Belt conveyor

01

Describe the material first

Rulmeca's design method starts with the conveyed material: the required load volume, lump size, chemical and physical properties, and the conveyor route and height profile. Two angles matter: the angle of repose of a freely heaped pile and the smaller angle of surcharge the material takes on a moving belt, which Rulmeca says "is normally between 5° and 15° (for a few materials up to 20°)". [1]

The surcharge angle and the troughing angle together set the cross-section of material the belt can carry. Rulmeca expresses capacity as the volume carried at 1 m/s for each belt width and troughing arrangement, then scales it to the chosen speed. [1]

Give the supplier the material name, bulk density, lump size (largest and typical), moisture, temperature and abrasiveness, plus the tonnage, length and lift. A request that gives only belt width and length cannot be checked.

02

Relate belt speed, width and troughing

Rulmeca notes that light material, cereals and fines allow high speeds and screened material may run at over 8 m/s, while large unscreened rock may need speeds of about 1.5–3.5 m/s. Speed must fall as lump size, abrasiveness and density rise, and wear at the loading point increases with speed. [1]

The load per metre of belt is qG = Iv ÷ (3.6 × v), where Iv is the tonnage in t/h and v the belt speed in m/s. Higher speed lets a narrower belt carry the same tonnage with less load per metre on idlers and belt. As a calculation example only, 500 t/h at 2.5 m/s gives 500 ÷ (3.6 × 2.5) ≈ 56 kg/m of material. [1]

Troughing sets incline the side rollers — "the angle of the side roller varies from 20° to 45°" in Rulmeca's words — to form the belt into a trough; the angle sets how much material the belt carries. Rulmeca also shows a free edge distance of 0.05 × belt width + 25 mm between the material and the belt edge. [1]

03

Match the conveyor design to the job

Suppliers linked to this page build quite different conveyors under the same name. Decide which design fits before comparing prices.

04

Design for safe maintenance and lockout

The US Mine Safety and Health Administration reports eight fatalities involving belt conveyors in mining from 26 January 2017 to its alert, and states that proper lock-out/tag-out and blocking against motion could have prevented all of them. [2]

05

Trace the belt conveyor components

This is a functional reference built from the sources cited; it is not one maker's parts list. Sizes and ratings come from the design calculation for your conveyor.

06

Fill the specification fields with values for your duty

A belt-conveyor quotation needs duty-specific values. The table explains each field, gives published values where a reviewed source states them, and says what to obtain from the supplier.

07

Send the material and route with the request

Paste it into your enquiry below or into an email to a maker, then replace every bracket.

Material: [name; bulk density; lump size max and typical; moisture; temperature; abrasiveness]
Duty: [design and peak t/h; operating hours]
Route: [length; lift or fall; inclines; curves; transfer points]
Conveyor type: [troughed bulk, mobile stacker, port loader, modular or flat belt]
Belt: [width; speed; troughing angle; belt rating and covers]
Drive: [location; power; starting method; take-up type]
Loading and discharge: [chute and hopper design; skirting; dust control]
Safety: [guarding; pull-cord stops; lockable isolators; take-up access; walkways]
Site: [indoor or outdoor; ambient; power supply]
Documents: [design calculation; drawings; component list; maintenance and lockout procedure]

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