MEng 121 – Industrial Plant Design

Laboratory Design Activity

Edgar O. Suico II February 17, 2021

BSME 5

ROLLER CHAINS AND SPROCKET DESIGN

I. CONSTRUCTION OF ROLLER CHAIN

Where:

P =pitch of chain

= distance between centers of adjacent rollers

 Designation of Chain Sizes:
Chain 25 35 40 50 60 80
No.
Pitch, in 1/4 3/8 1/2 5/8 3/4 1
Chain 100 120 140 160 200
No.
Pitch, in 1 1/4 1 1/2 1 3/4 2 2 1/2

II. LENGTH OF CHAIN

2
T +t ( T−t ) where :L=length of chain ,∈pitches
L=2 C+ +
2 40 C

C=center distance∈ pitches ( may obtaindecimal ) T =no . of teeth of large sprocket

t=no . of teeth of small sprocket

III. VI. LUBRICATION OF CHAINS

Types of Lubrication:

Type I manual lubrication applied at least once every 8 hours of operation

Type II drip lubrication

Type III bath or disc lubrication

Type IV oil stream lubrication

IV. Recommended SAE viscosities for various operating temperatures:

TEMPERATURE VISCOSITY

20-40°F SAE 20

40-100°F SAE 30

100-120°F SAE 40
120-140°F SAE 50

V. VI. FACTOR OF SAFETY FOR CHAIN DRIVES

WB
Factor of Safety =
W

The breaking strength of the chain may be obtained by the following empiracal relations ,

WB=106 p2 ( ¿ newtons ) for roller chains

We know that the tangential driving force acting on the chain

Power transmitted (¿ watts) P

FT = = (¿ newtons )
Speed of chain∈m/ s v

VI. CONSTRUCTION OF SPROCKET

 DRIVING
SPROCKET
DRIVEN SPROCKET N2
N1

CENTER DISTANCE, C

V. CENTER DISTANCE BETWEEN SPROCKET

P
C= ¿Where :C=center distance . mmP=Pitch of chain , mmL=length of chain ,∈ phone
2

T =no . of teeth of large sprockett=no . of teeth of small sprocket

General Rule:

The center distance between sprocket, as a general rule, should not be less than 1 ½

times the diameter of the larger sprocket and not less than 30 times the pitch nor more than

about 50 times the pitch.

VI. PITCH DIAMETER OF SPROCKET

P
D=
sin( )
180
T

where :P= pitch of sprocket

VII. NUMBER OF TEETH ON THE LARGE SPROCKET

r∗n
N=
R

where :n=rpm of the small sprocketr =radius of thedriven sprocket

R=radius of thedriver sprocket

VII. CALCULATING HORSEPOWER OF SPROCKET

Horsepower-equals 33,000 foot pounds per minute, or 550 foot pounds per second. In

terms of chain load and speed.

Working Load∗Ft . Per Min Working Load∗T∗P∗RPM

HP= ¿ HP= where :
33000 396,000

T =number of sprocket teethP=chain pitch

VIII. CHAIN WORKING LOAD and CHAIN SPEED

HPx 33000 HP∗396000 T∗RPM

Working Load= ¿ Chain Speed ( Ft . Per . Min )= where :
Ft . per Min T∗P∗RPM K

K=constant of pitches of chain per footT =number of sprocket teeth

PITCH 3/8” ½” 5/8” ¾” 1” 1 ¼” 1 ½” 2” 2 1/4” 3”

K 32 24 19.2 16 12 9.6 8 6.85 4.8 4