Conveyor Systems for Aggregates
Transporting aggregates can be costly and time-consuming. With aggregate conveyor systems, you can automate the transport process of aggregates and other materials. When designing your aggregate plant, choosing the right type of conveyors and their arrangement can make or break your process. Here are some expert tips on the different types of conveyors, their applications, benefits, and insight into our system design process.
Why Conveyors: Advantages
Aggregates are transported in large volumes, making them heavy. Conveyors simplify the process by transporting aggregates from one location to another and between different parts of a quarry or processing plant. The materials flow continuously, reducing bottlenecks and interruptions, making them a cost-efficient option for bulk material handling.
Additionally, conveyors make workplaces safer by reducing or eliminating the amount of heavy lifting workers need to do during transport, reducing the likelihood of injuries and workplace incidents.
Finally, aggregates are hauled to quarries and plants using trains and then moved to trucks for the final stretch of transport. With mobile conveyors, like radial stacker conveyors, trucks can be replaced for on-site transport. Overland conveyors are more environmentally friendly than trucks for hauling aggregates, reducing emissions and dust released when hauling materials.
Types of Aggregate Conveyors and How They’re Used in an Aggregate System
Overland Conveyors: These are usually exceptionally long and can move thousands of tons per hour over several miles. They help transport materials from extraction sites to crushers and other equipment for processing. Typically, overland conveyors are deployed in operations that span over long distances, some of which reach several miles long.
Stacker Conveyors: Lift materials and then offload them into piles, storage units, and trucks. They’re often designed to be mobile or have rotational capabilities, enabling greater flexibility for transporting and piling up materials and making stockpiling and loading easy.
Transfer Conveyors: Used for changing direction or elevation in confined spaces. They work well with overland conveyors, which are often too large to build with sharp turns or tight directional changes. They’re also suitable for transferring materials from one piece of equipment to another throughout production. As materials are moved from feeders, screens, crushers, and more, they’re often transported via transfer conveyors.
Choosing the Right Conveyor System
When designing an aggregate conveyor system, we consider several factors: the type of materials processed, production capacity requirements, distance covered, and flexibility.
Type of Material Processed: When choosing equipment, material traits such as size, weight, and abrasiveness must all be considered. Rubber belt conveyors will be less effective if you’re processing sharper or abrasive materials. Heavier materials or higher TPH operations would need more supportive equipment, like a steel cord belt conveyor.
Production Capacity: The overall volume of materials will help determine your system’s size and capacity requirements. Overland conveyors are ideal for higher-capacity operations because they can transport large amounts of bulk material over long distances. For lower capacities and volumes, standard belt conveyors are more cost-effective.
Distance Covered: Similar to production capacity, overland conveyors are best for operations that cover great distances, while standard conveyors are best for shorter distances.
Flexibility: If your operation frequently changes or needs to move, mobile conveyor systems and equipment, such as mobile stockpile conveyors and portable stacker conveyors, are best. These conveyors are more effective in temporary operations, such as smaller quarries.
Aggregate Conveyor System Design
No two aggregate facilities are the same. When designing aggregate conveyor systems, we custom-design them based on your material processing goals and the criteria listed above. Improper conveyor system design can create bottlenecks and reduce your plant’s efficiency. Safety concerns, such as dust control, noise reduction, guard rails, and emergency stops, should also be addressed.
The type of equipment you’re currently using or planning on using plays a significant role in the design of your system, too. For example, when implementing radial stackers and loading conveyors, their maximum rotation speed must be considered depending on their size and the maximum processing load.
At GK Systems, we take all this and more into consideration when designing your system. Get in touch with our team today, and we’ll engineer an aggregate conveyor system for you to help you meet your aggregate processing goals.
