1

Belt Conveyor
BY

PRABIR DATTA,B.Sc,F.I.E(INDIA)
LIFE FELLOW,INSTITUTION OF ENGINEERS(INDIA)
LIFE MEMBER,CONSULTING ENGINEERS ASSOCIATION OF INDIA(FIDIC
AFFILIATED)
MEMBER,ASSOCIATION OF INTERNATIONAL CONSULTANTS(FRANCE)
CONSULTANT CHARTERED MECHANICAL ENGINEER(MARINE&MATERIAL
HANDLING)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The belt conveyor is an endless belt moving over two end pulleys at fixed positions and used for
transporting material horizontally or at an incline up or down. The main components of a belt
conveyor are:
1. The belt that forms the moving and supporting surface on which the conveyed material
rides. It is the tractive element. The belt should be selected considering the material to
be transported.
2. The idlers, which form the supports for the carrying and return stands of the belt.
3. The pulleys that support and move the belt and controls its tension.
4. The drive that imparts power to one or more pulleys to move the belt and its loads.
5. The structure that supports and maintains the alignments of the idlers and pulleys and
support the driving machinery.
Other components include:
1. Loading chute or feeder chute that organises the flow of material and directs it on the belt
conveyor.
2. Take-up-device which is used to maintain the proper tension of the belt for effective power
transmission.
3. Belt cleaner that keeps the belt free from materials sticking to the belt.
4. Tramp removal device, which is optionally used in case the conveyed material bears the
chance of having tramp iron mixed with it and subsequent handling of the material, demands
its removal.
5. Continuous weighing device for constantly measuring the load being carried by the conveyor
belt.
6. Discharge chutes to guide the discharged projectile to subsequent conveyor or other receiving
point.
2

7. Surge hopper and feeder, which is essential for supplying material to the conveyor at uniform
rate when the supply of material is intermittent.
8. Tripper arrangement to discharge material at different point or to other device.

Application
Conveyor belts are widely used in mineral industry. Underground mine transport, opencast mine
transport and processing plants deploy conveyor belts of different kinds to adopt the specific job
requirements. The main advantages of conveyor belt system are:
1. A wider range of material can be handled which pause problems in other transportation
means. Belt conveyor can be used for abrasive, wet, dry, sticky or dirty material. The lump
size of the transported material is limited by the width of the belt. Belts up to 2500 mm wide
are used in mining industry.
2. Higher capacity can be handled than any other form of conveyor at a considerably lower cost
per tonne kilometre. Conveyor belts with capacity of 11000t/h and even higher can be
deployed to match with higher capacity mining machinery.
3. Longer distances can be covered more economically than any other transportation system. A
single belt conveyor or a series of belt conveyors can do this. Belt conveyors can be adopted
for cross-country laying.
4. By the use of many forms of ancillary equipment such as mobile trippers or spreaders bulk
material can be distributed and deposited whenever required.
5. Many other functions can be performed with the basic conveying like weighing, sorting,
picking, sampling, blending, spraying, cooling, drying etc.
6. Structurally it is one of the lightest forms of conveying machine. It is comparatively cheaper
and supporting structures can be used for many otherwise impossible structures such as
crossing rivers, streets and valleys.
7. The belt conveyor can be adopted for special purposes (fire resistant, wear resistant, corrosion
resistant, high angle negotiation etc.) and can be integrated with other equipment.
8. It can be horizontal, incline or decline or combination of all.
9. Minimum labour is required for the operation and maintenance of belt conveyor system.
10. In underground mine transport, belt conveyor can be used in thin seams as it eliminates the
rock works that might otherwise be required to gain haulage height. Moreover, belt conveyor
can provide continuous haulage service from pit bottom to the surface.

The limitations of conveyor belt are:
1. The loading and transfer points need to be properly designed.
2. Numbers of protective devices have to be incorporated to save the belt from getting damaged
by operational problems.
3

3. The belt needs higher initial tension (40-200% of useful pull).
4. The use of belt is restricted by the lump size. If the maximum diagonal of a irregular lump is
X then the belt width (B) is approximately given by:
200 + Xa B
where, B: Belt width, mm
X: Longest diagonal of irregular lump, mm
a: Factor to account for grading. a is taken as 2.5 for graded material and 3
for un-graded material. However, for particular material these values must
be properly estimated.
5. Conveying of sticky material is associated with problems of cleaning and discharge causing
poor productivity.
6. Higher elongation of the belt (4% elongation may take place at the working load).
Some of the applications of belt conveyors are shown in Figures below:

Level or inclined Conveyor receiving material at tail end and discharging at head end.



Level Conveyor receiving material at any point through travelling Hopper and discharging at
head end.


4



Level and inclined Conveyor receiving material at and near tail end, having vertical curve to
incline, and discharging at head end.


Level and inclined Conveyor with chute. Material received from bins too close to elevated head
end to permit use of vertical curve.




Inclined and level Conveyor receiving material at tail end and discharging from level section
through a movable Tripper.



5



Level Conveyor on raised structure with double-wing Tripper forming storage piles on both sides
of Conveyor.

Inclined Conveyor receiving material at tail end and discharging at several points through a
series of fixed Trippers.





Level Conveyor with Stacker or Boom Conveyor mounted on revolving turntable so as to
discharge to both sides of Conveyor.

6

INFORMATION REQUIRED TO DESIGN A BELT CONVEYOR
1. Length of conveyor from centre to centre of end pulleys.
2. Inclination-level or inclined. Either degree of inclination, or distance to be lifted or lowered.
3. Average capacity per hour.
4. Maximum capacity per hour.
5. Material to be conveyed, and weight per cubic foot. 6. Average size of material.
7. Size of largest pieces and percentage in feed.
8. (a) Nature of material -dry or wet (moisture content).
(b) Abrasive or corrosive?
9. How material is to be fed to the belt and particulars of feed point or points.
10. How material is to be discharged from the belt i.e. overhead pulley or by trippers, and
particulars of discharge points.
11. General indication of supporting structure.
12. Power available for driving. If by A.C. electric motor, state voltage, phase and frequency. If
D.C. motor state voltage.
Items 1 and 2 determine the suitability of belt conveyors, since inclination is a limiting factor.
Items 1-7 determine the speed and width of the conveyor belt, the power needed for the drive,
the type of drive, the number of belt plies, size of pulleys, shafts and spacing of idlers. Items 8-
10 determine the quality and thickness of the rubber cover on the belt.
Suitability of a Belt Conveyor
Table I shows the maximum safe inclination for troughed belt conveyors handling various bulk
materials and for convenience, chart A shows the rise in feet corresponding to the horizontal
distances at various angles of inclination.
Material Angle Rise in
m per
100 m
Material Angle Rise in
m per
100 m
Cement-Loose 22 40.4 Coal-Bit Slack 23 42.4
Clay-Fine Dry 23 42.4 Coal-Anthracite 16 28.6
Clay-Wet 18 32.5 Coke oven run 18 32.5
Coal-Mine Run 16 28.6 Coke-Sized 16 28.6
Coal-Sized 16 28.6 Coke-Breeze 18 32.5
Concrete-Wet 15 26.8 Ore-Sized 18 32.5
7

Earth-Loose 20 36.4 Packages-Paper
Wrap.
16 28.6
Glass-Batch 21 38.4 Rock-Fine
Crushed
22 40.4
Grain 16 28.6 Rock-Mixed 18 32.5
Gravel-Bank Run 18 32.5 Rock-Sized 18 32.5
Gravel-Screened 15 26.8 Salt 20 36.4
Gypsum-Powdered 23 42.4 Sand-Dry 15 26.8
lime-Powdered. 23 42.4 Sand-Damp 20 36.4
Limestone 18 32.5 Sand-Tempered
Foundry
24 44.5
Ore-Fine 20 36.4 Sulphur-
Powdered
23 42.4
Ore-Crushed 18 32.5 Wood-Chips 2r 50.9- G
Should the horizontal distance be more than sufficient for the required rise, it may be more
economical to run the first section of the conveyor horizontally, and incline it upwards at the
discharge end, rather than use a smaller angle of inclination for the entire length.
In such a case, the transition from the horizontal to the inclined sections must be made by a
vertical curve, to ensure that the belt does not lift off the idlers.