Introduction

 Conveyors are one of the transport equipment

in material handling

 Transport equipment
Conveyors
Cranes
Industrial Trucks
Conveyors are used
 Where material is to be moved frequently
between specific points

 To move materials over a fixed path

 When there is a sufficient flow volume to

justify the fixed conveyer investment
Classification of conveyors
 Type of product being handled unit
bulk

 Location of the conveyor overhead

on-floor
in-floor
Whether or not loads can accumulate on the
conveyor
 (Pls follow this web link:
http://www.mhi.org/learning/cicmhe/resources/tax
onomy/TransEq/Conv/index.htm
Type of Conveyors
1. Chute Conveyors

2. Wheel Conveyors

3. Roller Conveyors
a) Gravity roller conveyor
b) Live (powered) conveyor

4. Chain Conveyors

5.Slat Conveyors

6.Belt Conveyors
a) Flat belt conveyor
b) Magnetic belt conveyor
c) Trough belt conveyor
7.Bucket Conveyors

8. Vibrating Conveyors

9. Screw Conveyors

10. Pneumatic Conveyors

a) Dilute-phase pneumatic conveyors
b) Carrier-system pneumatic conveyors

11. Vertical Conveyors

a) Vertical lift conveyors
b) Reciprocating vertical conveyor
12. Cart-on-track conveyors

13. Tow conveyor

14.Trolley conveyor

15.Power-and-free conveyor

18.Monorail

19.Station conveyor
a) Diverter d) Tilting device
b) Pop-up device e) Cross-belt transfer device
c) Sliding shoe device
Belt Conveyors
Characteristics
 Very Efficient
 Damage to the products is very low
 High Carrying capacity
 Long distance conveying
 Long service life
Elements of a belt conveyor

Feeder

Belt
Idler Pulley
Pulley

Discharge

Drive
1) Belt -consists of one or more layers of
material. Many belts -two layers. An under
layer (carcass) for linear strength and shape
an over layer (cover). The carcass is often a
woven fabric -polyester, nylon and cotton.
The cover is often various rubber or plastic
compounds specified by use of the belt.
2) Drive
- Drive the mechanism
-Located at the end of the discharge to
prevent the sag
3. Pulley
- Large enough to provide enough contact
surface with the belt to ensure a positive
drive
4. The Take Up
- Automatic or manual adjustment for
contraction or expansion of the belt due to
moisture and temperature.
5. Idler Pulleys
- Material – Plain wood or light steel
- Multiples to increase carrying capacity

6. Feeder
- Free flow – Single funnel with a gate valve
- Not a free flow - Screw feeder, vibrating
feeder , Star feeder
7) Discharge
- Placed at the end of the belt
- Types
a) Tripper
b) Angle Scrapper
Types of belt conveyors
 Flat belt conveyor
 Transport Medium and light weight loads
 Inclined or decline when it is required
 Provide considerable control over the
orientation and placement of the load
 No smooth accumulation, merging and
sorting on the belt
 The belt is roller or slider bed supported
 Magnetic belt conveyor
 For transporting ferrous materials
 Trough belt conveyor
Designing
 Belt Capacity Determination

BLTCAP = 0.8 * CSA * BLTS

BLTCAP – Conveyor belt capacity (bu/min)

SI units can be used m3, m2 & ms-1

Belt capacity vary according to the belt width and

surcharge angle

CSA – Cross sectional area (ft2)

BLTS – Belt speed (ft/min)
(1bushel = 1.2444 cubic feet)
 Horse Power Requirement Determination

1. Horse power to drive = BLTS * (A+BL)/100

empty conveyor
BLTS – Belt speed (ft/min)
L - Conveyor length in feet
A, B – Constants depend on belt width

2.Horse power to
convey material = tons of material * (0.48 +0.00302 L)/100
on level per hour
(Metric tonne = 1000kg ton = 2240 pounds or 1016kg)
1t = 1.1023 t
3. Horse power to = Lift * 1.015 * tons of
lift the material in ft material per h/1000

1hp =745.7 W
Simplified SI calculation
Power (kW) = (Capacity (t/h)* lift (m)* 3.75)/1000

**** True for <10% slope

**** If efficiency of drive mechanism is < 95% use 4
instead 3.75
SI detailed calculation
The basics of the Calculations of
Conveyor Belt Design Parameters

 Belt tension: The belt of the conveyor always

experience a tensile load due to the rotation of
the electric drive, weight of the conveyed
materials, and due to the idlers. The belt
tension at steady state can be calculated as:
 Tb = 1.37*f*L*g*[2*mi+ (2*mb + mm)*cos (δ)]
+ (H*g*mm)…….eqn.1.1
 Where,
 Tb is in Newton.
 f = Coefficient of friction
 L = Conveyor length in meters. Conveyor length
is approximately half of the total belt length.
 g = Acceleration due to gravity = 9.81 m/sec2
 mi = Load due to the idlers in kg/m.
 mb = Load due to belt in kg/m.
 mm = Load due to the conveyed materials
in kg/m.
 δ = Inclination angle of the conveyor in Degree.
 H = vertical height of the conveyor in meters.
  Load due to idlers (mi): This can be
calculated as below:
 mi = (mass of a set of idlers) / (idlers
spacing) ……………..eqn.1.2

 Power at drive pulley: The power required at

the drive pulley can be calculated from the belt
tension value as below:
 Pp = (Tb*v)/1000……………..eqn.1.3
 Where,
 Pp is in kW.
 Tb = steady state belt tension in N.
 v = belt speed in m/sec.
  Belt tension while starting the
system: Initially during the start of the
conveyor system, the tension in the belt will be
much higher than the tension in steady state.
The belt tension while starting can be
calculated as:
 Tbs =Tb*Ks………………..eqn.1.4
 Where,
 Tbs is in N.
 Tb = the steady state belt tension in N.
 Ks = the start-up factor
  Sizing of the motor:
 The minimum motor power can be calculated
as:
 Pm = Pp/Kd………………eqn.1.5
 Where,
 Pm is in kw.
 Pp = the power at drive pulley in kw
 Kd = Drive efficiency.
  Acceleration :
 The acceleration of the conveyor belt can be
calculated as:
 A= (Tbs – Tb)/ [L*(2*mi + 2*mb+mm)]………eqn.1.6
 Where,
 A is in m/sec2
 Tbs = the belt tension while starting in N.
 Tb = the belt tension in steady state in N.
 L = the length of the conveyor in meters.
 mi = Load due to the idlers in kg/m.
 mb = Load due to belt in kg/m.
 mm = Load due to the conveyed materials in kg/m.
 An Example of Conveyor Belt Calculations
 Input data:
 Conveyor capacity (Cc) = 1500 t/h = 416.67 kg/sec
 Belt speed (V) = 1.5 m/sec
 Conveyor height (H) = 20 m
 Conveyor length (L) = 250 m
 Mass of a set of idlers (m’i) = 20 kg
 Idler spacing (l’) = 1.2 m
 Load due to belt (mb) = 25 kg/m
 Inclination angle of the conveyor (δ) = 5 0
 Coefficient of friction (f) = 0.02
 Start-up factor (Ks) = 1.5
 Drive efficiency (Kd) = 0.9
 Friction factor (Cr) = 15
 Breaking strength loss factor (Cv) = 0.75

 First, we will use the eqn.1.2 for finding out

the load due to idlers:
 mi = (20/1.2) = 16.67 kg/m
 We will use the eqn.1.1 for finding out the belt
tension in steady state:
 Tb = 1.37*0.02*250*9.81*[16.67+ {2*25+
(416.67/1.5)}*cos (5)] + (20*9.81* (416.67/1.5)) =
77556.88 N.

 The belt tension while starting the system can be

calculated by using the eqn.1.4:
 Tbs = 1.5 * 77556.88 = 116335.32 N
 For calculating the power at drive pulley, we will use
the eqn.1.3:
 Pp = (77556.88*1.5)/ 1000 = 116.335 kw
 We will use the eqn.1.5 estimate the size of the motor:

 Pm = 116.35/0.9 = 129.261 kw
  We will use the eqn.1.6 to find out the
acceleration of the motor:
 A = (116335.32 - 77556.88)/
[250*{(2*16.67) + (2*25) + (416.67/1.5)}]
 = 0.429 m/sec2
Chain Conveyors
 Having a powered continuous chain
arrangement
 If the chain at bottom is called the drag
The chain at the top is called as the flight
 Operate at less than 200ft/min (Slow process)
 Noise is a problem
Trolley conveyor
 Overhead trolleys fastened by a chain

 Can have 1800 turn and steep elevations

 Commonly used in processing, assembly,

packaging, and storage operations
Scraper conveyor
A type of flight conveyor. It consists of a trough in
which a continuous driven chain with flights is
running. The flights are scraping the material
over the bottom of the casing. The material is
moving forward to the discharge point
 Used for granular

or non abrasive materials

 Power requirement is

high
 Use for many raw

products
Apron conveyor
 Flights in scraper conveyors are replaced
with the flat slats, steel plates or boards
 Have a moving platform or apron to convey
sacked materials and large units
 The apron conveyor is an economical design
for horizontal and inclined conveying up to
28°. Special features may be added to make
inclinations of up to 60° possible. An
extremely low-cost unit preferred for
applications of up to 45° inclination.
Chain conveyor design
 Generally flight speed – 75 -125ft/min
 Capacity decreases with inclination
 Horse power requirement

Horse power = 2* V *Lc* Wc* Fc + Q(L *Fm +H)

33000
V – Speed of the conveyor
Lc - Horizontal projection length of conveyor (ft)
Lc = cos ( c) * TCL
[ =cos(angle of elevation conveyor) * Total conveyor
length]
 Conveyor length
after loading

Total conveyor length

H

 Wc – Weight of flight and chain (lb/ft)

 Fc – Coefficient of friction for chain and
flight
 Q – Material to be handled (lb/min)
 L - Horizontal projected length of loaded
conveyor (ft)
L = cos (c ) TLL =cos(angle of elevation
conveyor) * Total Loaded length of conveyor
 Fm – Coefficient of friction for material
 H – Height of lift (ft)
H = Sin (angle of elevation conveyor) * Total
length of conveyor
Bucket Elevators
 A special adaptation of both belt and chain conveyors
 Very efficient in moving things vertically

It consists of:
 Buckets to contain the material
 A belt or chains to carry the buckets and transmit the
pull
 Means to drive the belt
 Accessories
for loading the buckets or picking up the material
for receiving the discharged material
for maintaining the belt tension
for enclosing and protecting the elevator.
 Head pulley
Head drive
motor
Components Garner Throat
Head drive
of a Bucket (Reducer)
Elevator
Leg Belts
Leg

Elevator Buckets
Deflector pulley

Take -ups

Boot pulley
Boot spout Boot
Discharging mechanisms

Gravity action Centrifugal action

Types of buckets
 Applications
A bucket elevator can elevate a variety of
bulk materials from light to heavy and
from fine to large lumps
Eg:
 Food products – grain, sugar, flour,
coffee, salt..
 Rock products – sand, gravel, cement,
gypsum, limestone
 Chemical processing products – fertilizer,
phosphate, agricultural lime , soda ash
 Pulp and paper products
Designing
 Power requirement determination

Horse Power Requirement = Q.H / 33,000

Q = material handled (lb/min)

= Belt speed * No of buckets per foot * Bucket capacity
H = Lift (Ft)
- Theoretical value is increased by 10 to 15 %
for,
friction
power for loading

- Also additional power is needed for,

starting under load
peak load
Advantages
 Low power requirement
 Long service life
 Minimum maintenance requirement
 Ability to handle wet grains as easy as dry
grains with negligible increase of power
 Relative quietness

 But Grain damage may be high in handling

seed purpose grains!!!!
The Screw conveyor
 The capacity of a screw conveyor
depends on the screw diameter, screw
pitch, speed of the screw and the loading
efficiency of the cross sectional area of
the screw.
 The capacity of a screw conveyor with a
continuous screw:
 Q = V. ρ
 Q = 60. (π/4).D2.S.n.ψ.ρ.C
 Where,
 Q = capacity of a screw conveyor
 V = Volumetric capacity in m3/h
 ρ = Bulk density of the material, kg/m3
 D = Nominal diameter of Screw in m
 S = Screw pitch in m
 N = RPM of screw
 Ψ = Loading efficiency of the screw
 C = Factor to take into account the inclination
of the conveyor
 Screw Pitch:
 Commonly the screw pitch is taken equal to
the diameter of the screw D. However it may
range 0.75 – 1.0 times the diameter of the
screw.
 RPM of Screw:
 The usual range of RPM of screw is 10 to
165. It depends on the diameter of screw
and the type of material (Max RPM of
screw conveyor is 165)
 Loading efficiency:
 The value is large for free flowing and non
abrasive,
 Ψ = 0.12 to 0.15 for abrasive material
 = 0.25 to 0.3 for mildly abrasive material
 = 0.4 to 0.45 for non abrasive free flowing
materials
 Inclination Factor:
 The inclination factor C is determined by

the angle of screw conveyor with the horizontal.

http://www.mechanicalengineeringblog.com/tag/screw-conveyor-design-calculation/
Oscillating conveyors
 Metallic trough carried
on inclined arms fitted
with rubber bushes to
handle the reciprocating
motion of the trough

 The oscillating motion

of the trough is achieved
via specially designed
inclined arms and an
eccentric shaft driven by a
motor through v – belts
PRINCIPLE

CONVEYOR TROUGH IMPARTS

VELOCITIES IN x & y DIRECTIONS
 F1

F3 F4

F2

Figure 1 Figure 2

FORCES ON ‘ Y ‘ DIRECTION FORCES ON ‘ X ‘ DIRECTION

F1 - ACCELARATION FORCE F3 - FORCE IN THE X DIRECTION

F4 - FRICTION
F2 - PARTICLE WEIGHT
F1>F2
PARTICLE LIFTS &
MOVES AXIALLY BY A SHORT TRAJECTORY

F3>F4
PARTICLE MOVES MAXIMUM X DISTANCE DURING
FLIGHT
DESIGN CRITERIA
Belt conveyor design following
site for SI
 http://www.brighthubengineering.com
/manufacturing-technology/83551-
onsite-calculations-for-conveyor-belt-
systems/