Pipe Conveyor: Rules of Thumb

The following are some important design considerations unique to pipe conveyors that should be paid attention to during the design process.

•Pipe conveyors should never be loaded above 66% of the cross section.

•The pipe conveyor diameter should be at least 3 times the maximum lump size.

•Pipe conveyor drag is increased through every curved section of the conveyor.

•The belt width of the pipe conveyor should be large enough to create an approximately 20% overlap with the belt edges. In other words, the belt width should be approximately 1.2 x 3.14 x Pipe Diameter.

•Curve radii should be approximately 400 times the pipe diameter for fabric belting and 800 times the pipe diameter for steel cord belting. This is just a rule of thumb, and all curve radii should be checked to be acceptable by the selected pipe belt manufacturer.

•It is important to the success of any pipe conveyor project that the belt have the right transverse stiffness properties. Too low a stiffness, the belt pipe shape will tend to twist and or fail to maintain a pipe shape. Too high a stiffness, the pipe conveyor will have significant excess drag and become hard to operate. It is important that the belt manufacturer understand these issues and be able to design a pipe conveyor belt that will work for your specific application.

•Idler spacing on a pipe conveyor can be longer than a troughed conveyor, however there needs to be enough support for the pipe through any curved section.