Do you know what a conveyor system is? This is a mechanical equipment used to move materials across short or long distances in a continuous processing system.
It is effective, safe, and economical, ideal for a variety of industrial and material handling applications such as mining, steel, construction, agribusiness, and fertilizers.
Due to its importance to the operations of companies, it is essential to know how they work and what the safety requirements for using these machines are.
It was thinking about this that Mercurio Conveyor Belt prepared this complete guide with all the information related to a Conveyor System. Enjoy your reading!
The Conveyor System is an essential component for the operation of large companies and transports a good part of the world economy.
As mentioned above, this equipment is used to move solid bulk in high volume over short or long distances in a system that works continuously.
So it has to do with a strategic instrument formed by a conveyor belt system in motion that is mounted on a support structure.
These conveyors are usually powered by electric motors so that the material can be transported effectively.
Because of their design, Conveyor Systems offer a significant economic advantage as they have relatively low operating costs. In addition they become the ideal option for many projects because they are robust, versatile, and flexible.
Finally, they are designed to operate at a high performance, ensuring a continuous flow of materials, minimizing downtime while maximizing productivity.
When we think of a conveyor system, certainly the conveyor belts are the main component, but for the conveyor system to work as expected, the smooth operation of many other components is essential.
As we mentioned during the article, these are the main components:
- Conveyor belt;
- Snub, head, take-up and tail pulleys;
- Impact and load idlers;
- Motor;
- Counterweight;
- Aligners;
- Cleaners;
- Loading chute;
- Skit boards.
As seen, a conveyor belt is responsible for the operation of several companies. Due to this fact, its use provides several benefits, as listed below:
Cost
Conveyor Systems offers a significant financial advantage as they require low maintenance and have relatively low running costs. In addition they become the ideal alternative for many projects because they are robust and flexible.
These conveyors are employed in a wide variety of applications such as for moving bulk materials.
They are designed to deliver high performance and ensure a continuous flow of materials, minimizing downtime while maximizing productivity.
For these reasons, Conveyor Systems are extremely efficient, offering practicality and low operating cost.
Safety
Conveyor belts are efficient pieces of equipment for transporting materials due to the solid structure that controls their movement since by design, their structure provides maximum safety during transportation.
This is because they have devices that prevent the sliding or misalignment of the conveyor belt and have mechanisms that interrupt the operation in case of atypical activities.
In addition, these systems have safety features that protect their operators such as guards on the sides, preventing direct contact with the conveyor belt.
In this way, conveyor belts ensure not only safety in the transportation of materials, but also in the operation of the equipment.
Efficiency of the conveyor system
Conveyor systems are used to transport large volumes of materials over short or long distances quickly and efficiently.
This equipment is perfectly suited to transport heavy materials due to its robustness. In addition, conveyor belts are very resistant and durable as they do not suffer much wear with continuous use.
Conveyor system for Mining
A Conveyor Belt System is widely used in various industries, including mining. In this case it helps transport bulk materials such as rock, ores, and coal.
Its use in mining processes is essential to ensure agility in the transport of ores at a high volume and over long distances.
It can be used since the extraction all the way to the processing and storage locations, offering greater productivity and savings for these operations. For this reason, it is common for Long-Distance Conveyor System to be used in this type of application.
It also contributes to reducing environmental impact as it allows materials to be transported without the need for large quantities of vehicles, reducing the emission of polluting gases and the noise generated by truck traffic.
In short, Conveyors System are essential for the moving of materials in any mining company, which can increase productivity, reduce operational costs, and ensure occupational safety.
What is a Long-Distance Conveyor System?
You may have heard it referred as an overland conveyor belt. What does that mean? Long-Distance or Overland Conveyor Belts are crucial equipment in ore mines as they are an alternative to transporting materials by trucks, train, or cable cars, depending on the distance and the amount of material to be transported.
Due to this fact they are indispensable pieces of equipment in mining plants since they offer efficiency in the transportation of materials. Because of them there is no need to resort to multiple trips using vehicles with smaller load capacities such as trucks or trains.
In addition, Long-Distance Conveyor Systems are more economical compared to other forms of transportation mentioned as they operate continuously, thus reducing operating time and costs.
Now that you already know what a Conveyor Belt is, its composition, functions, and applications, you should also pay attention to what are the most frequent problems encountered with this equipment and its causes. Check this out below!
Decentralized loading
The feeding unit should provide the belt with a uniform and centered loading. Decentralized material will inevitably lead to misalignment since the material, once settled on the belt by the action of its weight, will move the conveyor belt to the opposite side going toward the center of the concavity.
Lack of adjustment of the skirt boards
The lack of adjusting the skirt boards of a conveyor belt is also seen as a problem because poorly adjusted skirt boards cause material to build up, scraping the belt until it exposes the plies.
Impact idler locked
Locked idlers on a conveyor belt cause uneven wear of the lower cover and the overheating of the locked idler could cause the belt to catch on fire.
Misaligned Conveyor Belt
Another problem that may arise with a conveyor belt is the misalignment that generates mechanical action between the edges of the belt and the metal frame and because of this, the side of the conveyor belt becomes damaged.
Fatigue line on the belt and partial coating of the pulley
A mechanical action that deforms the belt can generate a fatigue line at localized points. Any pulley with a damaged coating can cause bubbles to rise on the belt and splices to open.
Part missing on the primary scraper
Damaged and poorly adjusted scrapers are responsible for permanent damages to conveyor belts such as longitudinal grooves and heavy wear of the rubber cover.
Accumulation of the material under the counterweight on the conveyor system
Damaged and poorly adjusted scrapers are responsible for permanent damages to conveyor belts such as longitudinal grooves and heavy wear of the rubber cover.
Rolete Alignment idler locked and W effect on the belt
A locked self-aligning idler causes mechanical action on the side of the conveyor belt, causing it to fray. It can also cause deformation of the conveyor belt in the transition region due to the short space between the pulley and the last angled idler.
As we saw during the article, the most important element of this system is the conveyor belt because it has direct contact with the bulk that is being moved from one point to another with different characteristics.
For this reason, specific technologies are needed for the different industrial applications such as Mining, Steel, Agribusiness, Construction, and Fertilizers.
That is why Mercurio Conveyor Belt is here, the largest Conveyor Belts manufacturer in Latin America. We innovate and offer customized solutions for the operation of the largest extraction and processing operations in the world.
Count on us by talking to one of our experts.
And if you are interested in this type of content, keep following the news on the Mercurio Conveyor Belt Blog.
