Common types of pulleys found in a conveyor belt system

Conveyor belt systems are found on most mine sites across the globe. They are perhaps the most critical and essential piece of equipment in the mining industry, which maximise the production of materials, such as iron ore, by transporting them efficiently to save customers time, energy, and costs.

If you want to learn more, please visit our website.

These conveyor belt systems are comprised of several different components, including conveyor pulleys. There are also several types of pulleys to suit different types of conveyor belt systems.

Choosing a suitable pulley for your conveyor belt system does not have to be a difficult task. PROK is a leading manufacturer of pulleys, and our team of technical experts can help you decide on the right pulley for your application.

What is a Conveyor Pulley?

Conveyor pulleys are mechanical devices used to change the direction of a belt in a conveyor belt system along with tensioning and driving the belt. A conveyor system will always consist of a head pulley and a tail pulley.

All pulleys are comprised of these components which include:

• End discs
• Locking element
• Bearing assembly
• Shell
• Shaft

See for yourself one of our conveyor pulleys and get up close with the components in 3D.

PROK is a leading manufacturer of pulleys, and our team of technical experts can help you decide on the right pulley for your application.

Common types of Mining Conveyor Pulleys

Live Shaft Pulley

Live shaft pulleys are where the shaft is fixed to either end of the pulley and allows the shaft and the body of the pulley to rotate simultaneously. The bearing assembly is also installed externally on the end disc of the pulley.

These pulleys make up the vast majority of all pulleys found in bulk material handling (essentially all) and can be customised/engineered to suit light/heavy-duty, fast/slow, or unfavourable environmental conditions.

Dead Shaft Pulley

The bearings on a dead shaft pulley are installed within the pulley, fixing the position of the shaft. This means only the body of the pulley rotates around the shaft, hence why we call it a &#;dead&#; shaft pulley.

Dead shaft pulleys are advantageous by eliminating the bending moment transmitted through the locking element and depending on the load-case can sometimes significantly reduce the shaft diameter & its weight.

Our custom-designed dead shaft pulleys make these pulleys suitable for any application.

Gearless Drive Pulley

With a Gearless Drive pulley, a low-speed synchronous motor is installed directly to the shaft of the drive pulley. As large mine conveyors increase in size, the installed capacity also increases.

If the installed power is greater than 3 Megawatts, then a gearless drive pulley can reduce power demand by eliminating the need for speed reducers (gearboxes) and increasing system reliability by eliminating high maintenance pieces of equipment.

Stub Shaft Pulley

Where two separate stubs are attached to each end disc, removing the locking element & the shaft inside of the pulley body to drastically reduce the weight & a solution for pulleys in confined and hard-to-reach locations.

Stubs shafts require a high-level of design competence including detailed numeric & experience.

Engineered Conveyor Pulleys

PROK offers a wide range of engineered conveyor pulley solutions, available in custom designs to meet specific customer requirements.

Investing in quality engineered pulleys leads to increased safety, lower weight, longer life, and improved reliability.

When a single pulley fails, the belt must stop, and sometimes the whole production for the mine ceases.

In simple words, when the belt stops, production stops.

With competitive price and timely delivery, Joyroll sincerely hope to be your supplier and partner.

It is important for mining companies to invest in quality engineered pulleys to reduce overall costs and improve production and prevent mining operations from coming to a halt.

Summary

All conveyor systems will consist of at least two pulleys, but there is no one size fits all.

PROK&#;s range of engineered pulleys can help you optimise production for your conveyor belt system. If our standard range of conveyor pulleys doesn&#;t suit, our team of engineers can customise the design to suit your application.

As leaders in conveyor pulleys, PROK can assist you in selecting the right pulleys for your conveyor system.

Contact us to speak to a technical expert and find out more.

Different kinds of conveyor pulleys

Metso sells conveyor pulleys in all the following sub-categories: 

Head pulleys

The head pulley is located at the discharge point of the conveyor. It usually drives the conveyor and often has a larger diameter than other pulleys. For better traction, the head pulley is usually lagged (with either rubber or ceramic lagging material).

Tail and wing pulleys

The tail pulley is located at the loading end of the belt. It comes with either a flat face or a slatted profile (wing pulley), which cleans the belt by allowing material to fall between the support members.

Snub pulleys

A snub pulley improves the traction of the drive pulley, by increasing its belt wrap angle.

Drive pulleys

Drive pulleys, which can also be the head pulley, are driven by a motor and power transmission unit to propel the belt and material to the discharge.

Bend pulleys

A bend pulley is used for changing the direction of the belt.

Take-up pulley

A take-up pulley is used to provide the belt with the proper amount of tension. Its position is adjustable.

For more information, please visit Conveyor Belt Pulley.