The Belt Conveyor Pulley: The Ultimate Guide | 6 Common Types Of Belt Conveyor Pulleys

Belt Conveyor Pulley

The Belt Conveyor Pulley is a product designed to increase the efficiency of belt conveyor systems. Belt Conveyor Pulley uses the ideal combination of pulleys and a belt to convey heavy loads smoothly and efficiently.

What is Belt Conveyor Pulley

A pulley is a mechanical device used to change the direction or magnitude of a force, lift loads, and transmit power. The simplest type of pulley consists of a wheel around which a rope or belt can be looped, with the two ends attached to objects to be lifted. In more complex systems, pulleys may have one or more sheaves and involve other mechanical configurations such as lever arms and axles.

Belt conveyors are devices used to move materials vertically, horizontally, or at an angle. They can be designed to handle a wide range of products including bulk solids, bulky items, and even fragile objects. Belt conveyors are used for transporting materials in industries such as mining, construction, manufacturing, and others.

The drive pulley should be selected based on the load capacity of the belt, surface speed of the belt, permissible eccentricity of load center to pulley axis and permissible working temperature of both parts.

Pulley:

In the world of manufacturing, there are many types of pulley systems that can be used to perform a wide range of tasks. In this article we will cover as many types of belt conveyor pulleys, which are used to lift and lower materials along a conveyor belt. The wheel of the pulley serves to guide the belt over the drum, which is made of steel or cast iron.

A conveyor pulley is a mechanical device used to transfer linear motion into a rotating motion. It consists of a wheel with an endless loop of cable wrapped around it, and an additional wheel attached to the load at one end. The two wheels are placed on the same axle to prevent them from moving relative to each other, although they can move transversely as needed by using belts or chains as part of the drive system.

The diameters of standard pulleys are: 200, 250, 315, 400, 500, 630, 800, 1000, 1250, 1400 and 1600 mm. pulley may be straight faced or crowned. The crown serves to keep the belt centered. The height of the crown is usually 0.5% of the pulley width, but not less than 4 mm. The pulley diameter D_p depends on the number of plies of belt and may be also be determined from the formula:

D_p > K.i (mm)

Where

K = a factor depending on the number of plies (125 to 150)

i = no of plies

The compound value should be rounded off to the nearest standard size. While selecting the pulley diameter it should be ascertained that the diameter selected is larger than the minimum diameter of pulley for the particular belt selected.

The drive pulley may be lagged by rubber coating whenever necessary, to increase the coefficient of friction. The lagging thickness shall vary between 6 to 12 mm. The hardness of rubber lagging of the pulley shall be less than that of the cover rubber of the running belt.

Pulley types:

Pulleys are manufactured in a wide range of sizes, consisting of a continuous rim and two end discs fitted with hubs. In most of the conveyor pulleys intermediate stiffening discs are welded inside the rim. Other pulleys are self cleaning wing types which are used as the tail, take-up, or snub pulley where material tends to build up on the pulley face. Magnetic types of pulleys are used to remove tramp iron from the material being conveyed.

Typical welded steel Drum Belt conveyor pulley

The most common type of belt pulley is the welded steel drum type. It is not difficult to understand why this design is popular. Steel drums are cheap and available in almost every size you could need for your application. They are also strong enough that they will never bend or warp under load; only the rubber will wear out over time. The conveyor pulley is mainly used in belt conveyor, usually made of steel plate and welded into a cylinder shape. In the drum pulley, there are two kinds: One is with mounting bracket, another one without mounting bracket.

In order to reduce the cost of production and maintenance, the single row drum pulley is widely used. Among them, there are many kinds of pulley including hoist drum pulley, trailer load carrier belt conveyor drum pulley and others. The most common material of construction for pulley is steel (steel pulleys). Steel pulley is less expensive and more durable than aluminum one. But if we talk about weight load bearing capacity, we can say that aluminum pulley has better performance than steel ones.

Spun end curve crown Belt conveyor pulley

Spun end curve crown belt conveyor pulley is used for conveying granular and lumpy materials such as coal, ore, salt, cement and other bulk materials. It has a wide range of applications throughout industries such as mining, power, metallurgy and construction. For example, cement washeries require a steady supply of dry raw material to keep their production lines running smoothly. These pulleys make it possible.

Spiral drum Belt conveyor pulley

A spiral drum belt conveyor pulley is a kind of pulley that is used in the belt conveyor. The shaft of this type of gearbox can be horizontal or vertical, and its flange is designed with accurate dimensions for the shaft. The bearing ring on the flange has bigger diameter than the main body, so it can bear larger load than normal equipment.

Spiral drum belt conveyor pulley has many advantages over other types of belt conveying systems. It is also easy to install and maintain low cost, easy to control. It is basically a horizontal rotating drum with a belt attached to it. The belt has two types of teeth on it: spirals and herringbone.

Welded steel Belt conveyor pulley with diamond grooved lagging

The most common of all conveyor pulleys, the diamond grooved lagging pulley, is made from a single piece of steel that is heated and then  welded together to form a solid unit.  This type of pulley has a very strong base plate and rides on a smooth steel roller. The rollers are usually fitted with rubber or plastic wheels to allow for easier movement. The material is carbon steel or iron alloy, and its surface can be galvanized or painted. It has good mechanical property and long lifetime.

A diamond-groove pulley has several advantages: firstly, it can effectively reduce friction between the belt and the surface of the pulley; secondly, its design is simple and easy to install; thirdly, it can effectively absorb vibration.

Welded steel Belt conveyor pulley with grooved Lagging

Welded steel Belt conveyor pulley with grooved Lagging is mainly used for the convey of granular material, powder material, coal slurry, bulk cargo and so on. It has high intensity, good adaptability to the working environment. It also has low noise during the running state. And it is simple structure. Therefore it can prolong belt life and decrease operating cost of belt conveyor system.

Spiral Wing Belt Conveyor pulley

Spiral wing belt conveyor is a kind of efficient conveying equipment, which is widely used in the metallurgy, petrochemical, chemical industries, etc. The working principle of spiral wing belt conveyor is that the material on the top of the belt will be moved towards to the bottom by rotating spiral wings.

It consists of a single helical groove on the inner edge, and an outside flange with several small teeth. The teeth catch onto the groove as it moves to drive material forward. The ability of these types of conveyor pulleys to transfer power and motion over long distances has made them popular choices for use in factories. They are resistant to shock and vibration, which makes them ideal for transporting materials that can be easily damaged by impact.

Power calculation for the drive unit:

Most belt conveyor pulleys are rated to carry a specific weight. If you know the weight of an item, it should be easy to determine if that pulley can handle it. However, you should also look at the type of material that the pulley is made from. The two most common types are steel and aluminum.

The horse power required at the drive of a belt conveyor pulley is derived from the following formula:

H.P = T_e . V

Where

T_e is the effective tension in the belt in N

V = velocity of the belt in m/s

The required effective tension Te on the driving pulley of a belt conveyor is obtained by adding up all the resistances.

Conclusion:

Pulleys are an integral part of any belt conveyor system. While they can seem simple at first glance, there are a number of considerations that need to be made when choosing the right pulley for your application. The price will vary based on quality and size of belt conveyor pulley required. A high-quality belt conveyor pulley with advanced features will always cost more than a cheap, low-quality model. This is why it’s so important to do your research before buying anything online. If you would like to find out more about this subject, feel free to leave us a comment below or visit our website today.