I have been reading recently about a phenomenon called acceleration head. It seems to apply only to reciprocating pumps. My question (s):
If you had a glycerin-filled pressure gauge at the reciprocating pump inlet and another gauge at the booster pump discharge could you see the pressure difference? I would assume the difference would be larger than the difference due to friction losses. Would the glycerin act as a filter and mask the true magnitude? I'm wondering if this might account for cavitation in the reciprocating pumps even though we think we should have good quality fluid at the inlets.

I have heard cryogenic pump manufacturers talk about the need to mount pumps close to the supply vessels. Now I think I see why.

One reason to mount pumps to the supply is NPSH(a). The closer you are, the less pressure lost in the inlet line. This is usually a good thing as you can never have too much NPSH(a).

A glycerine filled pressure gauge is specified usually to keep the needle from bouncing back and forth, making it a bit easier to read.

It is a bit of a filter, I guess, in that regard. But, if the pressure is X, the gauge will read X. It just slows down the needle movement a bit.

I am a bit confused with regards to friction loss, pressure difference and acceleration head as it pertains to the pressure gauges though. "Do not worry about your problems with mathematics, I assure you mine are far greater." 

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