b) a highly forced vortex; and c) a super forced vortex, depending on the application when it which receives the ejected molten metal from the lifting pump's impeller. The lifting pump is controlled to cause the vortex to climb up the inner wall of the body up to and out of an outlet formed in the upper end of the body. A recirculation centrifugal pump is mounted coaxially to and rotates with the lifting impeller.

A pump for processing molten metal having an enlarged tubular body which houses a centrifugal lifting pump at its bottom end. The bottom end has a curved shape that aids in the formation and sustainability of: a) a forced vortex; b) a highly forced vortex; and c) a super forced vortex, depending on the application when it which receives the ejected molten metal from the lifting pump's impeller. The lifting pump is controlled to cause the vortex to climb up the inner wall of the body up to and out of an outlet formed in the upper end of the body. A recirculation centrifugal pump is mounted coaxially to and rotates with the lifting impeller.

The present invention is directed to a molten metal pump comprising an elongated pumping chamber tube with a base end and an open top end. A shaft extends into the tube and rotates an impeller therein, the impeller rotates proximate the base end. The tube has a diameter at least 1.1 times the diameter of the impeller. The pumping chamber tube preferably has a length at least three times the height of the impeller. The base end includes an inlet and the top end includes a tangential outlet. Rotation of the impeller draws molten metal into the pumping chamber and creates a rotating equilibrium vortex that rises up the walls of the pumping chamber. The rotating vortex adjacent the top end exists the device cia the tangential outlet.

A pump varies output flow. For all cross-sections, which are vertical to the axis of rotation between axial outer positions for the cross-sectional areas of flow at the periphery of the impeller, the inner wall of the pump housing forms approximately circular profiles. The approximately circular profiles are mainly concentric and have a continuously increasing radius from one toward the other one of the axial outer positions. A tongue, which truncates the outlet or diffuser of the pump from an annulus of the pump housing, does not contact the circular profiles between the axial outer positions.

A pump varies output flow. For all cross-sections, which are vertical to the axis of rotation between axial outer positions for the cross-sectional areas of flow at the periphery of the impeller, the inner wall of the pump housing forms approximately circular profiles. The approximately circular profiles are mainly concentric and have a continuously increasing radius from one toward the other one of the axial outer positions. A tongue, which truncates the outlet or diffuser of the pump from an annulus of the pump housing, does not contact the circular profiles between the axial outer positions.

A pet water fountain is described comprising a bowl for holding an aqueous drinking fluid. The pet water fountain includes a housing configured to cover a portion of the bowl and have a fluid reservoir. The pet water fountain includes a rotatable cone positioned within the housing, the cone tapering outwardly from a bottom end to a top end, the bone bottom end having a fluid inlet to allow the passage of fluid from the bowl through the inlet and into the interior of the conde, the cone top end being in fluid communication with the housing fluid reservoir. The pet water fountain includes a filter ring coupled to the cone top end, the filter ring having an exterior housing and a filter media positioned within the exterior housing, and an electric motor coupled to the rotatable cone for rotatably driving the rotatable cone.