Dissertation Xiangwei Online Version 20160903

Delft University of Technology
Prediction of belt conveyor idler performance
Liu, Xiangwei
DOI
10.4233/uuid:e813298e-93d8-4a76-a7ab-72b327bcde4b
Publication date
2016
Document Version
Final published version
Citation (APA)
Liu, X. (2016). Prediction of belt conveyor idler performance. TRAIL Research School.
https://doi.org/10.4233/uuid:e813298e-93d8-4a76-a7ab-72b327bcde4b
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Prediction of Belt Conveyor Idler Performance
Prediction of Belt Conveyor Idler Performance
Proefschrift
ter verkrijging van de graad van doctor

aan de Technische Universiteit Delft,
op gezag van de Rector Magnificus Prof. ir. K.C.A.M. Luyben,
voorzitter van het College voor Promoties,
in het openbaar te verdedigen op maandag 12 september 2016 om 10:00 uur
door
Xiangwei L IU
Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering,

Wuhan University of Technology, Wuhan, P.R. China
geboren te Rizhao, P.R. China.
This dessertation has been approved by the promotors:
Promotor: Prof. dr. ir. G. Lodewijks
Copromotor: Dr. ir. Y. Pang
Composition of the doctoral committee:

Rector Magnificus, chairperson
Prof. dr. ir. G. Lodewijks, Delft University of Technology, promotor
Dr. ir. Y. Pang, Delft University of Technology, copromotor
independent members:
Prof. W. Li Wuhan University of Technology (P.R. China)
Prof. Dr. -Ing. A. Katterfeld Otto von Guericke Universität Magdeburg (Germany)
Dr. M. Cincera Rulmeca Holding S.p.A (Italy)
Prof. ir. J.J. Hopman Delft University of Technology
Prof. dr. R. Curran Delft University of Technology
dependent member:
Dr. C. Wheeler, The University of Newcastle (Australia)
The research described in this dissertation is fully supported by the Chinese Scholarship
Council under grant 201206950027, Delft University of Technology, and partially sup-
ported by Rulmeca Holding S.p.A, Rizhao Port Group Co., Ltd, and Rizhao Changyun
Industry Transport Equipment Co., Ltd.
TRAIL Thesis Series T2016/14, the Netherlands TRAIL Research School

P.O. Box 5017
2600 GA Delft, the Netherlands
Phone: +31 (0) 15 278 6046
Email: [email protected]
Keywords: bulk material, belt conveyor, idler, reliability, condition monitoring, mainte-
nance
Printed and distributed by: Xiangwei Liu
Email: [email protected]
Copyright © 2016 by Xiangwei Liu

All rights reserved. No part of the material protected by this copyright notice may be
reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, includ-
ing photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without
written permission of the author.
ISBN 978-90-5584-207-0
Printed in the Netherlands
To my mother
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The pursuit of my doctorate at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands during

the past four years was an amazing journey. Many people provided me support, to whom
I want to express my deep gratefulness.
Above all, I sincerely appreciate the Chinese Scholarship Council to provide the fund-
ing to support my Ph.D research.
Secondly, I would like to give my great gratitude to my promotors Prof. Gabriel
Lodewijks and Dr. Yusong Pang. Gabriel, I would like to thank you for your availabil-
ity, inspiring discussions, critical comments, and your effort to improve my manuscript.
Particularly, I would like to thank you for applying 3mE faculty funding to support my
experimental research. To Yusong, thank you for your enlightening guidance, patient su-
pervision, and the effort to train my research skills. Specially, your half Chinese half
Dutch supervision style gave me both intense support and independence. I have learned a
lot from you two about both research and life.
Furthermore, my sincere thank goes to the people who provided support for my work.
To Craig Wheeler, thank you for providing me the opportunity to conduct experiments
at The University of Newcastle, Australia. It was great experience in Newcastle. To
Marco Cincera from Rulmeca Holding S.p.A, thank you for supporting my experimental
research as well as the informative discussions. To Wenjun Zhang, thank you for giving
me the opportunity to conduct tests at Rizhao Port Group Co., Ltd. I would also like to
thank Rizhao Changyun Industry Transport Equipment Co., Ltd for providing me tests.
Within M&TT Department, I sincerely thank Jozephina, Patty, Dineke, Ed Stok and Freek
for their excellent support to me. A particularly big thank to Dick Mensch for proof
checking of the manuscript and mathematical help in my research. To all my colleagues
in TEL Section, thank you for inspiring discussions about work. Special thank goes to
Maria Zamiralova, Alireza Alemi and Daijie He for sharing their research knowledge with
me. I would also like to thank master students Kristel Thieme, Emiel van Bodegom, and
Vincent Sikkes for their contribution to this research. It was great experience to work in
TEL Section.
In addition, I would like to thank my friends in Delft for their sharing and encouraging.
To the communities of ISC Delft, Jessehof, 3mE PhD Council and Rock’n Delft, it was
my pleasure to be involved. The Chinese folks in TEL Section helped me a lot in my
daily life. My thank also goes to Giorgio Faedo, Clarrisse Wu, Adri Ana, Gonzalo Duro,
Alida Alves, Jiaxiu Cai, Patri Guerrero, Mari Posa, Diego Riste, and Ruben Abellon.
To Jie Mei, thank you for sharing research experience and encouraging me to complete
vii
viii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
my PhD on time. To Henk van der Vaart, I cannot thank you more for your family-
like guidance, understanding, wisdom, and those Sunday lectures. To Maria Clemens, I
deeply appreciate your encouragement and support to my work, particularly the help with
graphics and proof checking of this dissertation.
In the end, I also would like to thank my friends and family in China. I know your
support is always there for me. My deepest appreciation to my parents, they educate me
into who I am, and they sacrifice themselves to give me the freedom of choice.
I really enjoyed my PhD career in Delft.
Xiangwei Liu
Halle(Saale), 2016.07.28
C ONTENTS
1 Introduction 1
1.1 Aim of the research. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.2 Research methodology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.3 Outline of the thesis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
2 Idler performance 9
2.1 Reliability of belt conveyors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
2.2 Belt conveyor components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
2.2.1 The belt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
2.2.2 The pulleys. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
2.2.3 The drive unit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
2.2.4 The idlers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
2.3 Idler selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
2.3.1 Idler selection criteria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
2.3.2 Idler selection procedures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
2.4 Idler roll failure analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
2.5 Prediction of idler roll failures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
2.6 Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
3 Stress discontinuity model for bulk load determination 27
3.1 Derivation of the roll load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
3.2 Related earth pressure theories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
3.2.1 Coulomb’s earth pressure theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
3.2.2 Rankine’s earth pressure theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
3.2.3 Sokolovski’s stress discontinuity method . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
3.3 Review on bulk and belt models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
3.3.1 Models for the bulk load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
3.3.2 Model for the belt load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
3.3.3 Coupled model for the bulk and belt load . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
3.4 Development of the SD model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
3.4.1 Dynamic movement of bulk materials. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
3.4.2 Active stress state analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
3.4.3 Passive stress state analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
3.4.4 Derivation of the bulk load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
ix
x C ONTENTS
3.5 Comparisons with the KH model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

3.6 The roll bearing load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
3.7 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
4 Experimental determination of bulk load 63
4.1 Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
4.2 Experimental setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
4.2.1 Belt conveyor facility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
4.2.2 Tekscan measurement system. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
4.2.3 Independent instruments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
4.3 Experimental procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
4.4 Results and discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
4.4.1 Re-arrangement of preliminary results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
4.4.2 Post-process scheme . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
4.4.3 Comparisons of experimental and theoretical results . . . . . . . 78
4.5 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
5 Experimental condition monitoring of idler rolls 85
5.1 Condition monitoring of the idlers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
5.1.1 Human sensory inspection and interpretation . . . . . . . . . . . 86
5.1.2 Sensor assisted inspection and human interpretation. . . . . . . . 86
5.1.3 Automated inspection and interpretation . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
5.2 Laboratory idler experiments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
5.2.1 Design of the test rig . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
5.2.2 Inducement of bearing defects and damages . . . . . . . . . . . 90
5.2.3 Sensor selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
5.2.4 Sensor installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
5.2.5 Experimental procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
5.2.6 Results and discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
5.3 In-situ idler experiments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
5.3.1 Experimental setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
5.3.2 Results and discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
5.4 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
6 Integrated maintenance decision making 121
6.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
6.2 Framework of integrated maintenance decision making . . . . . . . . . . 123
6.3 Case study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
6.4 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
7 Conclusions and recommendations 133
7.1 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
7.2 Recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
Bibliography 137
Appendix 149
Glossary 165
Summary 169
C ONTENTS xi
Samenvatting 171
Curriculum Vitae 173
1
I NTRODUCTION
Belt conveyor systems are widely utilized for continuous transport of dry bulk materials
(i.e. coal, iron ore) over varying distances. A vast variety of industries like the mining,
power sector, cement production, and bulk terminals (Figure 1.1) rely on the performance
of belt conveyor systems. Compared with other bulk haulage modes like the trucking
and railway, belt conveyor systems provide many advantages such as a higher capac-
ity, lower cost, higher efficiency, less human involvement and proven reliability (Roberts,
1981; Smith and Spriggs, 1981). Along with the growing international trade in major bulk
materials, there is an increasing demand for the transportation of bulk materials. Corre-
spondingly, large-scale belt conveyor systems have been installed to meet the demand for
higher capacity and longer distance application of continuous conveying of bulk materials
(Harrison and Roberts, 1983; Lodewijks, 2011).
Figure 1.1: Part of a 1.5 km long belt conveyor system on a bulk terminal,
figure courtesy of Rizhao Port Group Co., Ltd.
The reliability of belt conveyor systems is of major concern for the operators. High
reliability of belt conveyor systems ensures the availability of the systems to achieve high
1
2 1. I NTRODUCTION
productivity of transportation of bulk materials. On contrary, breakdowns of belt conveyor

1 systems result in downtime of the systems. The downtime of belt conveyor systems leads
to stoppage of transportation of bulk materials, influencing subsequent material process-
ing and production, and consequently causes serious financial loss. In a mining plant, for
example, sixty percent of the plant downtime was attributed to conveyor problems (Stein-
berg, 1983). The downtime cost of belt conveyor systems may vary from one application
to another. The financial loss due to the downtime of belt conveyor systems can be in a
range of 100,000 to 200,000 Euro per hour, considering the loss of the revenue from ma-
terial conveying, and shutdowns of subsequent material processing facilities (Lodewijks,
2015).
(a)
(b)
Figure 1.2: Schematic layout of a belt conveyor system, (a) overview of all conveyor
components and (b) cross section of idler stations.
Figure 1.2 (a) illustrates a schematic layout of a belt conveyor system. A belt is
spanned between a head pulley and a tail pulley. The head pulley is connected to a drive
unit, which consists of an electric motor, multiple couplings, and a gearbox. Bulk material
is loaded on the belt through a loading chute, and is conveyed forward along with the
movement of the belt over spatially distributed carrying idlers. A conventional trough
carrying idler consists of two wing rolls and one center roll which are installed on a rigid
frame [Figure 1.2 (b)]. A return idler consists of one or two rolls, or three rolls when
going through a curve. Each idler roll consists of a shell, a shaft, two bearings, two
bearing houses, and two sealing systems (Figure 1.3). A take-up subsystem is used to
apply pre-tension on the belt.
The reliability of a belt conveyor system can be considered as the integrated reliability
3
Figure 1.3: Anatomy of an idler roll, derived from CKIT (2012).

Note: 1 refers to the bearing house, 2 is the bearing, 3 is the shell, 4 refers to the shaft, and 5
represents the sealing system.
of all components. Unplanned downtime of a belt conveyor system is generally caused

by the belt or rotating components such as the pulleys, idlers and drive unit (Zimroz and
Krol, 2009). The malfunction of one of these components may lead to a shutdown of
the whole conveyor system in order to carry out maintenance activities like repairing or
replacing failed components. For example, failed idler rolls (Figure 1.4) can damage
conveyor belts seriously, and consequently add downtime and maintenance cost for belt
conveyor systems (Lodewijks, 2003).
Figure 1.4: A typical failed idler roll, figure courtesy of Rizhao Port Group Co., Ltd.
A direct way to increase the reliability of belt conveyor systems is to improve the
reliability of the components (Pang, 2010). In literature on reliability engineering con-
cerned with belt conveyor systems, the focus of research on the component level is on
the belt, pulleys and drive units. Condition monitoring is considered as an effective man-
ner to improve the reliability of the components (Pang and Lodewijks, 2012). With the
development of sensing technologies, most belt conveyor components except idlers can
be monitored online (Pang and Lodewijks, 2011). Design, engineering, monitoring and
maintenance of conveyor belts have been investigated in order to improve the performance
4 1. I NTRODUCTION
(i.e. Harrison and Roberts, 1983; Pang, 2010). In addition, research on how to improve
1 the design and effective condition monitoring of pulleys has been carried out (i.e. King,
1983; Zimroz and Bartelmus, 2012). The diagnosis on the condition of drive units, espe-
cially the gearboxes, is also a focus (i.e. Bartelmus, 2003).
However, to increase the reliability of belt conveyor systems with respect to idlers is
underdeveloped. The performance of the idlers has a large impact on the reliable oper-
ation of belt conveyor systems (Bartelmus and Sawicki, 2000; Geesmann et al., 2009a).
Nevertheless, belt conveyor idlers lack the due attention from researchers and operators
(Relcks, 2008). So far idler rolls are the most difficult to be monitored in automated ways
due to their large amount (up to 20,000 rolls for a 10 km long belt conveyor system),
the scale of monitoring systems and the spatial distribution of rolls (Pang and Lodewijks,
2011). Meanwhile, idler rolls are often neglected because they are relatively simple and
cheap compared to other components (i.e. the belt and pulleys) of a belt conveyor system.
This circumstance may be true for belt conveyor systems of short distance. However,
idler rolls in large-scale belt conveyor systems are important considering the large initial
purchasing investment, high operating and maintenance cost, and the costly consequences
of idler roll failures. In fact, many operators suffer from damages and breakdowns of belt
conveyor systems caused by idler roll failures (Tuckey et al., 1985).
1.1 Aim of the research

The main research question of this project is:
How to improve the reliability of belt conveyor systems?
For the sake of high productivity in transportation of bulk materials with low cost, high
reliability of belt conveyor systems is required. Low reliability of belt conveyor systems
leads to insufficient utilization and serious financial loss in forms of added downtime, loss
of revenues from the conveyance of bulk materials, and high maintenance cost. To achieve
high reliability of belt conveyor systems, a direct way is to ensure the reliable operation of
all components. Among the conveyor components, the reliability of the belt, drive units
and pulleys has been researched while the idlers are neglected. This research focuses on
how to improve the reliability of belt conveyor systems with respect to the idlers. Since
the condition of idler rolls decreases with aging and accumulated wear, predictive main-
tenance is required in order to ensure the reliable performance of belt conveyor idlers.
Therefore, four sub research questions need to be examined:
1. How to predict idler roll failures?
In order to improve the reliability of belt conveyor systems with respect to the idlers,
it is necessary to predict idler roll failures. Prediction and detection of idler roll failures
allow programmed maintenance, and preventing a small failure from turning into a large
catastrophe (Owen, 1997). The prediction of idler roll failures is important for planning
maintenance activities (i.e. inspections and replacements) in time, and for ensuring the
reliable operation of idlers and belt conveyor systems.
There are three potential approaches to predict idler roll failures, theoretical calcula-
tion of the reliability of idler rolls based on their operational conditions (i.e. the load and
1.2. R ESEARCH METHODOLOGY 5
rotational speed), detection of idler roll failures based on condition monitoring data, as
well as integrated maintenance decision making based on the two previous approaches. 1
2. How to calculate the reliability of idler rolls?
Theoretical calculation of the reliability or lifetime of idler rolls is important for the
long term planning of maintenance activities. One characteristic of idler rolls in a belt con-
veyor system is the large amount of identical units. Since most idler rolls (except the idler
rolls in special sections like curved trajectories) are under same operational conditions,
they are supposed to have same reliability characteristics. By calculating the reliability
of idler rolls, conveyor operators can obtain an adequate prediction of the failure rate of
idler rolls within a belt conveyor system. With the prediction of failure rate, maintenance
activities like periodic inspections and idler replacements can be planned accordingly. For
example, a long inspection interval can be planned if prediction of a low failure rate of
idler rolls exists and vice versa.
3. How to detect idler roll failures?
The detection of idler roll failures is critical for the decision making on replacements
of idler rolls. Though the idler rolls are assumed to be identical and under the same
operational conditions in theoretical calculation of reliability, failure occurs randomly to
individual roll due to unpreventable differences in the design, fabrication, installation and
operation. For instance, difference in the quality of roll bearings may lead to large vari-
ation in the lifetime of idler rolls within a belt conveyor system. As a result, idler roll
failures have to be detected on individual roll level based on condition monitoring data.
4. Is it possible to achieve integrated decision making on idler maintenance?
Decisions on the idler maintenance mainly include diagnoses on idler roll failures and
determination of inspection intervals. Theoretical calculation of the reliability or lifetime
generally provides prediction on the failure rate of idler rolls with a certain discrepancy
from the reality. On the other hand, inaccuracy also exists in detection of failures based
on condition monitoring data. Consequently, it can be a challenge to achieve accurate
maintenance decisions merely based on one of the two approaches. Therefore, it is de-
sirable to develop an approach which combines the information from both the theoretical
calculation and condition monitoring approaches.
1.2 Research methodology

Both theoretical and experimental research methodologies will be applied in this research.
The prediction of idler roll failures is important to maintain the reliable operation of idlers.
The prediction of idler roll failures may be achieved by the theoretical calculation ap-
proach, the condition monitoring approach, and the integrated approach. The capability
of these three approaches will be improved.
In order to improve the accuracy of theoretical calculation of the reliability of idler
rolls, research will focus on deriving the load on idler roll bearings. The proper running
of idler rolls is largely dependent on the functioning of bearings (Rozentals and Msaime,
6 1. I NTRODUCTION
1981; Lodewijks, 2003; Wheeler and Ausling, 2007). As a result, theoretical calcula-
1 tion of the reliability of idler rolls can be achieved by calculation of the reliability of
roll bearings. The bearing lifetime theory from Lundberg and Palmgren (1949) will be
employed in this research. According to the bearing lifetime theory, the load on roll bear-
ings is critical information for the calculation with a given rotating speed of the bearings
(and hence the belt velocity). Krause and Hettler (1974) developed the only well-known
theoretical model to calculate the load on idler rolls. However, their approach is consid-
ered to overestimate the load on wing rolls while underestimating the load on center rolls
(Wheeler, 2003a). Therefore, the focus of this theoretical research is on how to develop a
more accurate model to determine the load on idler rolls and further roll bearings. With
more accurate determination of the load on roll bearings, the capability of the theoretical
approach can be improved.
To derive the load on idler rolls, an analytical approach from soil mechanics will be
applied to determine the pressure on conveyor belts exerted by bulk materials. Experi-
mental study will be carried out to measure the pressure on a loaded conveyor belt.
Experimental study will be carried out on both laboratory and in-situ belt conveyors to
investigate which monitoring parameters (temperature, vibration and acoustic emission)
are suitable for the detection of idler roll failures. Though solutions for the condition
monitoring of idler rolls are under development, the choice of monitoring parameters is
still arbitrary. For the laboratory experiments, idler rolls with various defects and damages
are prepared to simulate idler roll failures. In-situ experiments will be carried out on a
terminal conveyor. With applicable monitoring parameters, the detectability of idler roll
failures can be improved.
1.3 Outline of the thesis

The outline of the thesis is shown in Figure 1.5.
Chapter 2 introduces basic knowledge on the reliability of belt conveyors and the
performance of idlers. Particularly, the reasons for idler roll failures and the consequences
are discussed.
Chapter 3 focuses on deriving the load on idler roll bearings. For the theoretical
calculation of the reliability of idler rolls, bearing lifetime theories are available. However,
the method to determine the load on roll bearings is underdeveloped.
Chapter 4 presents an experimental study on the measurements of the pressure on a
running conveyor belt caused by bulk materials.
Chapter 5 introduces an experimental study on the condition monitoring of idler rolls
in both laboratory and in-situ environment. Temperature, vibration and acoustic sensors
are applied in the experiment.
Chapter 6 presents a framework for the decision making of idler maintenance. The
framework integrates both theoretical calculation of the failure rate of idler rolls and the
information from condition monitoring data.
Chapter 7 gives conclusions and recommendations.
1.3. O UTLINE OF THE THESIS 7
Basics of conveyor reliability

and idler performance
Chapter 2
Theoretical calculation of the

load on the belt and idler rolls
Chapter 3
Experimental study on the
condition monitoring of idlers
Measurement of the pressure Chapter 5

on the belt due to the material
Chapter 4
Integration of two approaches

for decision making
Chapter 6
Conclusions and recommenda-

tions
Chapter 7
Figure 1.5: Thesis outline.

2
I DLER PERFORMANCE
The reliable performance of belt conveyors is critical to ensure uninterrupted transport of

dry bulk materials. This chapter discusses the reliability of belt conveyors. Section 2.1
introduces the reliability of belt conveyor systems at different levels. Section 2.2 reviews
research on improving the reliability of belt conveyor components. Section 2.3 presents
the criteria and procedures for the selection of idlers. Prediction of the performance of
belt conveyor idlers requires the analysis of idler roll failures. Section 2.4 discusses the
reasons for idler roll failures and the consequences. Section 2.5 proposes the methodology
that will be used for the rest of the thesis. Section 2.6 summarizes this chapter.
2.1 Reliability of belt conveyors

The reliability of a belt conveyor can be defined as the percentage of operational time
the conveyor’ continuous performance is guaranteed (Lodewijks and Ottjes, 2005a). The
reliability of a belt conveyor represents the level of availability for the conveyor as a whole
equipment for the transport of bulk materials within a certain period of operational time.
The reliability of a belt conveyor determines the design capacity of the conveyor. To
design a new belt conveyor, information such as the total amount of bulk materials to be
conveyed, the available time for operation, and a presumed reliability of the belt conveyor
is required. With this information, the design capacity of the conveyor can be derived as
the total amount of bulk materials divided by the product of the available operational time
and the presumed reliability.
The design capacity of a belt conveyor on the other hand is a key determinant for the
capital and operational costs. Belt conveyors are capital intensive equipment. Worldwide
approximate $600 million USD annually is spent on new installation and replacement of
belt conveyors (Nordell, 2003). A higher design capacity necessitates higher belt speed
and/or wider conveyor belts. Each option will raise the cost. For example, utilization of a
wider belt will raise the annual equivalent cost of the system (Roberts and Harrison, 1987)
due to the investment of larger conveyor infrastructure and components like idlers, pulleys
and drive units. A higher belt speed results in larger power consumption of a conveyor
9
10 2. I DLER PERFORMANCE
(Paul and Shortt, 2007). Therefore, the presumed reliability of belt conveyors is strongly
related to the cost of bulk material conveying. With a higher reliability, a lower design
capacity can be achieved and therefore lower cost for belt conveying can be realized.
The reliability of belt conveyors can be considered at three aggregation levels: the sys-
tem, the equipment and the component level (Lodewijks and Ottjes, 2005b). The system
2 reliability represents the overall operational performance of a belt conveyor system which
consists of multiple conveyors and transfer stations. The reliability at the equipment level
considers the performance of a single belt conveyor. At the component level, different
conveyor components have their own reliability due to condition changing and degrada-
tion. In this thesis, the reliability of belt conveyors will be discussed at the equipment and
component levels.
The equipment reliability of a belt conveyor can be obtained from the reliability of
its components. In this study four conveyor components are included: the belt, drive
unit, pulleys, and idlers. From general reliability engineering, an equation to calculate the
equipment reliability R for a series of independent components (O’Connor, 1991) is:
n
Y
R= Ri (2.1)
i =1
where R i is the reliability of the i th component.

With given reliability of different components, the equipment reliability of a belt con-
veyor can be obtained by applying Eq. (2.1). As a result, the equipment reliability of a
belt conveyor can be expressed by a reliability number (Lodewijks and Ottjes, 2005b).
Research on improving the reliability of belt conveyors at the equipment level has
been carried out. The development of integrated monitoring of major conveyor com-
ponents contributes significantly to the reliability control of belt conveyors (Pang and
Lodewijks, 2013). Reliability control refers to the process to maintain the reliability of a
belt conveyor at a certain level. For example, the Intelligent Belt Conveyor Monitoring
and Control system was developed (Pang, 2010), by which the interrelationship among
monitored components can be investigated so that maintenance and operational strategies
can be chosen to maintain a high level of equipment reliability. Considering the spatial
distribution (i.e. data acquisition from highly distributed sensors) and the functional dis-
tribution (i.e. different sensors for the condition monitoring of one component) that are
required for the integration at the equipment level, Pang and Lodewijks (2012) proposed
a multi-agent architecture (Figure 2.1) for the Intelligent Belt Conveyor Monitoring and
Control system. Under the multi-agent architecture, agents that monitor and diagnose
individual component are organized into cooperative communities to achieve optimum
reliability control of a belt conveyor.
Improving the reliability of belt conveyor components is a direct way to increase the
equipment reliability of belt conveyors. Continuous monitoring is considered as an ef-
fective manner to improve the reliability of conveyor components (Pang and Lodewijks,
2012). Therefore, condition monitoring of belt conveyor components has gain much at-
tention in recent years.
2.2 Belt conveyor components

Belt conveyor components need to be monitored in order to understand their actual status.
With condition monitoring, potential failures can be detected or predicted in advance, and
2.2. B ELT CONVEYOR COMPONENTS 11
Figure 2.1: Multi-agent architecture, derived from Pang and Lodewijks (2012).
Note: KB represents knowledge base, DAC represents data acquisition, and DAN represents data
analysis.
corrective actions can be carried out to ensure the reliability of conveyor components.
Advances in sensing technologies have fueled the development of condition monitoring
of components within a belt conveyor.
2.2.1 The belt

Monitoring technologies have been developed to detect or even predict damages to con-
veyor belts. Considering the actual status of a conveyor belt, three conditions are of
concern for condition monitoring: the health of carcasses, the condition of belt splices,
and the wear of belt covers. In principle, conveyor belt monitoring technologies can be
categorized into non-embedded belt monitoring and embedded belt monitoring.
The non-embedded belt monitoring commonly applies magnetic, X-ray, or machine
vision technologies. Harrison (1984) developed a conveyor belt monitoring system based
on a magnetic technology. In the system, a magnetic circuit is formed between a trans-
ducer and a receiver via steel carcasses in a belt. The difference between the input voltage
at the transducer and the output voltage at the receiver reflects condition change of a belt
including the vertical displacement of steel cords, corrosion and belt wear (Harrison and
Brown, 1986). The limitation of the system is that it can only be applied to steel cord
reinforced belts. Alport et al. (2001) investigated the utilization of video cameras for the
condition monitoring of conveyor belts. Considering the large amount of images produced
by a camera during each inspection, Artificial Neural Networks methods are applied to
improve the efficiency and accuracy of image processing. The advantage of the system is
its easiness to install and operate. A drawback can be that residual of sticky materials on
belt covers may give false indication of damages. Besides that, visual images only pro-
vide limited indication of the condition of internal carcasses and splices. The application
of X-ray technology is also reported (Fourie et al., 2005). The monitoring of belt condi-
tion is achieved by using a low energy digital X-ray camera to scan a belt. The images
produced by such a X-ray camera can reveal potential damages of a belt for instance a
damage of the splice (Figure 2.2). However, the X-ray images may be difficult and time
consuming to interpret because of the poor image quality derived from harsh environment
surrounding a belt conveyor. In addition, safety may also be a concern when applying
X-ray technology.
Figure 2.2: X-ray image of damaged splice of a belt, figure courtesy of

Conveyor Expert B.V.
Condition monitoring of conveyor belts can also be achieved by applying embedded

conductors in conveyor belts (Figure 2.3). In a patent, two conductors are embedded in a
belt to monitor belt splices (Alles and Wach, 2000). The monitoring is realized by contin-
uously measuring the distance between the two conductors. An increase of the distance
potentially indicates increased belt tension or damage of splices. In another patented tech-
nology, microcoil springwire is applied as conductors (Gartland, 2002). Potential belt rips
can be detected by external detectors as the break of microcoil springwire. Springwire is
chosen because it can resist self-damage due to normal belt vibrating. A matrix of Hall ef-
fect magnetic sensors is also proposed to be embedded in conveyor belts to measure main
operating parameters such as the identity, speed, wear, and belt tension (Pang, 2010). A
common limitation for the category of embedded belt monitoring technology is that it is
contemporarily difficult to manufacture conveyor belts with embedded conductors due to
the high temperature during belt manufacturing and the low adhesion between a belt and
embedded sensors (Pang and Lodewijks, 2011).
Figure 2.3: Principle of embedded belt monitoring, derived from Pang (2010).
Prediction of belt damages enhances the reliability of conveyor belts. With continuous
monitoring of conveyor belts, diagnosis and even prognosis on the condition of conveyor
belts can be achieved by using for instance Fuzzy Logic (Lodewijks and Ottjes, 2005b).
Corrective actions (i.e. reparation and replacement) can be programmed to prevent a small
belt damage from developing into a severe one. In this way, the reliability of conveyor
belts can be maintained.
2.2. B ELT CONVEYOR COMPONENTS 13
2.2.2 The pulleys

The pulleys of most belt conveyors can be monitored (Pang, 2010). A main focus of the
monitoring of pulleys is to detect failures of pulley bearings (Fauerbach, 1993). Pulley
bearing failures cause considerable downtime and cost for reparation or replacement.
There are a limited number of studies on the condition monitoring of bearings in pul-
leys. Temperature and vibration are two common parameters of monitoring. As most
2
pulleys are large in scale, there is sufficient space to install sensors permanently. Contact
(i.e. thermocouples) and non-contact (i.e. infrared sensors) temperature sensors can be
applied to measure the temperature of pulley bearings. In general, temperature based di-
agnosis on the condition of pulley bearings is to assess whether the measured temperature
exceeds a presumed threshold value. For example, Owen (1997) considers that a bearing
failure may occur if the measured temperature of a bearing exceeds 90 ◦ C.
However, the temperature based diagnosis on the condition of pulley bearings is not
accurate. For one reason, it is a challenge to obtain a proper threshold value which can
distinguish failures of pulley bearings. Even for same bearings, the threshold may vary
considerably under different operational conditions and application environment (Saw-
icki et al., 2015). For another reason, temperature measurements of bearings may fluc-
tuate due to external disturbances (i.e. temporary overloading). The fluctuation can lead
to false alarms if measured temperatures exceed the threshold value. To overcome these
limitations, Sawicki et al. (2015) proposed a framework to process acquired data. The pro-
posed data processing consists of several steps including outliers removing, re-sampling,
segmentation, decomposition, and de-trending. After processing, diagnostic information
can be retrieved from the low frequency trend signals. With data processing, more reli-
able diagnosis on the condition of bearings is supposed to be achieved compared to the
conventional approach without data processing.
Compared to temperature measurement, vibration measurement requires more sophis-
ticated analysis. Excessive vibration detected by accelerometers can provide early indi-
cation of pulley bearing failures (Owen, 1997). Recent progress in signal processing and
analysis such as adaptive filtering (Zimroz and Bartelmus, 2012) enables the extraction of
rich information from the signal acquired by accelerometers. Information like the Kurto-
sis, RMS level, frequencies and their corresponding energy of vibration may be applied
as diagnostic bases.
Most pulleys are located at either end of a belt conveyor, so it is relatively easy to
collect and transfer condition monitoring data to the central control room. In addition,
continuous monitoring of every pulley is feasible considering the limited cost to develop
a monitoring system compared to the considerable cost due to potential pulley failures.
Robust diagnosis on the condition of pulleys therefore improves the reliability of pulleys
by providing information for planning maintenance activities in advance.
2.2.3 The drive unit

Research on improving the reliability of drive units has received considerable attention.
The drive unit plays a key role in the continuous operation of a belt conveyor. Drive
units are very sensitive to system degradation, contamination and overloading operations
(Hills, 2009). Within a drive unit, the gearbox is a critical rotating motion transmission
component. Therefore, improving the reliability of gearboxes by using condition monitor-
ing has been a focus (Chaari et al., 2012). Vibration measurement is a common approach
for the condition monitoring of gearboxes. The vibration signal requires further process-
ing before being used for the diagnosis. Model based diagnosis has been introduced into
the diagnoses of gearboxes. The approach is based on comparisons between the mea-
sured vibration signal and a priori of vibration characteristic in form of a mathematical
model (Chen and Patton, 1999). Diagnosis can be achieved through generating residual
quantities when the mathematical model tries to match measurement results. For exam-
2 ple, Bartelmus (2001, 2003) proposed diagnoses of one- and two-stage gearboxes based
on dynamic modeling of gearboxes and vibration signal. However, it can be difficult to
verify such a mathematical model with the actual condition of the modeled system.
Besides vibration, measurements of other electromechanical parameters (i.e. acoustic

emission, torque on shafts, current and voltage of motors) are also applied. For example,
Hills (2009) reported the application of measurements of the current of motors for the
continuous monitoring of drive units within belt conveyors. But no sufficient information
is provided in the study. Jeinsch et al. (2002) also successfully detected a seeded fault of
a drive unit by using the model based diagnosis through measurements of driving torque
and belt speed. With the effort for development of continuous monitoring of drive units,
the reliability of drive units is generally ensured.
2.2.4 The idlers
While most conveyor components are monitored continuously to maintain their reliability,
idler rolls remain a challenge to be monitored (Pang and Lodewijks, 2011). Though the
idlers, pulleys and gearboxes are categorized as rotating elements within a belt conveyor,
the differences among them make it challenging to apply same condition monitoring solu-
tions. Firstly, the sizes and locations of pulleys and gearboxes enable easy installation of
permanent sensors (Hills, 2009). On contrary, very limited space is available on an idler
roll for the installation of monitoring sensors (Liu et al., 2014a). Secondly, successful
applications of vibration, acoustic emission and temperature based condition monitoring
for pulleys and gearboxes have been reported as mentioned in previous subsections, the
applicability of these monitoring parameters for the idler roll monitoring remains dubi-
ous. Thirdly, it is feasible to monitor every pulley and gearbox because of their limited
amount within a belt conveyor. Considering the large amount and highly distribution of
idler rolls, however, a question rises whether it is cost effective to install sensor(s) on each
roll.
Conventionally, idler rolls are inspected by maintenance personnel in human sensory

manners (eye watching and ear listening). Such inspection can lead to inconsistent and
unreliable diagnosis on the condition of idler rolls (Lodewijks and Ottjes, 2005b). Re-
cent development in the monitoring of idler rolls provides automated mobile monitoring
systems and automated fixed monitoring systems. Automated mobile monitoring systems
follow the concept of intelligent maintenance of idlers proposed by Lodewijks (2003), in
which the inspection of idler rolls can be carried out by robot manipulators installed on a
trolley. Meanwhile, automated fixed monitoring systems are developed with ideas of in-
stalling sensors permanently into every idler roll. Sensors will collect data automatically
and periodically. A detailed review on the development of condition monitoring of idler
rolls can be found in Section 5.1.
2.3. I DLER SELECTION 15
2.3 Idler selection

The structure of an idler as well as the anatomy of a roll has been briefly introduced in
Chapter 1 (Figure 1.2 and 1.3). Steel is commonly used to construct idler rolls. Be-
sides steel rolls, idler rolls made of new materials are immerging. For example, Rulmeca
Holding S.p.A. (2003) introduced TOP thermoplastic rolls. The TOP rolls are made of 2
a thermoplastic material except bearings and shafts. Deep groove ball bearings are com-
monly utilized in idler rolls because they cannot only transfer radial force but endure a
small amount of axial load. Sealing systems are important to prevent roll bearings from
dust and water contamination.
In this section, the criteria as well as the industrial practice for the selection of idler
rolls will be discussed. The selection of idler rolls needs to meet the technical, economic
and environmental requirements. From the technical aspect, the main role of idler rolls is
to provide support for a belt and conveyed bulk material with minimum rotating resistance
(Geesmann et al., 2008). From the economic aspect, the selection needs to consider the
life cycle cost of the rolls. The environment impact of idler rolls can be pollution in forms
of noise, dust, spillage, as well as metal waste (Pang and Lodewijks, 2011). The industrial
practice for the selection of idler rolls includes the calculation of the load on idler rolls
and the selection of subcomponents including the bearing, shell, and shaft.
2.3.1 Idler selection criteria

There are five main criteria for the selection of idler rolls: the load carrying capacity,
lifetime, cost, rolling resistance, and the environment impact.
The load carrying capacity is the primary requirement for idler rolls. The selection
must ensure that selected rolls can endure the load exerted by a belt and bulk material
(Geesmann et al., 2008). If the selected idler rolls cannot endure the load during operation,
premature failure will occur soon due to excessive stress and deformation.
The lifetime of idler rolls is determined by a combination of the rolls and their oper-
ational conditions (Król and Kisielewski, 2014). It is difficult to estimate the lifetime of
idler rolls because it may be affected by many variables which are hard to quantify. Idler
manufacturers normally provide a rating lifetime according to the L 10 bearing lifetime
theory (Conveyor Equipment Manufacturers Association, 2014).
In view of the cost of belt conveyor idlers, the selection must consider the life cycle
costs, including the initial investment of purchasing new idlers, associated operation and
maintenance costs, and the cost of disposal. Compared to the initial investment, the opera-
tion and maintenance costs are hard to calculate due to the dependence on a given applica-
tion, and lack of associated information such as quantification of the energy consumption
and maintenance cost only allocated to idlers. The rolling resistance, mainly including the
indentation rolling resistance (Lodewijks, 1995, 1996) and the rotating resistance of idler
rolls (Geesmann et al., 2008), is a key determinant of the power consumption associated
with idler rolls. This is of particular importance for long overland belt conveyors (Roberts
and Harrison, 1987). The rolling resistance may contribute up to 40 percent of the total
resistance of a belt conveyor (Gladysiewicz et al., 2004).
With growing requirement for the environment impact, the potential environment pol-
lution becomes important consideration when selecting idler rolls. The noise emission
is of big concern (Geesmann et al., 2009b). Failed rolls produce an excessive level of
noise. The noise emission may cause serious problem for workforce in the field, and for
the residence if a belt conveyor passes through residential areas (Haines, 2007). The noise
emission from idler rolls may originate from the shells, bearings or shaft ends, of which
the first two are recognized as major source by CEMA (Farmer, 2000). One way to lower
the noise pollution is to install acoustic enclosure. Recent introduction of new materials
into roll construction, for instance polymeric materials, has been proven to lower the level
2 of noise emission as well (Haines, 2007).
The selection of belt conveyor idlers also needs to consider the foreseen operational
environment. The operational environment of idlers can be divided into interactions with
their neighboring components and the ambient working environment.
The neighboring components of an idler include the transported bulk material, the belt
and the conveyor structure. The properties of bulk material (i.e. the density and coeffi-
cient of internal friction) govern the idler spacing and the load on idler rolls (Geesmann
et al., 2008; Liu et al., 2015a). Big lumps also result in high dynamic force on idler rolls
(Conveyor Equipment Manufacturers Association, 2004). In addition, sticky materials,
such as oil sand mentioned by Paton et al. (1995), will accelerate idler roll failures as they
can aggravate the abrasive wear between a belt and roll shells (Figure 2.4).
Figure 2.4: Build-up of materials on an idler roll, figure courtesy of Nylocomp Ltd.
The weight of a conveyor belt contributes to the load on idler rolls. Besides that,
flapping belts often lead to idler roll failures due to the inducement of extra load on idler
rolls (Harrison, 1994). The sliding between a belt and a roll shell also accelerates the shell
wear.
A stable and rigid conveyor structure can provide reliable support for idlers. On the
other hand, a fragile conveyor structure will cause large deformation of idlers under the
load of conveyed material, plus the weight of the belt and the idlers. Consequently, idlers
under such circumstances will have more chances of run-out and premature failures (Wat-
son and Niekerk, 1989).
The ambient temperature, humility, and dust also have influence on the idler perfor-
mance. Idlers which are exposed to extreme temperature will be largely influenced by
the effectiveness of lubricant. A 20 km belt conveyor system which was subject to ambi-
ent temperature from -53 ◦ C to +33 ◦ C showed a high idler roll failure rate (Paton et al.,
1995). The outdoor idler rolls (i.e. rolls in belt conveyors at bulk terminals) which are
exposed to high humility have potential risk of water contamination. Meanwhile, dust is
also a large source of contamination for idler roll bearings (Granig, 2000).
2.3. I DLER SELECTION 17
2.3.2 Idler selection procedures

To select proper idler rolls for a belt conveyor project, the first step is to calculate the load
on idler rolls during the foreseen operations. The load determines the dimensioning of
idler rolls (Geesmann et al., 2008). The load needs to be examined at two levels, the load
on one idler as a unit and the load on each roll of an idler.
The load on one idler consists of the weight of the idler, the resulting forces from the
2
conveyor belt and the loaded bulk material within one idler spacing. Industry standards
provide guidelines to calculate the forces from the belt and bulk material with given pa-
rameters of the conveyor (i.e. the capacity and belt speed), the belt (i.e. the type of belt
and belt width), and the bulk material (i.e. the density and lump size). CEMA (Con-
veyor Equipment Manufacturers Association, 2004) established a guideline to calculate
the forces on an idler by assuming a circular surcharge surface of the cross section of bulk
material. Standard DIN 22101 (German Institute for Standardization, 2002) provides a
theoretical calculation of the cross section based on a pentagonoid shape (Figure 2.5).
The area of the cross section can be calculated as (German Institute for Standardization,
2002):
tan β b − lM b − lM
· ¸
A t h = [l M + (b − l M ) · cos α]2 · + lM + · cos α · · sin α (2.2)
4 2 2
where l M is the length of the shell of the center roll (m), b is the loaded belt length (m),
α is the trough angle (◦ ), β is the conveyor surcharge angle of the bulk material (◦ ).
Figure 2.5: Theoretical cross section of bulk material in case of horizontal

conveying and of three identical rolls, derived from German Institute for
Standardization (2002).
The bulk volume can be further derived with the calculated cross section and a pre-
sumed idler spacing. Therefore, the weight of the bulk material within one idler spacing
can be determined with the density of the bulk material. The weight of the belt within one
idler spacing can be obtained from belt manufacturer.
After determining the load on each idler, the load on each roll can be further cal-
culated. For idlers equipped with three identical rolls, load sharing among three rolls
regarding the weight of the belt can be based on the contact length of the belt with each
roll. In addition, a load sharing factor is commonly applied to derive the load from the
bulk material on each roll. The load sharing factor can be expressed as a ratio between
the radial load on the center roll and the total weight of the bulk material within one idler
spacing. The load sharing factor is empirical and generally within a range of 0.6 to 0.8
depending on the roll length and trough angle (Heemskerk, 1987; CKIT, 1991). Tooker
(1988) mentioned the load sharing factors according to CEMA as in Table 2.1. With the
load sharing factor, forces on the center roll and wing rolls can be calculated.
2
Table 2.1: Load sharing factors with varying trough angle.
Trough angle (°) Load factor (-)
20 0.722
35 0.778
45 0.81
The selection of the subcomponents in an idler is normally based on the calculated

load on the center roll. As center roll bearings are more heavily loaded than wing roll
bearings, the selection of the six bearings in an idler is based on the calculated load on the
center roll bearings. With the acquired load on the center roll, the load on either bearing
can be determined. The type and size of bearings can be further chosen. The size of the
bearing can be determined by comparing the calculated load on the bearing with the basic
dynamic load rating of bearings provided by bearing manufacturers.
In addition to roll bearings, the selection of roll shell is also important. The shell
needs to be capable to endure the load from the belt and the bulk material, while the
eccentricity and unbalance is restricted in order to ensure quiet and smooth running of
the rolls (Geesmann et al., 2009a). For the dimensioning of a shell, the thickness is the
most important parameter. For idler rolls in a straight trajectory, it can be assumed that
the load on one center roll is evenly distributed along the whole length of the shell. As a
result, following equation applies to calculate the angular deflection y shel l of the shell of
the center roll at the locations of bearings:
3
ql M
y shel l = (2.3)
24E I y
where q is the load on the shell (N/m) as a ratio of the center roll load and the shell length,
E is the Young’s modulus (GPa), I y is the moment of inertia with respect to the y-axis. I y
can be calculated considering the shell as a thin tubular wall:
πd 03 s
Iy = (2.4)
8
where d0 is the diameter of the shell (m), s is the thickness of the shell (m).
By applying Eq. (2.3) and (2.4), a minimum thickness of the shell can be obtained
with a goal to keep the angular deflection not exceeding 0.004 radians required for the
proper functioning of deep groove ball bearings (Tooker, 1988). Roll shells should be
thick enough not just to guarantee a maximum tolerable deflection under the load, but
also to survive the long term wear till the end of the lifetime of the roll.
2.4. I DLER ROLL FAILURE ANALYSIS 19
The dimensioning of roll shafts is also important. The deflection of roll shafts strongly
influences the performance of bearings if it exceeds a certain level. Excessive deflection
of roll shafts induces significant extra stress in the contacts of bearings therefore shortens
the fatigue life of bearings.
Figure 2.6 presents the schematic cutaway of a roll shaft. Considering the deflection
of a shaft is dominated by the radial forces on bearings, it is possible to calculate the 2
deflection of the shaft. If the radial forces on the two center roll bearings are equal, the
deflection angle y sha f t of the shaft can be calculated as:
16 · F NG, c · a 2 + a · c
¡ ¢
y sha f t = (2.5)
πE d 4
where a and c are dimensions in Figure 2.6, d is is the diameter of the shaft (m), and
F NG,c is the radial force on the center roll (N). From Eq. (2.5), the minimum diameter of
the shaft can be derived which can meet the maximum allowable deflection angle of the
shaft in order to ensure the bearing performance the same as the shell.
FNG,c 2 c FNG,c 2
a a
yshaft
d
Fs Fs
Figure 2.6: Schematic cutaway of an idler shaft assuming that the bearings do not
transmit any moment.
From the industrial practice for the selection of idler rolls, it can be concluded that a
precise determination of the load on idler rolls is still missing. The load sharing factors
provided by industrial standards are rather rough estimations. Idler rolls which are se-
lected according to such estimation often experience premature failures due to excessive
loading (Król and Kisielewski, 2014). The unequal load sharing between the wing rolls
and the center roll leads to unequal lifetime spans, which leads to challenges with the
monitoring and replacements of rolls. In some industrial practices, groups of idler rolls
are replaced at one time. This can result in waste of wing rolls which are still in good
conditions if decisions on roll replacements are based on the condition of center rolls. On
the other hand, severe center roll failures may occur if decisions on roll replacements are
based on the condition of wing rolls. As a result, research on the determination of the
load on idler rolls is needed.
2.4 Idler roll failure analysis

Improving the predictability of the performance of idler rolls requires analyses of their
failures. Firstly, the definitions of idler roll failures, including the incipient failure, the
final failure and the catastrophic failure are discussed. Figure 2.7 illustrates hypothetical
condition change of an idler roll observed from condition monitoring versus its service
time. Initially, the new installed idler roll works well under healthy condition. After a
certain time, an incipient failure (i.e. spalling in the bearing) occurs to the roll as a result
of fatigue. The incipient failure is defined as the bearing fatigue failure, which refers to
spalling on rolling elements or raceways reaching over 6.25 mm2 according to Li et al.
(1999). However, even when a spalling reaches such size, the spalling may propagate
without impairment of proper rotating of the bearing. Therefore a roll with incipient
failure can still fulfill its function until a final failure appears. Geesmann et al. (2008)
2 define the final failure of an idler roll as the loss of its suitability for operation. A roll
with the final failure may be observed impermissible noise emission, excessive runout, or
even in stuck state (Tomsky, 1985). A roll reaching the final failure needs to be replaced
quickly, otherwise the failure will develop into a catastrophic failure, in which the roll
would cause severe damage to the conveyor belt (i.e. cutting the belt through its broken
shell).
Figure 2.7: Hypothetical condition change of an idler roll versus its service time.
In this thesis, idler roll failure refers to the level of failure development between the
incipient failure and the final failure (t 1 ≤ t < t 2 in Figure 2.7). CEMA (Conveyor Equip-
ment Manufacturers Association, 2014) suggests that for idler rolls equipped with tapered
roller bearings, the final lifetime of the rolls is approximately 3 times of the L 10 bearing fa-
tigue lifetime. A bearing manufacturer for idler roll applications reported that the CEMA
rule applies to deep groove ball bearings as well (Tooker, 1988). Therefore, if prediction
of idler roll failures is achievable, there could be sufficient time to plan roll replacements
in scheduled downtime of belt conveyors.
Secondly, failure modes of idler rolls are discussed. Bearing failures and shell wear
are two main failure modes for idler rolls (Kruse, 2006; Zimroz et al., 2009). Figure 2.8
shows a survey of idler roll failures at an RWE mine (König and Burkhard, 2013). From
Figure 2.8 it can be seen that bearing failures and shell wear are the two most frequent roll
failure modes. Within the two main failure modes, the consequence of bearing failures
is more significant. The rate of shell wear will be accelerated if one bearing runs into
seized state. The malfunction of roll bearings is the most common idler roll failure mode
(Rozentals and Msaime, 1981; Lodewijks, 2003; Wheeler and Ausling, 2007). Therefore,
this thesis focuses on the roll bearing failures.
Reasons for roll bearing failures can be contamination, lack of lubrication, or over-
loading. Contamination (Figure 2.9) is a major factor that influences the actual lifetime
of bearings (SKF, 1986; Paul and Shortt, 2007; Relcks, 2008). Bearing contaminants can
2.4. I DLER ROLL FAILURE ANALYSIS 21
Figure 2.8: Failure modes of carrying side idler roll failures of belt conveyor
B2800er at RWE Tagebau Hambach in 2007 and 2012 in form of number (Stück);
Mantelverschleiß represents the shell wear, Lagerschaden indicates the bearing
damage, and Sonstiges represents other causes, derived from König and Burkhard
(2013).
be present in liquid and solid states. Therefore, the effectiveness of sealing systems is
important as the sealing system are designed to isolate bearings from external contami-
nants. Malfunction of sealing systems fails to prevent contaminants from entering bear-
ings, which will lead to bearing failure. The lubricant in a bearing is expected to function
till the end of lifetime of the bearings. Though bearings can be designed to service very
2 long time, the lubricant may not survive as long as the bearings (Roberts and Harrison,
1987). Therefore some bearings may be lack of lubrication when they are approaching
failure. The misalignment and large deflection of roll shafts have negative effects on the
lifetime of roll bearings by contributing additional radial and axial forces to the bearings
(Watson and Niekerk, 1989; Paul and Shortt, 2007).
Figure 2.9: Contamination of rolling bearing, derived from Geesmann et al. (2008).
Shell wear of idler rolls is also a common phenomenon. Abrasive wear occurs to the
shell of an idler roll as a result of sliding between the shell and the conveyor belt (Tuckey
et al., 1985). This eventually attenuates the shell untill it is broken (Figure 1.4). Abrasive
wear can be affected by improper installation, unqualified frame design, belt curves, mis-
alignment, and bearing failures (Madden, 1997). The abrasive wear can become much
more worse if particles enter the interface between idler rolls and a belt. Particularly,
Geesmann et al. (2008) pointed out that the shell wear tends to occur more to wing rolls
than to center rolls because additional friction moments occur between wing belt sections
and wing rolls due to the tendency of the wing belt sections moving towards center rolls.
The consequences of idler roll failures are among others added energy consumption,
downtime, added maintenance cost, damages to equipment, and loss of revenue. The
scale of idler roll failures depends on the failure rate of idler rolls in a belt conveyor, and
the seriousness of roll failures. In a survey of failure rates of twenty belt conveyors for a
period of six months, Gurjar (2012) found that idler roll failures constitute 74.1 percent
of the total mechanical failures of the conveyors. Belt conveyors with stuck idler rolls
consume much more energy. In some cases, if 10 percent of rolls are in seized state the
belt conveyor would consume an additional 100 percent of power (Stewart-Lord, 1991).
Even worse scenario is that failed idler rolls can cause fire. Actually, idler rolls are
identified as one of the main sources of fires in mines and power sector (Francart, 2006;
Fernandez et al., 2013). One case is that Dong Power Energy Copenhagen caught a fire
with huge financial loss in 2012 (Figure 2.10). Investigations concluded that the cause of
the fire was that a failed hot roll dropped and ignited accumulated wood dust underneath
2.5. P REDICTION OF IDLER ROLL FAILURES 23
the conveyor belt (Barry, 2014).
Figure 2.10: Fire at Dong Power Energy Copenhagen, derived from Barry (2014).
2.5 Prediction of idler roll failures

Facing the consequences of idler roll failures, prediction of roll failures is important to
achieve cost-effective maintenance of idlers. If adequate prediction of roll failures can be
achieved, the inspection interval for idlers can be programmed correspondingly to ensure
reliable operation of idler rolls while minimizing the cost of monitoring logistics. In
addition, replacements of idler rolls can also be scheduled in planned downtime of belt
conveyors based on the prediction. This can prevent breakdowns of belt conveyors due
to abrupt occurrence of catastrophic failures of idler rolls during operation. Therefore the
reliability of a belt conveyor at the equipment level can also be improved.
The prediction of idler roll failures needs to be considered at both the population level
and the individual level. Considering the fact that there is a large amount of identical idler
rolls under the same working condition, prediction of roll failures at the population level
provides overall characteristics (i.e. failure rate) of idler rolls. Meanwhile, prediction of
roll failures should be achieved at the individual level for decisions on which rolls need
to be replaced in next maintenance time window.
In Chapter 1 it is stated that there are three potential approaches to predict idler roll
failures. The three approaches are further elaborated in this section. Prediction of roll
failures at the population level can be achieved by theoretical prediction of the reliability
or lifetime of idler rolls. The L 10 bearing lifetime theory from Lundberg and Palmgren
(1949) is widely applied for the theoretical calculation of the lifetime of a population of
bearings. According to the L 10 bearing lifetime theory, the lifetime that ninety percent of
a group of identical bearings under same working condition may survive can be calculated
as (Lundberg and Palmgren, 1949):
106 C 3
µ ¶
L 10 = (2.6)
60n P
where L 10 is the rating lifetime (hour), n is the constant rotational speed (rpm), C is
the dynamic load rating from bearing manufacturers (N), P is the equivalent load on
the bearings (N). The residual lifetime of the bearings can be further derived once the
achieved service time is known.
For the prediction of the lifetime of bearings used in idler rolls, Eq. (2.6) is modified
2 by researchers in order to take the specific working condition of belt conveyor idlers into
account. For example, Geesmann et al. (2009a) provided a modified equation to calculate
the rating lifetime of roll bearings:
¶3
C 106
µ
L 10,m = a 1 a 2 a 3 (2.7)
ψP 60n
where L 10,m is the modified L 10 lifetime of bearings (hour), a1 is a factor concerning
the bearing material, a2 is a factor regarding the lubricant impurity, a3 is a factor for the
lubricant viscosity, ψ is the idler roll service factor.
Since the L 10 rating lifetime is also associated with the reliability of bearings, the
reliability of a population of roll bearings can be expressed as (Harris, 2001):
R B = exp −0.1053(L/L 10 )10/9

¡ ¢
(2.8)
where L is the achieved service time (hours).
The reliability of roll bearings in Eq. (2.8) provides a base to calculate the reliability
of idler rolls which can be used to represent the overall reliability of the idler rolls in a
belt conveyor for Eq. (2.1).
Meanwhile, the L 10 bearing lifetime theory has limitations. The theory was develop to
predict the lifetime or reliability of bearings which reach the incipient failure stage (bear-
ings’ lifetime), instead of predicting the lifetime of roll bearings reaching the final failure
stage (rolls’ lifetime) as argued in Section 2.4. The gap between the bearings’ lifetime
and the rolls’ lifetime is technically correct and widely recognized, however, there is no
laboratory test to provide proven equations to predict the roll’s lifetime (Conveyor Equip-
ment Manufacturers Association, 2014). In this case, prediction of the lifetime of idler
rolls is still based on the L 10 bearing lifetime theory in industrial standards like CEMA
(Conveyor Equipment Manufacturers Association, 2014). Therefore, improvement on the
predictability of the lifetime of idler rolls based on the L 10 bearing lifetime theory is still
important.
One way to improve the predictability of the lifetime of idler rolls is to use the actual
load on roll bearings according to a record of real time throughputs of a conveyor. Figure
2.11 shows a time distribution of N levels of real time throughput (left y-axis) of a belt
conveyor after running a certain time. The force on a roll bearing corresponding to each
actual throughput level is also shown in Figure 2.11. For example, Q i is the i th level of
the real time throughput of the belt conveyor, P i is the calculated force on one roll bearing
according to the throughput Q i , and Ti is the recorded subtotal operational time that the
conveyor has run at the level of the throughput.
Assuming the design capacity of the belt conveyor is Q m , and the corresponding
equivalent force on one roll bearing is P m . According to Eq. (2.7), the bearing rating
lifetime L 10,m is:
106 C 3
µ ¶
L 10, m = a 1 a 2 a 3 (2.9)
60n ψP m
2.6. S UMMARY 25
Actual throughput (t/h)
Bearing force correponding to actual throughput (N)

Qd Pd
Qi
Pi
Ti Time (h)
Figure 2.11: Record of actual throughputs of a belt conveyor and corresponding

force on a roll bearing to each throughput level.
Note: The actual throughput Q i is associated with the left y-axis; The corresponding force P i on
a roll bearing to a certain throughput Q i is associated with the right y-axis.
On the other hand, prediction of roll failures at the individual level can also be achiev-
able by applying condition monitoring techniques. If the evolution of certain physical
parameters (i.e. temperature, vibration, and acoustic emission) of idler rolls can be as-
sociated with the hypothetical condition change verses the service time (Figure 2.7), di-
agnoses on roll failures will be more accurate. Even prediction of the final failure of an
idler roll may be realized with sufficient acquired data and intelligent decision making
algorithms.
The association between physical parameters and condition change of idler rolls can
be challenging. Symptoms of idler roll failures can be sophisticated and random. There-
fore, no consensus is reached on the representative parameters of idler roll failures. Some
researchers claimed that temperature increase is a good indicator of roll bearing failures
(i.e. Riley, 1994; Lodewijks et al., 2007; Pytlik, 2013). Some researchers consider that
the vibration signal has distinguishable difference between health rolls and failed rolls
(i.e. Bartelmus and Sawicki, 2000). The failure signal may occur one or multiple times
during inspections. The symptoms of failure signal could also have different intensity and
strength. All these lead to ambiguous diagnosis on the condition of idler rolls, let alone
prediction of idler roll failures. Therefore, further research is needed to investigate which
parameters can represent the technical condition of idler rolls.
Considering the limitations of the two approaches discussed above, prediction of idler
roll failures based on integration of two source information, the lifetime/reliability infor-
mation and the real time condition data is of interest. Integration of theoretical calculation
of the reliability approach and the condition monitoring approach may improve the accu-
racy of prediction of idler roll failures.
2.6 Summary
In this chapter the reliability of belt conveyors is discussed. Research on the reliability of
belt conveyors at both the equipment and the component level is reviewed. It is identified
that idler rolls remain a challenge for the reliable performance of belt conveyors. Detailed
discussion about the selection of idlers are provided. The analyses of idler roll failures
reveal the importance of prediction of idler roll failures for the cost-effective maintenance
of idler rolls. Additional research is needed to improve the predictability of idler roll
failures. Three approaches are proposed to predict idler roll failures. Chapter 3 and 4
will investigate the approach of theoretical calculation of the reliability of roll bearings,
2 Chapter 5 will concentrate on the condition monitoring approach. Chapter 6 will explore
the options of integrating the two approaches.
3
S TRESS DISCONTINUITY
MODEL FOR BULK LOAD
DETERMINATION *
Chapter 2 pinpointed that the L 10 bearing lifetime theory can be applied for the theoretical
calculation of the lifetime or reliability of idler rolls. Subsequently the determination of
the load on idler rolls due to the conveyed bulk material and the belt weight is essential.
This chapter will investigate the determination of the load on idler rolls by developing an
analytical approach for the derivation of the load due to the bulk material. Section 3.1
presents a brief introduction on the steps to derive the load on idler rolls. Section 3.2
introduces several related earth pressure theories in soil mechanics. Section 3.3 reviews
previous models related to the determination of the load on idler rolls. Section 3.4 elab-
orates the development of an analytical model in this research. Section 3.5 proposes an
aggregation of the model developed in this research and the model developed by Krause
and Hettler (1974). Comparisons of results from the model in this research, the model
from Krause and Hettler, the aggregation of the two models and experimental measure-
ments will also be discussed in Section 3.5. Section 3.6 presents the calculation of the
load on idler roll bearings. Section 3.7 provides some conclusive remarks.
3.1 Derivation of the roll load

For the theoretical calculation of the lifetime of idler rolls, the L 10 bearing lifetime theory
can be applied. To apply the L 10 bearing lifetime theory, the load on roll bearings needs
to be calculated accurately. The load on the two bearings within a roll originates from the
conveyed bulk material, the conveyor belt, and the weight of the roll. There are three steps
to determine the load on a roll bearing. The first step is to determine the load on a belt
exerted by the conveyed bulk material (the bulk load). The second step deals with how to
* This chapter is partially based on Liu et al. (2014b, 2015a).
27
28 3. S TRESS DISCONTINUITY MODEL FOR BULK LOAD DETERMINATION
determine the load on each idler roll due to the loaded conveyor belt (the belt load). The
third step is to calculate the radial and axial forces on each roll bearing based on the belt
load (the roll bearing load).
For the calculation of the bulk load, the load distribution on the top cover of a belt due
to the conveyed bulk material should be determined. The properties of the bulk material
(i.e. the density) have a large influence on the bulk load. Industrial standards only provide
empirical estimations of the bulk load. For example, DIN 22101 (German Institute for
Standardization, 2002) applies the effective filling ratio ϕ f i l l i ng to calculate the line bulk
0
load m bul as:
3 k
0
m bul k = ϕ f i l l i ng · ρ · A t h (3.1)
in which ρ is the density (kg /m 3 ) of the conveyed bulk material, A t h is the area of the
filling cross section in Eq. (2.2), and ϕ f i l l i ng = ϕB et r ·ϕSt . The factor ϕB et r is determined
by the properties of the conveyed bulk material (the lump size, maximum empty edge
length on the belt, the angle of slope of the material on the belt) and by the operational
conditions of the belt conveyor installation (uniformity of material feed, alignment of
belt running, availability of a reserve capability). DIN 22101 only provides a qualitative
instead of a quantitative guideline for the determination of the factor ϕB et r . The factor
ϕSt is dependent on horizontal, uphill or downhill installation of a conveyor, and can be
quantitatively determined by the angle of inclination of the conveyor installation, the area
of the filling cross section, and the surcharge angle of the bulk material on the belt.
Similarly, CEMA (Conveyor Equipment Manufacturers Association, 2014) considers
0
the line bulk load m bul k
as:
0
m bul k = ρ · As · K1 (3.2)
2
A s is the area of the filling cross section in CEMA standard (m ), and K 1 is the lump
adjustment factor in a range of 1.0 and 1.4 empirically chosen according to the maximum
lump size of the conveyed material.
Previous scientific research has revealed that bulk material experiences cyclic active
and passive stress states due to the opening and closing movements of the belt as shown
in Figure 3.1 (Krause and Hettler, 1974; Spaans, 1991; Wheeler, 2003b). When the belt
passes over an idler, the wing belt sections (the WBSs in Figure 3.1) are released from a
constrained trough shape by the idler (A to C: Belt Opening in Figure 3.1). When the belt
approaches to the next idler, the WBSs are forced into a trough shape again (C to E: Belt
Closing in Figure 3.1).
The opening and closing of the WBSs can be considered to be analogous to the move-
ments of a retaining wall in soil mechanics. Therefore, theories in soil mechanics may be
applicable to calculate the bulk load.
The calculation of the belt load is related to deriving the load on each idler roll based
on the bulk load, the weight of the belt, the influence of the belt sag and the belt stiffness.
The weight of the belt is usually provided by the belt manufacturer. The influence of the
belt sag can be estimated by modeling the belt as a truss spanned between two idlers with
a sag (Lodewijks, 1996). The extra force on trough idler rolls due to the belt stiffness can
be neglected if a belt meets required troughability in industrial standards for instance ISO
15236-1 (International Organization for Standardization, 2005) because the belt will be
compliant to a trough idler rolls without much resistance (Lodewijks, 2015). Standardized
3.1._________________________________________________________________________
D ERIVATION OF THE ROLL LOAD 29
Belt Direction
Act Act
Pas
A B C D E
A to C: Belt Opening
3
ac
Transverse Belt Movement Pas Pas

Act
Opening Closing
Transverse Stress State
Active Passive C to E: Belt Closing
Longitudinal Stress State
Passive Active
Figure 3.1: Transverse and longitudinal stress states within the bulk material due to
the openingFigure
and closing of the belt,
3-1 Transverse andderived from
longitudinal Wheeler
stress states (2003b).
procedures Thetocyclic transverse

test the and longitudinal
troughability of a conveyor flexure of the
belt are bulk solid
described results inISO
in standard flexure
703
(International Organization for Standardization, 2007).
losses due to internal friction and friction at the belt and bulk solid interface. In order to
The calculation of the roll bearing load includes the derivation of the radial and axial
calculate the flexure resistance of the bulk solid the forces generated from the relative
forces on each roll bearing with the belt load and the weight of the roll shell. The normal
loadmovement
on the shellof the
of abulk solidroll
center need
cantobe beconsidered
resolved, taking account
as evenly of the properties
distributed over theoflength
the bulk
of
the solid
shell.and
It is assumed that there is no axial load on a center roll if the belt
the conveyor belt. The magnitude of the belt deflection, troughing configuration is symmetri-
cally loaded and not in a horizontal curve. For the normal load on the shell of a wing roll,
and belt speed each contribute to the amount of bulk solid flexure and, therefore, the
an increasing load distribution from the outer edge towards the inner edge of the shell is
flexure resistance.
expected. The axial forceBulk solid
on wing properties including
roll bearings bulk
can be density,
derivedbulk
fromsolid the surcharge
frictional angle,
force
between the WBS and the wing roll, as well as the axial component of the
internal friction and friction at the belt interface determine the pressure distribution acting weight of the
wing roll.
on the belt and the losses attributable to the relative movement of the bulk solid. To allow
Within the three steps, the calculation of the bulk load needs to be further investigated.
Thefor the interrelation
determination between
of the each is
bulk load of required
these variables,
for thean iterative procedure
calculation of the belt to load
calculate the
and the
rollbulk
bearing
solidload.
flexureThe only widely
resistance recognized
is essential and willanalytical
be presentedmodel (the
in this KH model) for the
chapter.
bulk loadLimited
was developed by Krause and Hettler (1974). The KH model
research has been conducted in the area of bulk solid flexure resistance
is considered
to have limited accuracy on the derivation of the bulk load (Wheeler, 2003b; Ilic, 2013;
primarily
Dratt due to the
et al., 2015). Oneperception
reason isthat thatthis
theresistance contributes little
model incorporates Coulomb’sto the total
earthresistance.
pressure
theory
Additionally, the bulk solid properties are generally considered a constraint ratherthe
which is an upper bound theory that usually gives a solution greater than truea
than
value (Budhu, 1999). One explanation can be attributed to the fact that the assumption
of planar failure of a soil in Coulomb’s earth pressure theory does not match the curved
_________________________________________________________________________
failure in reality
Chapter 3 - Bulk (Clayton et Resistance
Solid Flexure al., 1993). This chapter will focus on the determination 36
of the bulk load by developing an analytical model which incorporates a lower bound
theory. Though numerical modeling gains popularity nowadays, analytical models are
more applicable to be integrated into the theoretical calculation of the lifetime of idler
rolls considering less required computation time, lower complexity of modeling and the
convenience of changing model parameters for different belt conveyors.
3.2 Related earth pressure theories

Research on the derivation of the bulk load commonly applies earth pressure theories from
the field of soil mechanics. In this section several earth pressure theories will be briefly
introduced, including Coulomb’s earth pressure theory, Rankine’s earth pressure theory,
and Sololovski’s stress discontinuity method.
3 3.2.1 Coulomb’s earth pressure theory †
In 1776, Coulomb published his article Essai sur une application des règles de maximis
et minimis à quelques problèmes de statique, relatifs à l’architecture, which is considered
as the base of Coulomb’s earth pressure theory. Coulomb’s earth pressure theory is con-
sidered as an upper bound theory which overestimates the earth pressure on a retaining
structure (Budhu, 1999).
In Coulomb’s earth pressure theory, a soil under investigation is considered as a rigid
mass (triangular block abc in Figure 3.2). A planar failure (the plane bc on which the
force T locates in Figure 3.2) is assumed to occur through the soil from the surface till the
interface between the soil and the retaining wall. Four forces are taken into consideration
in Coulomb’s solution: the weight of the soil, the supporting and frictional forces on the
failure plane, and the thrust force from the retaining wall.
Figure 3.2: Geometry and force diagram for active earth pressure analysis in
Coulomb’s solution, derived from Clayton et al. (1993).
Coulomb considered that active stress state occurs within the soil when the retaining
wall moves away from the soil. By solving the equilibriums of the forces perpendicular
and parallel to the failure plane bc, Coulomb obtained an expression for the thrust force
on the soil from the retaining wall. By differentiating the expression with respect to the
inclination angle of the active failure plane, one can obtain the maximum value of the
thrust force as:
1
F max,a = ρH 2 K a (3.3)
2
where H is the height of the soil (m), and K a is the coefficient of active pressure which
can be expressed as:
† All equations in this section are derived from Clayton et al. (1993).
3.2. R ELATED EARTH PRESSURE THEORIES 31
1 − sin ϕi
Ka = (3.4)
1 + sin ϕi
in which ϕi is the internal friction angle of the soil (◦ ).
Meanwhile, the critical inclination angle that produces Fmax,a is:
ϕi
ωa,cr i t = 45◦ + (3.5)
2
By applying Eq. (3.3), one can calculate the force exerted on the retaining wall by the
soil due to active failure. 3
On contrary, passive earth pressure occurs within a soil when a retaining wall moves
against the soil. In this case, Coulomb derived an expression for the maximum thrust
force Fmax,p on the soil by the retaining wall as:
1
F max,p = ρH 2 K p (3.6)
2
in which the coefficient of passive pressure is:
1 + sin ϕi
Kp = = K a−1 (3.7)
1 − sin ϕi
with the critical inclination angle ωp,cr i t of the passive failure plane as:
ϕi
ωp,cr i t = 45◦ − (3.8)
2
Coulomb’s earth pressure theory was extended by Müller-Breslau to achieve a general
expression for a frictional cohensionless soil with sloping backfill against a sloping back
retaining wall with friction as shown in Figure 3.3.
Figure 3.3: Geometry and force diagram for active earth pressure analysis in
Müller-Breslau solution, derived from Clayton et al. (1993).
By constructing equations of forces perpendicular and parallel to the active failure

plane as Coulomb did, Müller-Breslau derived an expression for the active thrust force on
the soil by the retaining wall as:
1 Ka
F a = ρH 2 (3.9)
2 sin α cos ϕw
where
sin2 (α + ϕi ) cos ϕw
Ka = h q i2 (3.10)
sin(ϕi +ϕw ) sin(ϕi −β)
sin α sin(α − ϕw ) 1 + sin(α−ϕw ) sin(α+β)
in which α is the slope angle of the retaining wall (◦ ), ϕw is the friction angle of the soil
with respect to the retaining wall (◦ ), and β is the inclination angle of the soil surface (◦ ).
The general Müller-Breslau solution of the thrust force by the retaining wall can also
be obtained for the case of passive earth pressure, which can be expressed as:
3
1 Kp
F p = ρH 2 (3.11)
2 sin α cos ϕw
where
sin2 (α − ϕi ) cos ϕw
Kp = h q i2 (3.12)
sin(ϕi +ϕw ) sin(ϕi +β)
sin α sin(α + ϕw ) 1 − sin(α+ϕw ) sin(α+β)
Coulomb’s earth pressure theory provides an approach to calculate the forces on a
retaining structure against a soil in active and passive failure states. An assumption in
Coulomb’s earth pressure theory is that active and passive failures lead to planar failure
interfaces within a soil. However, it was found later that failure interfaces are curved
instead of being planar (Terzaghi and Peck, 1967; Clayton et al., 1993). The assumption of
a planar failure interface generates relatively minor error in case of active earth pressure.
But the assumption leads to serious overestimation of the force on retaining structures in
passive stress state especially with high values of the wall friction [ϕw ≥ φi /3 as noted by
Budhu (1999)].
3.2.2 Rankine’s earth pressure theory ‡

In 1857 Rankine published his paper On the stability of loose earth, by which he intro-
duced the concept of effective stress to investigate an element of soil in a state of fail-
ure (Clayton et al., 1993). Therefore the effective stress states induced by stretching or
compressing a soil element are named active or passive Rankine states (Terzaghi, 1943).
Rankine’s earth pressure theory is considered as a lower bound theory. Solutions derived
from Rankine’s earth pressure theory are generally lower than the true values (Budhu,
1999).
Figure 3.4 (a) shows an element of soil in active Rankine state. It can be seen that the
normal stresses p and q a are the principle stresses since there is no shear stress acting on
the boundaries of the element. From the force equilibriums parallel and perpendicular to
the slope side of the element [Figure 3.4 (b)], one can obtain:
σds = pdx cos ω + q a dy sin ω (3.13)
τds = pdx sin ω − q a dy cos ω (3.14)

2
in which σ and τ are the normal and shear stresses on the failure slope (N /m ), the x axis
is perpendicular to the principle stress p and the y axis is perpendicular to the principal
stress q a .
‡ All equations in this section are derived from Clayton et al. (1993).
(a) (b)
Figure 3.4: Element of soil in active Rankine state, derived from Clayton et al.
(1993). 3
The failure of the element means that the friction on the slope reaches the maximum
value, which yields:
τ/σ = tan ϕi (3.15)
Figure 3.5 (a) shows an element of soil in active Rankine state which is located at
depth z under inclined ground surface with an inclination angle β. Figure 3.5 (b) illus-
trates the Mohr circle which represents the effective stress state of the element of soil.
In active failure state, the Mohr circle touches the failure envelope OF which is defined
by the internal friction angle ϕi of the soil. In Rankine’s analysis, point X on the Mohr
circle represents the normal and shear stresses on the plane parallel to the inclined ground
surface in Figure 3.5 (a).
(a) (b)
Figure 3.5: Analysis of soil in active Rankine state, (a) an element of soil located at
depth z under incline ground surface, (b) Mohr circle for the element of soil in (a),
derived from Clayton et al. (1993).
In addition, the normal and shear stresses on the vertical plane in Figure 3.5 (a) can
be represented by point C in the Mohr circle in Figure 3.5 (b) by using the pole method.
The coefficient of active Rankine state K a can be further derived as:
cos β − cos2 β − cos2 ϕi

p
qa
Ka = = cos β (3.16)
P cos β + cos2 β − cos2 ϕi
p
In case of the inclination angle of the ground surface β = 0, which is equivalent to

Coulomb’s analysis in Figure 3.2, Eq. (3.16) produces the coefficient of active Rankine
state K a is:
q a 1 − sin ϕi
Ka = = (3.17)
1 + sin ϕi
3 p
which is the same result as Eq. (3.4) in Coulomb’s earth pressure theory. This means that
Rankine’s earth pressure theory produces the same solution as Coulomb’s earth pressure
theory for the same geometry of soil-retaining wall structure. However, if the inclination
angle of the ground surface β 6= 0, the solution from Rankine’s earth pressure theory will
be different from that of Coulomb’s earth pressure theory.
Similarly, the coefficient of passive Rankine state K p due to the passive failure in
Rankine’s earth pressure theory can be expressed as:
cos β + cos2 β − cos2 ϕi

p
qp
Kp = = cos β (3.18)
cos β − cos2 β − cos2 ϕi
p
P
Rankine’s earth pressure theory provides insight into the effective stress states of bulk
elements, instead of looking at the global force equilibriums as Coulomb’s earth pressure
theory could offer. However, Rankine’s earth pressure theory assumes that the principle
stress q a or q p is parallel to the ground surface of the soil. Consequently, Rankine’s
earth pressure theory produces errors when the friction angle ϕw of a soil with respect to
a retaining wall is not equal to the inclination angle β of the ground surface of the soil
(Clayton et al., 1993).
3.2.3 Sokolovski’s stress discontinuity method §
Sokolovski (1965) developed the stress discontinuity method to solve civil engineering
problems that do not meet the requirements for the application of previous two earth pres-
sure theories. The stress discontinuity method is a lower bound theory which means the
solution is generally smaller than the true value (Powrie, 2004). The concept of stress dis-
continuity was introduced to describe the variation of the effective stress in a bulk volume.
Examples of stress discontinuities can be found in failures of soil bodies (Schofield and
Wroth, 1968), silo storage with mass flow (Cornish, 1973), shear bands in soil-structure
interfaces (Ebrahimian et al., 2012) and so on.
Figure 3.6 (a) presents a stress discontinuity which separates two bodies of bulk ma-
terial under different stress states. Each body consists of numerous infinitesimal bulk
elements. In Figure 3.6 (b), Mohr circles are built to describe the stress states of bulk
elements in body 1 (circle C 1 ) and body 2 (circle C 2 ) separately. For two bulk elements
located at either side of the stress discontinuity, the stresses normal to the discontinuity
plane must be equal to each other, while the normal stresses parallel to the plane can be
different. As a result, Mohr circles of the two bulk elements intersect. The intersection
[point A in Figure 3.6 (b)] depicts the normal stress and shear stress of the facets of both
elements that are parallel to the discontinuity plane.
§ This subsection is based on Liu et al. (2015a).
(a)
(b)
Figure 3.6: Concept of stress discontinuity, (a) areas on either side of a stress
discontinuity with (b) Mohr circles, derived from Powrie (2004).
With the two intersected Mohr circles, the relationship of the effective stresses across
the stress discontinuity can be retrieved. In most engineering problems, the direction and
magnitude of the effective stress at one side of the discontinuity are already known, while
the effective stress at the other side remains unclear. Assuming that the effective stress
increases from body 1 to body 2, the average effective stresses σOC 1 and σOC 2 [Figure 3.6
(b)] have the following relationship (Sokolovski, 1965):
σOC 2 sin(∆ + δ)
= (3.19)
σOC 1 sin(∆ − δ)
3 where ∆ is an angle in Mohr circle [Figure 3.6 (b)] and sin ∆ = sin δ sin ϕi , δ is the angle
±
that indicates the strength mobilized on the discontinuity and tan δ = τ/σ.
Moreover, the rotation of the direction of the major principal stress can also be ob-
tained. In body 1, the plane that the major principal stress σ1 acts on is at an angle of
(∆ + δ)/2 to the stress discontinuity plane [Figure 3.6 (a)], while the plane for σ2 is at an
angle of (π−∆+δ)/2 to the stress discontinuity in body 2 [Figure 3.6 (a)]. As a result, the
rotation of the direction of the major principal stress across the stress discontinuity can be
obtained:
π
θ= −∆ (3.20)
2
where θ is the rotation angle of the major principal stress [Figure 3.6 (a)].
The two intersections of the Mohr circles represent the effective stresses of the same
magnitude but in different directions. This may result in different relationships of the
effective stresses across the stress discontinuity. The selection of the intersection is gen-
erally determined by the stress state in body 1, the reference axes as well as the definition
of the positive stress during the construction of Mohr circles.
After analyzing the condition of one stress discontinuity, the variation of the effective
stress across a number of stress discontinuities can be considered. For each infinitesimal
stress discontinuity, successive rotation and change in the major principle stress occur.
For cohesionless bulk material, the two Mohr circles are almost overlapping with each
other, so the mobilized strength δ tends to be the internal friction angle ϕi . As a result,
for an overall rotation of angle θo of direction of the principal stress, the relationship
of the average effective stress across the stress discontinuities can be obtained (Powrie,
2004):
σOC 2
= e 2θo tan ϕi (3.21)
σOC 1
The application of the stress discontinuity method does not have restrictions on the
shape of the retaining wall as required for Rankine’s earth pressure theory. Therefore it is
a competitive method for many complicated problems of soil-structure interactions.
3.3 Review on bulk and belt models

The analyses of the bulk load and the belt load are complicated due to the lack of knowl-
edge about the cyclic active and passive stress states in a bulk material during conveyance,
and unascertained interface behavior between the bulk material-conveyor belt-idler rolls.
Several researchers have applied earth pressure theories or numerical approaches to study
the bulk load. Models for the belt load are also developed.
3.3. R EVIEW ON BULK AND BELT MODELS 37
3.3.1 Models for the bulk load

The load distribution on a belt caused by a conveyed bulk material can not be simply
derived from the weight of the bulk material. In fact, bulk material experiences active and
passive stress states while the belt passing successive idlers. Analytical and numerical
models have been developed to investigate the stress states in the bulk material and further
to derive the bulk load.
Krause and Hettler’s KH model
Krause and Hettler (1974) developed the KH model to study the bulk load based on 3
the general Müller-Breslau solution in Coulomb’s earth pressure theory. By comparing
the cross section of a bulk material and a belt on an idler and the one in the middle of an
idler spacing, a belt sag can be observed (Figure 3.7). Due to the loaded bulk material,
the belt sags in both the x and z directions in Figure 3.7.
Figure 3.7: Bulk and belt profile during conveyance, derived from Krause and
Hettler (1974).
In the KH model, several assumptions were made (Krause and Hettler, 1974):
• the belt opening occurs during the first half idler spacing, and the belt closing hap-
pens in the second half. Therefore, the bulk material on the WBSs within the first
half idler spacing is in active stress state while within the second half the material
is considered in passive stress state.
• the bulk material is considered as granular and cohesionless. The filling profile of
the bulk material is after the theoretical shape in standard DIN 22101 (German In-
stitute for Standardization, 2002) while the surcharge angle remains constant during
conveyance.
• the opening and closing of the WBSs are considered to be about the joints between
the two WBSs and the CBS. Consequently, two planar failures occur through the
joints within the bulk material (Figure 3.1).
Figure 3.8 illustrates the geometry and the force diagram in the KH model for the
analysis of active stress state due to the belt opening. Several forces are taken into account
in the KH model, including the weight of the bulk material on the WBS, the supporting
and frictional forces on the active failure plane, the normal and frictional forces from the
WBS.
Figure 3.8: Geometry and force diagram in the KH model for active stress state
analysis, reconstruction from Figure 3-8 in Wheeler (2003b).
By substituting the depth H of the bulk material as l 1 ·sin α, Krause and Hettler applied
Eq. (3.9) in the general Müller-Breslau solution to calculate the normal force on the WBS
in the first half idler spacing as:
1
F a = ρl g l 12 K a cos ϕw (3.22)
4
which l is the idler spacing (m), l 1 is the length of the bulk material on the WBS (m), K a
is the factor for active stress state which is given in Eq. (3.10).
The calculation of the normal force on the WBS in the second half idler spacing when
the bulk material is in passive stress state can be derived as:
1
F p = ρl g l 12 K p cos ϕw (3.23)
4
which K p is the passive stress state factor which is given in Eq. (3.12).
With Eq. (3.22) and(3.23), the total normal force on the WBSs within one idler spac-
ing can be calculated, and the normal force on the CBS can be further calculated by
establishing a force equilibrium in the vertical direction between the weight of the bulk
material within one idler spacing and the normal and frictional forces from the WBSs and
the CBS.
Krause and Hettler’s work is widely considered as a milestone for the analysis of the
bulk load (Katterfeld et al., 2010). Their work provides significant insight into the opening
and closing movements of a belt during conveyance, and links the interaction between a
bulk material and a belt to the mechanism of soil-retaining structures in soil mechanics.
However, the KH model has several limitations. Firstly, the wall friction in the KH
model is considered to be effective only at the interface between the bulk material and the
WBSs. In reality the effect of the wall friction propagates within the bulk material and
generates a curved failure plane (Terzaghi and Peck, 1967; Clayton et al., 1993; Wheeler,
2003b). Therefore, an interface zone exists within the bulk material adjacent to the WBSs
in which the principle stresses of the bulk material are rotated under the influence of the
wall friction. Secondly, the KH model applies Coulomb’s earth pressure theory which
is an upper bound theory. Consequently the KH model produces an overestimation of
the passive normal stress on the WBSs. The overestimation of the KH model has been
recognized by several researchers, for instance Wheeler (2003b) and Ilic (2013). Thirdly,
the assumption of the opening and closing of the WBSs pivoting about the belt junctions
in the KH model is under questioning. Based on a 3D scanned geometry, Ilic (2013) 3
recently suggests that the opening and closing of the WBSs are more likely to pivot about
the outer edge of the belt.
Ilic’s DEM model
Recently the discrete element method (DEM) has been introduced into the analysis of
the interaction between bulk materials and handling equipment including belt conveyor
systems. Compared to continuum analysis which investigates the stress of a bulk material
at a global or element level, the DEM provides detailed analysis of the interaction be-
tween handling equipment and individual particles (Katterfeld et al., 2010). In the DEM
environment, an assembly of particles as well as their boundary can be simulated by in-
ducing contact models such as the Hertz-Mindlin model (Ilic, 2013). Then the DEM is
able to calculate displacements and forces acting upon each particle and the boundary.
Ilic (2013) developed DEM models to investigate the bulk load. Figure 3.9 shows
one of the DEM models which is developed in the software code of Rocky (Granular
Dynamics International, LLC.). In the resultant DEM model, the belt profile measured
from a 3D scanner is implemented for a precise modeling of the belt deflection within one
idler spacing. Five types of bulk materials, including coal, iron ore, gravel, magnetite,
and river sand are chosen for the DEM models. The parameters of the bulk materials are
determined from a series of calibration tests including the shear test, the wall friction test,
the particle and bulk density test etc.
Figure 3.9: DEM model of a loaded conveyor belt, derived from Ilic (2013).
The results of the DEM models were compared with the gravitational force of the
bulk material on the belt, as well as measurements from a Tekscan measurement system
(detailed description about the Tekscan measurement system can be found in Chapter
4). The comparisons show that reasonably good overall correlation between the DEM
modeled load profile and the measured load profile is achieved. However, the normal
force exerted on the WBSs obtained from the DEM simulation is generally larger than the
experimental results for almost every bulk material in the tests. Meanwhile, the normal
force on the CBS is lower than the experimental results. This indicates that the DEM
simulation overestimates the normal force on the WBSs while underestimating the normal
force on the CBS.
To date, DEM modeling still requires a lot of experience and knowledge for quan-
titative insights. For one thing, DEM modeling provides more qualitative rather than
quantitative information at this moment (Barrios et al., 2013). Despite the DEM can pro-
vide close to reality simulation, quantitative information can be used only after the DEM
models are verified and validated. The validity of DEM models largely depends on proper
3 assignments of the properties of bulk materials (i.e. the size and shear modulus). Charac-
terization and calibration tests can provide information for these properties. Nevertheless,
the assignments of the values for these parameters in DEM modeling still require sophis-
ticated analysis and experience. For another, DEM modeling is a customary process in
order to provide fit-for-purpose models. Combinations of particle sizes, shapes and other
properties can vary significantly for different applications. In addition, DEM modeling in-
volves a large amount of particles, therefore the computation can be quite time consuming
(Lommen et al., 2014).
3.3.2 Model for the belt load

Regarding the load exerted on idler rolls by a belt, one ont only needs to consider the
weight of the belt and bulk material, but may also needs to take the extra force caused by
the belt sag into account. This section will examine whether it is necessary to take the
belt sag into account by using a belt sag model.
Lodewijks’s belt sag model
In a discrete analysis of the dynamics of a belt conveyor, Lodewijks (1996) considered

a conveyor belt can be modeled by using three types of finite elements, a truss, a truss with
a belt sag, and a beam. Within the three types of finite elements, a truss with a belt sag
can be considered if one wants to take the belt sag into consideration. The extra force on
idler rolls due to the belt sag can be calculated by modeling a loaded belt as a truss with
a sag which is supported at two ends (Figure 3.10).
Figure 3.10: Static sag of a tensioned belt, derived from Lodewijks (1996).
From Figure 3.10 the belt sag l sag can be calculated as:
0 0
m bul k + m bel t g l 2
l sag = = Ks l (3.24)
8T
0 0
in which mbul k is the weight of the bulk material per unit length (kg /m ), mbel t is the
weight of the belt per unit length (kg /m ), l is the idler spacing (m), T is the belt tension
(N), K s is the sag ratio.

Furthermore, the angle between the horizontal and the tangent to the belt can be ex-
pressed as:
0 0 0 0
m bul k + m bel t g x m bul k + m bel t g l
ϕ(x) = − (3.25)
T 2T
At the left idler station when x = 0, Eq. (3.25) produces:
3
³ 0 0
´
m bul k + m bel t g l
ϕ(0) = − (3.26)
2T
With the angle ϕ(x) between the horizontal and the tangent to the belt, the additional
length ∆l of the belt due to the belt sag can be calculated:
Ã 0 0 !2
l (m bul k + m bel t )g l
∆l = (3.27)
24 T
Assuming the radial force on each idler due to the belt sag is perpendicular to the
tangent of the belt at the contact area, and the frictional force is tangent to the belt, the
radial force F NG can be derived from the force equilibrium in the vertical direction as:
0 0
(m bul k + m bel t )g l
F NG = 0 0 (3.28)
(m bul k +m bel t )g l
2 cos 2T
By applying Eq. (3.28), the radial force on each idler due to the belt sag can be
calculated.
With Lodewijks’s belt sag model, it is possible to estimate to what extent the influence
of a belt sag on the additional radial force on idler rolls. To carry out the analysis, an
example of a belt conveyor is taken from CEMA (Conveyor Equipment Manufacturers
Association, 2014). The main parameters of the bulk material and the belt conveyor are
summarized in Table 3.1.
Table 3.1: Parameters of the bulk material and the belt conveyor, derived from
Table 6.13 in Conveyor Equipment Manufacturers Association (2014)
The example belt conveyor in CEMA (Conveyor Equipment Manufacturers Associa-

tion, 2014) is not provided with information about the belt velocity and the roll length.
Idler rolls with a shell length of 0.465 m are chosen for this case study. The resultant area
of filling cross section of the bulk material on the belt is A s = 0.17 m2 , and the resultant
belt velocity is v = 2.6 m/s . Assuming the lump adjustment factor K 1 = 1, the weight of
the bulk material per unit length can be calculated by applying Eq. (3.2) as:
0
m bul k = ρ · K 1 · A s = 1441.6 × 1 × 0.17 = 245.1 kg /m (3.29)
Assuming the belt tension T is equal to 19200 N, by applying Eq. (3.24), one can
obtain the sag ratio as:
K s = 2.8% (3.30)
3 which meets the maximum belt sag ratio between two carrying idlers required by CEMA
standard [maximum belt sag ratio 3 percent as stated in Conveyor Equipment Manufac-
turers Association (2014)].
Furthermore, by applying Eq. (3.27), the additional belt length due to the belt sag can
be calculated as:
Ã 0 0 !2
l (m bul k + m bel t )g l
∆l = = 0.002 · l = 0.003 m (3.31)
24 T
From Eq. (3.31) it can be seen that a very small additional belt length (0.2 percent)
is produced due to the belt sag. Further applying Eq. (3.28), one can calculate the radial
force on each idler under the influence of the belt sag as:
0 0
(m bul k + m bel t )g l (245.1 + 39.1) × 9.81 × 1.53
F NG = 0 0 = = 2145.5N (3.32)
(m bul k +m bel t )g l 2 × cos (245.1+39.1)×9.81×1.53
2 cos 2T
2×19200
If we neglect the belt sag, the vertical force on each of the two idlers due to the weight
of the bulk material and the belt within one idler spacing can be calculated as:
0 0
0 m bul k + m bel t g l
F NG = = 2132.6N (3.33)
2
Therefore, the error ε on the derivation of the belt load without taking the belt sag into
account is:
2145.5 − 2132.6
ε= = 0.6% (3.34)
2145.5
This indicates that the error on the derivation of the belt load without taking the belt
sag into account is very limited. In conclusion, the belt sag generally can be neglected
when calculating the belt load as long as the belt sag meets the maximum belt sag ratio of
3 percent.
3.3.3 Coupled model for the bulk and belt load

Rather than calculating the bulk load and the belt load in separate models, a more ad-
vanced approach is to develop coupled models to calculate the bulk load and the belt
load. The calculation of the bulk load and the belt load is an iterative process. The bulk
load leads to a belt deflection. The belt deflection will reversely cause re-distribution of
the bulk material therefore a change of the bulk load. The change of the bulk load will
result in a further belt deflection. The bulk load and the belt load can be finally derived
when both the bulk material and the belt reach stable states. Dratt et al. (2015) developed
a coupled FEM-DEM model to determine the load on idler rolls due to a conveyor belt
and a bulk material (Figure 3.11). The FEM model of the conveyer belt is carried out in
ANSYS Classic based on Wheeler’s finite model (Wheeler, 2003b). The DEM model of
the bulk material is carried out in PFC3D (Itasca Consulting Group).
Figure 3.11: Coupled FEM-DEM simulation, derived from Dratt et al. (2015).
The resultant coupled FEM-DEM simulation is two way coupling (Katterfeld et al.,
2010). One way is the transferring of the deformed profile of the belt from a FEM model
to a DEM model. This is achieved by several steps. The first step is to export the node
points of each shell element in the FEM model into a file. The second step is to generate
two triangles for each shell element and to save as STL files. The last step is to import the
STL files into the DEM model as walls.
The other way of coupling is to transfer the load on the walls in the DEM model to
the FEM model as inputs of load. Considering the fact that the DEM model only uses the
global coordinate system while the FEM model uses both the global and local coordinate
system, the tangential force for each shell element of the FEM model has to be calculated
manually based on the shear force and its exerting triangle wall elements in the DEM
model (Katterfeld et al., 2010).
The two way coupling algorithm is verified by comparisons between a simulation of

a static pre-tensioned belt segment loaded with bulk material and experiments. Using the
verified FEM-DEM model, comparisons with the results of the KH model with respect
to the load on idler rolls are also conducted. It is realized that the radial forces on the
center roll from the coupled FEM-DEM model are 3 to 11 percent higher than those from
the KH model, whereas the radial forces on the inner bearing of the wing roll from the
coupled FEM-DEM model are 25 to 40 percent smaller than those from the KH model
(Dratt et al., 2015).
3.4 Development of the SD model ¶

Previous review indicates that analytical research on the bulk load is required. The exist-
ing KH model from Krause and Hettler (1974) provides overestimations on the bulk load
on the WBSs while underestimating the load on the CBS (Wheeler, 2003b). Considering
the KH model incorporates an upper bound earth pressure theory, a lower bound earth
pressure theory may provide a more accurate solution. Within the two lower bound earth
pressure theories mentioned in Section 3.2, Rankine’s earth pressure theory is limited to
soil-retaining wall applications where the inclination angle of the soil surface equates to
3 the wall friction angle. For the bulk material conveyed on the belt, this might not be ap-
plicable because the surcharge angle of the bulk material can be different from the trough
angle of the idlers. Therefore, Sokolovski’s stress discontinuity method is applied to cal-
culate the bulk load as a lower bound solution, which results in the SD model.
In this section, the development of the SD model is presented. Two assumptions have
been made in the resulting SD model:
• bulk material is considered homogeneous and cohesionless
• the cross section of the loaded bulk material follows the theoretical shape in stan-
dard DIN 22101
Particle size is one of the important parameters that define the internal friction, as well
as the thickness of the interface zone (Roscoe, 1970). Bulk material with diverse size dis-
tribution are out of scope in this research. As the adhesive stress effect is often negligible
for dry bulk materials (Roberts, 1998), the cohesive behavior of dry bulk materials is also
excluded in the SD model.
To develop the SD model, a new hypothesis of the dynamic movement of the bulk
material on a moving belt is proposed based on recent experimental observations. The
effective stress analysis is conducted regarding active and passive stress states separately.
The bulk material is divided into a free surface zone and an interface zone. The interface
zone is developed within the bulk material adjacent to the WBSs due to the wall friction
and the belt movement. The relationship of the effective stress of bulk elements in differ-
ent zones is built up using the stress discontinuity method. In the end, active and passive
bulk load on the belt are obtained.
3.4.1 Dynamic movement of bulk materials

Analysis of the dynamic movement of the bulk material is of primary interest for the in-
depth understanding of the behavior of the bulk material on a moving belt, the interactive
phenomenon between the bulk material and the belt, and the determination of the direction
of the internal friction as well as the wall friction.
When passing over consecutive idlers, the bulk material experiences transversal and
vertical movements. During experiments carried out in this research (more details in
Chapter 4), it was observed that the river sand sagged at the middle of each idler spacing
(Figure 3.12). Another phenomenon is that river sand on the top surface of the central
cross-section slides down to the edge immediately after passing over an idler (Figure
3.12).
¶ This section is based on Liu et al. (2015a).
3.4. D EVELOPMENT OF THE SD MODEL 45
3
Figure 3.12: River sand within an idler spacing during conveyance.
Above phenomena cannot be explained by the traditional hypothesis proposed by

Krause and Hettler (1974) in the KH model. Therefore, a new hypothesis is presented
here. The dynamic movement of the bulk material is analyzed according to active and
passive stress states separately. From zero belt sag (above an idler) to the maximum belt
sag (at the middle of an idler spacing), the bulk material is in active stress state [Figure
3.13 (a)]. The downward movement of the CBS leads to a downward pivoting of the WBS
about the outer edge of the belt [Figure 3.13 (a)]. As a consequence, bulk material on the
WBS moves inward as shown in Figure 3.13 (a).
Based on Ilic (2013) hypothesis of the pivoting of the WBSs about the outer edges
of the belt, it is considered that passive stress state is initiated by the upward pivoting
of the WBSs due to the belt tension and belt stiffness [Figure 3.13 (b)]. The WBSs are
also easier to recover from the maximum belt sag since the WBSs are less loaded than
the CBS. With the sequence of the movement from the WBSs to the CBS, an assumption
of a downward movement of the bulk material adjacent to the belt in passive stress state
is made [Figure 3.13 (b)]. The downward movement can be obtained from the relative
movement between the belt and bulk material. Meanwhile, the bulk material above the
CBS is elevated significantly. The elevation can be so high that the internal friction cannot
hold the particles on the top. As a result, these particles would slide downward to the outer
edge.
The new hypothesis correlates to the experimental observations well. The sliding
down of top surface particles can be interpreted by the movement of the bulk material in
passive stress state. Moreover, contraction of particles at the junction between the WBSs
and the CBS can be expected from this hypothesis due to the consistent sliding down
of the material along the WBSs. The contraction is likely to exert extra high pressure
on the belt junction, which is observed by Ilic (2013) during his experiments, and the
experimental study in this research (more details in Chapter 4).
The new hypothesis is based on experimental observations of a fabric belt loaded with
river sand. The movement of a bulk material on a steel cord belt may be different due to
the high bending stiffness of the belt.
3.4.2 Active stress state analysis

Figure 3.14 illustrates active stress state of the bulk material above the WBSs in zone 1
(the free surface zone) and zone 2 (the interface zone). The directions of the normal stress
3
bulk cross-section at zero belt sag
bulk cross-section at maximum belt sag
pivoting of WBS
belt profile at zero sag belt profile at maximum sag

(a)
pivoting of WBS
belt profile at zero sag belt profile at maximum sag

(b)
Figure 3.13: Dynamic movement of a bulk material during conveyance, (a) particle
movement in active stress state, (b) particle movement in passive stress state.
and shear stress for bulk elements 1 and 2 (Figure 3.14) are determined by the proposed
hypothesis in Section 3.4.1. For the definition of the positive shear stress, the shear stress
which rotates the bulk element clockwise is defined as positive. While the compression
stress is defined as the positive normal stress.
3
l1
Figure 3.14: Bulk material in active stress state.
In order to investigate the stress state in zone 1, the stress field analysis for bulk ele-
ment 1 needs to be carried out. Terzaghi’s theory (Terzaghi, 1943) is applied to determine
the effective stress of bulk element 1, and the Mohr circle can be constructed (circle c 1 in
Figure 3.15). Point D 1 on circle c 1 depicts the stress state of bulk element 1. From the
geometry of Mohr circle c 1 , the major principal stress is at an angle of [π/2−(∆1 +3β)/2]
clockwise from the horizontal axis. The normal stress σb,a can be obtained:
σb,a = ρg zcos2 β = σOC 1 + r 1 cos(∆1 + β) = σOC 1 1 + sin ϕi cos(∆1 + β)

£ ¤
(3.35)
where ρ is the density of bulk material (kg /m 3 ), z is the depth of bulk element 1 (m), β is
the surcharge angle (◦ ), ϕi is the internal friction angle (◦ ), σOC 1 is the average effective
stress (N /m 2 ), r 1 is the radius of the Mohr circle c 1 (m) and sin ∆1 = sin β/ sin ϕi .
r1
r2
Figure 3.15: Mohr circles for the bulk elements 1 and 2 in active stress state
in Figure 3.14.
Furthermore, the stress field analysis for bulk element 2 is conducted. With known
directions of the effective stresses, a potential Mohr circle for bulk element 2 can be
constructed (circle c 2 in Figure 3.15). At this moment the position of the circle center C 2
remains unknown.
From Mohr circle c 2 , however, it can be derived that the major principal stress is at an
angle of [α + (∆2 − ϕw )/2] clockwise from the horizontal axis. In addition, the following
equation regarding the normal stress σw,a of bulk element 2 can be determined:
σw,a = σOC 2 − r 2 cos(∆2 − ϕw ) = σOC 2 1 − sin ϕi cos(∆2 − ϕw )

£ ¤
(3.36)
where ϕw is the wall friction angle, σOC 2 is the undetermined average effective stress
3 (N /m 2 ), r 2 is the radius of Mohr circle c 2 (m), and sin ∆2 = sin ϕw / sin ϕi .
In order to derive the average effective stress σOC 2 , the stress discontinuity method
needs to be applied to investigate the relationship regarding the effective stress between
zone 1 and zone 2. Considering the change of the effective stress from zone 1 to zone
2 as overcoming infinite number of stress discontinuities, the total rotation of the major
principal stress can be calculated as:
¯ π − 3β − α − ∆1 − ∆2 + ϕw ¯
¯ ¯
θa = ¯¯ ¯ (3.37)
2 ¯
By applying Eq. (3.21), the average effective stress of bulk element 2 can be obtained:
σOC 2 = σOC 1 e 2θa tan ϕi (3.38)
Point D 2 on Mohr circle c 2 depicts the actual stress state of bulk element 2 adjacent
to the WBS. After determining the average effective stress σOC 2 , the normal stress σw,a
and shear stress τw,a of bulk element 2 can be obtained:
σw,a = ρg¡K a cos α tan β + sin

¢ α x
½ ¡ ¢
(3.39)
τw,a = ρg K a cos α tan β + sin α tan ϕw x
where α is the trough angle (◦ ), x is the distance (m) along the WBS in Figure 3.14, and
the coefficient in active stress state:
1 − sin ϕi cos(∆2 − ϕw )
Ka = cos2 βe 2θa tan ϕi (3.40)
1 + sin ϕi cos(∆1 + β)
Finally, we determine the normal force and frictional force on the WBSs. Assum-
ing that bulk material within half idler spacing is in active stress state, the normal force
F NG,bul k,a and frictional force F N A,bul k,a that bulk material exerts on each WBS can be
obtained:
1 cos2 α
F NG,bul k,a = ρg l K a cos α tan β + sin α l 12 ·
¡ ¢
(3.41)
4 cos2 β
1 cos2 α
F N A,bul k,a = ρg l K a cos α tan β + sin α tan ϕw l 12 ·
¡ ¢
(3.42)
4 cos2 β
where l is idler spacing (m), l 1 is the length of bulk material on the WBS (m).
3.4.3 Passive stress state analysis

The analysis of passive stress state is similar to the determination of active stress state.
However, the magnitudes and the directions of the effective stresses in the two zones are
different (Figure 3.16). In zone 1, for example, the shear stress on the bottom facet of
bulk element 1 now acts in the upward direction.
l1
Figure 3.16: Bulk material in passive stress state.
As shown in Figure 3.17, Mohl circle c 3 represents the effective stress of bulk element
1 in zone 1, and Mohr circle c 4 depicts the stress state of bulk element 2 in zone 2 in
passive stress state. The normal force F NG,bul k,p and the friction F N A,bul k,p that bulk
material exerts on each WBS in can be obtained:
1 cos2 α
F NG,bul k,p = ρg l K p cos α tan β + sin α tan ϕw l 12 ·
¡ ¢
(3.43)
4 cos2 β
1 cos2 α
F NG,bul k,p = ρg l K p cos α tan β + sin α l 12 ·
¡ ¢
(3.44)
4 cos2 β
and the coefficient in passive stress state
1 + sin ϕi cos(∆4 + ϕw )
Kp = f d · cos2 βe 2θp tan ϕi (3.45)
1 + sin ϕi cos(∆3 + β)
where f d is the dynamic factor considering the belt sag. The dynamic factor f d is an
empirical factor that depends on the parameters of the belt conveyor among others the
belt sag and belt tension, the belt velocity and the trough idler configuration. The dynamic
factor
³ is normally
2 2
´ in the range of 1 to 1.9. An estimation of the dynamic factor f d is given
as 1 + 2π gvl K s (Roberts, 1998), in which v is the belt velocity (m/s ), K s is the belt sag
ratio, and l is the idler spacing (m). θp is the total rotation of the major principal stress in
passive stress state as:
¯ ∆3 − β − 2α + ∆4 + ϕw ¯
¯ ¯
θp = ¯
¯ ¯ (3.46)
2 ¯
r3
r4
1
3
Figure 3.17: Mohr circles for the bulk elements 1 and 2 in passive stress state
in Figure 3.16.
3.4.4 Derivation of the bulk load

With the normal and frictional forces on the WBSs calculated in subsection 3.4.2 and
3.4.3, the bulk load on the belt can be derived. The total normal force F NG,w and axial
force F N A,w on each WBS within one idler spacing are as follows:
F NG,w = F NG,bul k,a + F NG,bul k,p (3.47)

F N A,w = F N A,bul k,a + F N A,bul k,p (3.48)
With the known normal forces and frictional forces on the WBSs, the vertical force
equilibrium of bulk weight within one idler spacing can be established, from which the
vertical (normal) force F NG,c on the CBS can be obtained:
0
F NG,c = m bul k g l − 2 · F NG,w · cos α − 2 · F N A,w · sin α (3.49)
0
in which mbul k can be derived by applying Eq. (3.1).
With the acquired bulk load on the belt, the load on each idler roll can be calculated
by taking the belt weight into account. The radial and axial forces on each idler roll can
be derived from the load on the WBS and CBS. A program for the optimization of load
sharing among three idler rolls based on the SD model is also developed, which can be
found in Appendix A.
3.5 Comparisons with the KH model

In literature, the KH model from Krause and Hettler (1974) is widely accepted for the
determination of the bulk load even though with limited accuracy (Wheeler, 2003b; Ilic,
2013; Dratt et al., 2015). A comparison between the SD model and the KH model is
useful to clarify the advantages and disadvantages of both analytical models.
A series of tests were carried out on a 65m long re-circulating belt conveyor at the
University of Newcastle, Australia. The belt conveyor consists of a fabric belt PN300/2
and 35° offset three-roll trough idler with an equal roll length of 0.224 m. The measure-
ment apparatus developed by Wheeler (2003b) was used during the tests to measure the
normal and axial forces at each roll support. In total, six normal forces and two axial wing
roll forces were measured (Figure 3.18). The bulk load on each WBS is assumed to be the
3.5. C OMPARISONS WITH THE KH MODEL 51
equivalent vertical force from the left or right wing roll measurements. The bulk load on
the CBS is considered as the sum of center roll measurements. River sand was selected as
the bulk material for the tests. Additional tests were undertaken to measure the properties
of the river sand, which are presented in Table 3.2.
Figure 3.18: Positions of sensors during tests. Sensors Fz,L and Fz,R are used to
measure the axial forces, other sensors are used to measure the normal forces.
Table 3.2: Parameters of the river sand and the belt conveyor
Material parameter Value Conveyor parameter Value

material river sand capacity ( t / h ) varying
3
density ( kg / m ) 1720 belt speed ( m / s ) 1~2
surcharge angle (°) 15 idler spacing (m) 1.25
wall friction angle (°) 26 belt width (m) 0.6
internal friction angle (°) 46 belt line load ( kg / m ) 4.82

Tests were performed on the belt conveyor facility with different levels of throughputs,
namely 245 t/h (100 percent loading level), 185 t/h (75 percent loading level), and 135
t/h (55 percent loading level). A typical measurement result is presented in Figure 3.19.
It shows the measurement from sensor Fy,M1 of the measurement apparatus (Figure 3.18)
when the empty belt with/without river sand passed the apparatus. The data acquisition
frequency of all sensors is 10 Hz. From Figure 3.19, it can be seen that the belt portion
with river sand arrived at the measurement apparatus around 20 seconds after the starting
of the belt. Variations can be observed when the belt portion with river sand passed the
sensors. This can be explained by the error of forming the bulk cross-section during the
experiment, and the hysteresis of the sensor. A slight decrease in the force signal can also
be noticed in Figure 3.19. It is probably due to the time drift of the sensor. Since the
influence of the hysteresis and the time drift of sensors are rather small, this influence is
compensated in the data analysis by averaging the acquired data. Data of each test was
collected and processed, and the force components which were only caused by the loaded
bulk material were extracted.
A detailed comparison of experimental results from the eight sensors with results
from the SD model and the KH model is shown in Figure 3.20. Figure 3.20 (a) indicates
a very good correlation between the predictions of the two models and the measurements
of sensors F y,M 1 and F y,M 2 which measure the normal forces on the two supports of the
300
river sand and belt
250
200
Force (N)
150
100
empty belt
3 50
0
0 10 20 30
Time (s)
Figure 3.19: Typical measurement result during tests.
center roll (Figure 3.18). The percentage of the normal force on each support of the center
roll with respect to the mass of the bulk material decreases with increasing capacity. For
55 percent loading level, the percentages derived from the SD model, the KH model,
the measurement of F y,M 1 , and the measurement of F y,M 2 are 37.8 percent, 35.7 percent,
32.9 percent and 34.4 percent respectively. When it comes to 75 percent loading level,
the percentages of the bulk mass on each center roll support derived from the SD model,
the KH model, the measurement of F y,M 1 , and the measurement of F y,M 2 become 34
percent, 31.5 percent, 30.5 percent, and 33 percent respectively. For 100 percent loading
level, the SD model predicts 30.6 percent of the bulk load on each center roll support,
the KH model predicts 27.4 percent of the bulk load on each center roll support, the
measurement of F y,M 1 shows 29.4 percent of the bulk load on each center roll support,
while the measurement of F y,M 2 shows 30.6 percent of the bulk load on each center roll
support. Compared with the measurements, the SD model overestimates the load on the
center roll, while the KH model underestimates the load on the center roll for high loading
levels.
300 45
250 40 Percentage of Fy,M1 & Fy,M2 from SD model
Percentage (%)
Percentage of Fy,M1 & Fy,M2 from KH model
Force (N)
Percentage of Fy,M2 from centre roll measurement

200 35 Percentage of Fy,M1 from centre roll measurement
Force of Fy,M1 & Fy,M2 from SD model
Force of Fy,M1 & Fy,M2 from KH model
150 30 Force of Fy,M2 from centre roll measurement
Force of Fy,M1 from centre roll measurement
3
100 25
0 55 75 100
Loading level (%)
(a) F y,M 1 and F y,M 2
60 15
50
12
Force of Fy,L1 from measurement

40
Force of Fy,L1 & Fy,R2 from SD model
9
Force of Fy,L1 & Fy,R2 from KH model
Force (N)
Percentage (%)
30 Force of Fy,R2 from measurement

Percentage of Fy,L1 from measurement
6 Percentage of Fy,L1 & Fy,R2 from SD model
20 Percentage of Fy,L1 & Fy,R2 from KH model
Percentage of Fy,R2 from measurement
3
10
0 0
0 55 75 100
Loading level (%)
(b) F y,L1 and F y,R2
26
200
24
175
22
Percentage of Fy,L2 from measurement
150
Force (N)
Percentage (%)
Percentage of Fy,L2 & Fy,R1 from KH model

20
Percentage of Fy,R1 from measurement
125
Percentage of Fy,L2 & Fy,R1 from SD model
18
Force of Fy,L2 from measurement
100 Force of Fy,L2 & Fy,R1 from KH model
16
Force of Fy,R1 from measurement
75 Force of Fy,L2 & Fy,R1 from SD model
14
50 12
25 10
0 55 75 100
Loading level (%)
(c) F y,L2 and F y,R1
10
40
7.5
30
Force of Fz,L from measurement
20 5 Force of Fz,L & Fz,Rfrom SD model
Percentage (%)
Force of Fz,Rfrom measurement
Force (N)
10 Force of Fz,L & Fz,Rfrom KH model

2.5
Percentage of Fz,Lfrom measurement
0 Percentage of Fz,L& Fz,R from SD model
3 −10
0 Percentage of Fz,Rfrom measurement
Percentage of Fz,L& Fz,R from KH model
−2.5
−20
−30 −5
0 55 75 100
Loading level (%)
(d) F z,L and F z,R
Figure 3.20: Comparisons of experimental results from eight sensors with the SD
model and the KH model.
Note: The ‘Force’ and ‘Percentage’ in the legend correspond to the force on the left y-axis and the
percentage on the right y-axis separately. The locations of the eight sensors can be found in Figure
3.18.
Figure 3.20 (b) and (c) show a good agreement between the predictions from the SD
model, the KH model and the measurements of the normal forces at the two wing roll
supports. Figure 3.20 (b) shows the force and its corresponding percentage on the outer
wing roll support, while Figure 3.20 (c) shows the force and its corresponding percentage
on the inner wing roll support. The percentage is achieved as the ratio between the normal
force and the mass of the bulk material within one idler spacing. It can be seen that the
normal forces at the wing roll supports increase with growing capacity. Moreover, the
prediction from the SD model lies close to the ‘lower bound’ in both diagrams, whereas
the KH model gives predictions close to or even higher than the ‘upper bound’. In the case
of 100 percent loading level, In Figure 3.20 (c), the KH model predicts that 23.8 percent
of the bulk mass exerts on the inner wing roll support as the normal force, the percentages
derived from the measurements of F y,L2 and F y,R1 are 18.7 and 15.8 respectively, while the
SD model predicts that 17 percent of the bulk mass exerts on the inner wing roll support.
Therefore, the KH model overestimates the normal force on the wing rolls while the SD
model underestimates the normal force on the wing roll.
Figure 3.20 (d) depicts the comparison of the axial forces of two wing rolls. The axial
force on the wing roll grows gradually with the increasing throughput. The SD model
gives a good agreement with experimental results. The magnitude of the prediction from
the KH model is also close to the experimental data. However, the direction of the axial
force is opposite from test results. Krause and Hettler considered that the wall friction
between bulk material and the belt changes the direction from active to passive stress state
(Krause and Hettler, 1974). The hypothesis presented in Section 3.4 assumes that the wall
friction does not change direction from active to passive stress state. The experimental
results confirmed that the proposed hypothesis is closer to the reality.

From the comparison above, it is also recognized that the SD model overestimates the
load on the center roll while underestimating the load on the wing roll, meanwhile the
KH model estimates the load on three rolls in the opposite way. Bearing in mind that the
SD model provides a lower bound solution for the bulk load while the KH model gives
an upper bound solution, an aggregation model (SD+KH) based on the SD model and the
KH model may provide a solution closer to the true value of the bulk load than applying
a single model. The aggregation of the SD model and the KH model can be expressed as:
3
F bul k = γ · F SD + (1 − γ) · F K H (3.50)
in which Fbul k is the calculated value of the bulk load (N) from the aggregation of the
SD model and the KH model, γ is a factor that reflects the level of aggregation. γ is
dependent on the characteristics of the bulk material such as the internal friction and the
wall friction, the parameters of the conveyor belt such as the bending stiffness, and the
loading level of the conveyor. F SD refers to the calculation result from the SD model (N),
and F K H refers to the result from the KH model (N). A precautionary value of 0.5 for γ
can be chosen for Eq. (3.50) in the case of the influential factors for γ are not known.
Figure 3.21 shows the bulk vertical force on the wing roll from experimental measure-
ments, the KH model, the SD model and the aggregation of the two models with γ equal
to 0.5. The bulk vertical force from the left roll measurement is the resultant force of
measurements from sensors F z,L , F y,L1 , and F y,L2 in Figure 3.18. The bulk vertical force
from right roll is the resultant force of measurements from sensors F z,R , F y,R1 and F y,R2
in Figure 3.18.
Ideally, the vertical forces on the left and right wing rolls should be identical. Due
to the belt misalignment, however, the vertical forces on the left and right wing rolls are
different from each other. While it was difficult to control the belt misalignment during the
tests, the measured forces from the two wing rolls give upper and lower bounds (Figure
3.21)where the true value of the bulk load may lie in. The vertical force on the left wing
roll gives an ‘upper bound’, while the right roll gives a ‘lower bound’.
It can be seen from Figure 3.21 that the vertical force on the wing roll increases with
a growing throughput. For a low throughput as 55 percent loading level, there is only
14 percent of the bulk material loaded on each wing roll. The percentage goes up to 22
percent when the throughput reaches 100 percent loading level.
Both the SD model and the KH model give good correlations with the experimental
data as shown in Figure 3.21. In general, the prediction from the KH model is higher than
that from the SD model. For high loading levels (more than 70 percent loading level), the
prediction from the SD model lies between the upper and lower bounds. For low loading
levels (less than 90 percent loading level), the prediction from the KH model also lies
between the upper and lower bounds. Figure 3.21 also shows the calculated bulk load
from the aggregation model by applying Eq. (3.50) is more accurate than a single model,
especially for high loading levels of the conveyor.
To evaluate the accuracy of the SD model, the KH model, and the aggregation model,
the errors of the prediction by the three models are calculated. It is assumed that the true
value of the vertical force on each wing roll is the mean value of the vertical forces on the
left and right wing rolls from measurements. The percentage of error ε is calculated as:
200 25
180
160
20
140
Percentage (%)
120
Force (N)
100 15
80
3 60
10 Percentage from left roll measurement
Force from left roll measurement Percentage from KH model
40 Force from KH model Percentage from right roll measurement
Force from right roll measurement Percentage from SD+KH
20 Force from SD+KH Percentage from SD model
Force from SD model
0 5
0 55 75 100 0 55 75 100
Loading level (%) Loading level (%)
(a) (b)
Figure 3.21: Bulk vertical force on the wing roll (a), and the corresponding
percentage compared to the mass of the bulk material within one idler spacing (b).
Note: the ‘Force’ and ‘Percentage’ in the legend correspond to the force on the left y-axis and the
percentage on the right y-axis separately.
¯ ¯
¯ F measur e − F bul k ¯
ε = ¯¯ ¯ × 100% (3.51)
F measur e ¯
in which Fmeasur e is the true value of the vertical force on the wing roll in measurement
(N), Fbul k is obtained by applying Eq. (3.50) with γ from 0 to 1. For γ = 0, Eq. (3.50)
equates to the KH model. For γ = 1, Eq. (3.50) equates to the SD model. For 0 < γ < 1,
Eq. (3.50) produces different levels of aggregation of the two models. Therefore, Eq.
(3.51) can be used to evaluate the errors of the predictions from the three models.
Figure 3.22 shows the percentage of error for the aggregation model with respect to
three loading levels of the conveyor. For γ = 0 it represents the error of the prediction
from the KH model. For γ = 1 it represents the error of the prediction from the SD model.
For 55 percent loading level, the error for the SD model is 23.9 percent, and the error
for the KH model is 11.5 percent. The predictions from both two models are lower than
the true value. The error for the aggregation model increases linearly with rising γ. For
75 percent loading level, the error for the SD model is 13.9 percent, and the error for the
KH model is 2.6 percent. The predictions from both two models are lower than the true
value. Again, The error for the aggregation model increases linearly with rising γ. For
100 percent loading level, the prediction from the SD model is 2.8 percent lower than the
true value while the prediction from the KH model is 13.1 percent higher than the true
value. For the error of the prediction from the aggregation, it first decreases with rising γ
(for γ ≤ 0.8). For γ > 0.8 the error of the prediction increases again. Therefore, 0.8 is the
optimum value of γ for the aggregation model in the case of 100 percent loading level.
In addition, for 100 percent loading level, if using the industrial empirical load sharing
factor of 1/6 as the portion of the total bulk material loaded on each wing roll as mentioned
in CKIT (1991), it will produce a 16.9 percentage of underestimation of the bulk load on
25
100% loading level
55% loading level
75% loading level
20
Percentage of error ε (%)

15
10
3
5
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1.0
γ (−)
Figure 3.22: The percentage of error ε of predictions on the vertical force on a wing
roll by using the aggregation of the SD model and the KH model with varying γ.
each wing roll compared to the measured bulk load. In this sense, the industrial empirical
load sharing factor of 1/6 underestimates the bulk load on the wing roll. For the other two
loading levels, there is no empirical load sharing factor available.
For the bulk load on the center roll, the percentage of the mass of the bulk material
loaded on the center roll (dash lines in Figure 3.23) decreases with a growing throughput
though the vertical force is actually increasing (solid lines in Figure 3.23). Both the
SD model and the KH model show a reasonably good agreement with the experimental
results. For 55 percent loading level, the SD model predicts that 75.6 percent of the bulk
material loaded on the center roll, the KH model gives a prediction of 71.5 percent, while
the measurement shows that 67.8 percent of the bulk material loaded on the center roll.
For 75 percent loading level, the SD model predicts that 68.1 percent of the bulk material
is loaded on the center roll, while the KH model and the measurement give a value of 67.8
percent. For 100 percent loading level, the SD model predicts that 61.2 percent of the bulk
material loaded on the center roll, the KH model gives a prediction of 54.7 percent, while
the measurement shows that 59.9 percent of the bulk material is loaded on the center roll.
Figure 3.23 also shows the calculated bulk load on the center roll by applying Eq. (3.50).
It can be seen that the calculated bulk load from the aggregation model is more accurate
than a single model, especially for high loading levels of the conveyor.
Figure 3.24 shows the percentage of error of the prediction on the vertical force on the
center roll by using the aggregation model with varying γ. For γ = 0 in Figure 3.24, the
percentage of error is the error only for the KH model as can be seen in Eq. (3.50) when
γ = 0 is entered. Similarly, for γ = 1 in Figure 3.24, the percentage of error is only for the
SD model.
In Figure 3.24, for 55 percent loading level, the error for the SD model is 11.3 percent,
and the error of the prediction from the KH model is 5.1 percent. The predictions from
both two models are higher than the true value. The error for the aggregation model
increases linearly with rising γ. For 75 percent loading level, the error for the SD model
650 90
Percentage from SD model
Percentage from SD+KH
Percentage from KH model
600 85
Percentage from centre roll measurement
Force from SD model
Force from SD+KH
550 Force from KH model 80
Force from centre roll measurement
500 75
Percentage (% )
Force F (N)
3 450 70
400 65
350 60
300 55
250 50
0 55 75 100
Loading level (%)
Figure 3.23: Bulk vertical force on the center roll.

Note: the ‘Force’ and ‘Percentage’ in the legend correspond to the force on the left y-axis and the
percentage on the right y-axis separately.
15
100% loading level
55% loading level
75% loading level
Percentage of error ε (%)
10
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1.0
γ (−)
Figure 3.24: The percentage of error ε of predictions on the vertical force on a

center roll by using the aggregation of the SD model and the KH model with
varying γ.
3.6. T HE ROLL BEARING LOAD 59
is 8.3 percent, and the error for the KH model is 0.1 percent. The predictions from both
two models are higher than the true value. Again, The error for the aggregation model
increases linearly with rising γ. For 100 percent loading level, the prediction from the
SD model is 2.5 percent higher than the true value while that from the KH model is 8.4
percent lower than the true value. The error for the aggregation model first decreases with
rising γ (for γ ≤ 0.8). For γ > 0.8 the error of the prediction increases again. Therefore,
0.8 is the optimum value of γ for the aggregation of the two models in the case of 100
percent loading level. The value is the same as the case of γ for the aggregation model for
the wing rolls. Therefore, 0.8 is the optimum value of γ for the bulk load for 100 percent
loading level in this case. 3
From the comparisons above, conclusions can be drawn that the results from the SD
model and the KH model correlates well with experimental measurements. However, the
SD model underestimates the bulk load on wing rolls (corresponding to the WBSs) and
overestimates the bulk load on center rolls (corresponding to the CBSs). Whereas the KH
model overestimates the load on wing rolls while underestimating the load on center rolls.
An aggregation model based on the two models provides possibility to produce more ac-
curate results than a single model. The aggregation factor γ requires further investigation.
3.6 The roll bearing load

With the derivation of the bulk load, it is possible to calculate the load on each roll bearing
by taking the weight of the belt into consideration. Figure 3.25 depicts the force diagram
for the bearings in a wing roll and a center roll in a straight trajectory.
Figure 3.25: Force diagram for roll bearings.
On the shell of the wing roll, there are eight forces: the gravity of the WBS FG,wbel t ,
the normal force F NG,w and frictional force F N A,w transmitted from the bulk load through
the belt, the gravity of the shell FG,shel l , the axial supporting forces P N A,L1 and P N A,L2 ,
as well as the radial supporting forces P NG,L1 and P NG,L2 from the two bearings. The
gravity of the WBS FG,wbel t can be calculated as:
m − lM
µ ¶
0
FG,wbel t = m bel t · l · ·g (3.52)
2m
0
in which mbel t is the mass of the belt per unit length (kg/m), l is the idler spacing (m), m
is the belt width (m), l M is the shell length of the center roll (m).
The normal force F NG,w and the frictional force F N A,w of the bulk load can be calcu-
lated following Eq. (3.50):
SD KH
F NG,w = γ · F NG,w + (1 − γ) · F NG,w (3.53)
F N A,w = γ · F NSDA,w + (1 − γ) · F NK H
A,w (3.54)
3 By constructing the expressions of equilibriums of forces in the axial and radial direc-
tions for the wing roll, one can obtain the forces on the wing roll bearings as:
1 sin α ¡ ¢
P N A,L1 = P N A,L2 = F N A,w + FG,shel l + FG,wbel t (3.55)
2 2
l1 l2 cos α
P NG,L1 = F NG,w · + FG,wbel t · cos α · + FG,shel l
3a + 3c 2a + 2c 2
sin α · d 0 ¡ ¢
− FG,wbel t + FG,shel l (3.56)
2a + 2c
l1 l2 cos α
µ ¶ µ ¶
P NG,L2 = F NG,w · 1 − + FG,wbel t · cos α · 1 − + FG,shel l ·
3a + 3c 2a + 2c 2
sin α · d 0 ¡ ¢
+ FG,wbel t + FG,shel l (3.57)
2a + 2c
in which the positions of the forces P N A,L1 , P N A,L2 , P NG,L1 , P NG,L2 can be found in Figure
3.25, l 2 is the length of the WBS, a is the distance between the bearing and the bracket
(m) in Figure 2.6, c is the distance between two roll bearings (m), d0 is the diameter of
the roll shell (m).
On the center roll, there exit the bulk load F NG,c , the mass of the CBS FG,cbel t , and
the gravity of the shell FG,shel l . The bulk load can be derived following Eq. (3.50) as:
SD KH
F NG,c = γ · F NG,c + (1 − γ) · F NG,c (3.58)
The mass of the center belt section FG,cbel t is:
0 lM
FG,cbel t = m bel t · l · ·g (3.59)
m
Therefore, the radial force F NG,c on each bearing in the center roll is:
F NG,c + FG,cbel t + FG,shel l

P NG,c = (3.60)
2
With the derivation of the load on wing roll bearings and center roll bearings, the
lifetime or reliability of the roll bearings can be further calculated by applying the L 10
bearing lifetime theory as already discussed in Section 2.5.
3.7. C ONCLUSIONS 61
3.7 Conclusions
In this chapter an analytical approach is developed to determine the load on roll bearings
due to the conveyed bulk material, the belt and the roll. For the belt load, it is concluded
that belt sags contribute little additional load on idler rolls therefore the effect of belt sags
on the roll load can be neglected. A new analytical model (the SD model) is developed in
this chapter to provide a lower bound solution for the bulk load. Comparisons show that
the SD model correlates reasonably well with experimental measurements. However, it
is also observed that the SD model underestimates the bulk load on WBSs while overes-
timates the bulk load on the CBS. Combining the SD model with an upper bound model 3
(the KH model) from Krause and Hettler (1974), an aggregation model for the bulk load
is also developed. Comparisons between the SD model, the KH model and the aggrega-
tion model with experimental measurements show that the aggregation model is able to
provide more accurate prediction of the bulk load than applying the SD model or the KH
model.
4
E XPERIMENTAL
DETERMINATION OF BULK
LOAD *
Chapter 3 introduced the analytical model (the SD model) developed in this research to
determine the load exerted on a conveyor belt by transported bulk material. Measure-
ment of the distribution of the bulk load on a conveyor belt can provide information on
how to improve theoretical models for the bulk load. However, direct measurement of
the bulk load is still a challenge. This chapter presents an experimental study on mea-
suring the bulk load on a running belt conveyor. A tactile pressure sensor is applied in
the experimental study to investigate the pressure distribution on a belt. Comparisons
between experimental measurements and results from the SD model are presented and
discussed. Section 4.1 explains the motivation of the experimental study. Section 4.2 de-
scribes the experimental setup. Section 4.3 explains the experimental procedures. Section
4.4 discusses the techniques of data processing, and comparisons of results from the ex-
perimental measurements and the SD model. Section 4.5 gives some conclusive remarks.
4.1 Background
The bulk material may exert a high level of pressure on the conveyor belt due to the gravity
and the dynamic movement during conveyance. The bulk load is further transferred to the
idler rolls which influences the useful lifetime of the idler rolls.
Theoretical models have been developed to predict the bulk load. Based on Coulomb’s
earth pressure theory, Krause and Hettler (1974) developed the KH model to calculate the
bulk load by considering the bulk material experiences active and passive stress states.
In Section 3.4, the SD model, which is based on the stress discontinuity method, is in-
troduced. Comparisons between the SD model and the KH model in Section 3.5 reveal
* This chapter is based on Liu et al. (2015b,c, 2016).
63
64 4. E XPERIMENTAL DETERMINATION OF BULK LOAD
that the two models correlate reasonably well with the measurements of the forces on the
idler roll supports. However, the two models are observed with either overestimation or
underestimation of the forces on the idler roll supports to some extent. Therefore, an ag-
gregated solution of the bulk load at the global force level has been developed as shown
in Eq. (3.50) by introducing the aggregation factor γ. The determination of γ remains a
challenge as it is influenced not only by the characteristics of the conveyed bulk material
but also by the parameters of the belt conveyor.
Literature shows that no satisfactory sensors or procedures are available for the direct
measurement of the bulk load. Previous experimental studies commonly applied load cells
or strain gauges to measure the forces on the idler rolls. Geesmann (2001) developed an
apparatus to measure the radial, lateral and horizontal forces on garland idler rolls. Grab-
ner et al. (1993) designed a measuring apparatus to acquire the radial load distribution
over trough idler rolls. Wheeler (2003a) developed an instrumented idler apparatus to
4 measure the three dimensional (radial, lateral and horizontal) forces on trough idler rolls.
The measured forces on idler rolls provide indirect estimation of the bulk load. However,
these apparatuses only provide a few measuring points which limits the information of
the bulk load.
Recent advances in the tactile pressure sensors show a promising potential to mea-
sure the bulk load. Ilic (2013) carried out preliminary measurements of the pressure on
a belt simulation test facility and on a standstill conveyor belt caused by different bulk
materials using a Tekscan pressure sensor. Regarding the measured results of the pressure
on the belt simulation test facility, he divided the bulk load into two sections according
to the belt opening and closing movements. Whereas for the measured results of the
pressure on a standstill conveyor belt, he distinguished five sections of the pressure dis-
tribution within one idler spacing. However, the accuracy of the measured pressure was
not assessed. Therefore it remains a question that the Tekscan pressure sensor provides
qualitative or quantitative results of the bulk load. The pressure variation with different
loading capacities was not investigated either.
The objective of this experimental study is quantify the bulk load distribution using
a direct measurement approach. The first step is to assess the applicability of a tactile
pressure sensor for the measurement of the bulk load. Using the tactile pressure sensor
Tekscan 5315, measurements of the normal pressure on a running belt in an in-situ belt
conveyor facility with varied loading levels is conducted. Comparisons of measurements
from the tactile pressure sensor and well-established independent instruments are then
performed. The errors of the measurements from the tactile pressure sensor are calcu-
lated. Comparisons indicate that the accuracy of the measurements needs to be improved.
A post-process scheme is developed. Comparisons of the post-processed data and the
measurements from a conveyor scale show that the scheme improves the accuracy. The
pressure on the wing belt sections (WBSs) and the center belt section (CBS) is distin-
guished.
The transverse distribution of the bulk load on the belt at the stress/pressure level
obtained from the measurements is also compared with theoretical calculation results.
Within the three approaches (the SD model, the KH model, and the aggregated solution),
the SD model is chosen. Krause and Hettler (1974) did not realize the necessity to pro-
vide the bulk load distribution at the stress level at that time, so they merely provided the
derivation of the bulk load at the force level in their paper. Ilic (2013) gives two inter-
pretations of the distribution of the bulk force on the WBSs: an average normal pressure
4.2. E XPERIMENTAL SETUP 65
on the whole area of the WBSs and a total normal pressure acting 1/3 of the length up
the inclined sides. However, these two interpretations lack evidences. Therefore, the ag-
gregation of the SD model and the KH model is only considered at the force level [Eq.
(3.50)]. The SD model is able to provide a normal stress distribution on the WBSs and the
CBS. The transverse distribution of the measured bulk load in active and passive stress
states will be presented and compared with the results from the SD model.
4.2 Experimental setup

All experiments are carried out on a 65 m re-circulating belt conveyor testing facility at the
University of Newcastle, Australia. The experimental setup consists of a belt conveyor
facility, river sand, a Tekscan pressure measurement system, a conveyor scale, and an
instrumented idler apparatus (Figure 4.1).
4
Figure 4.1: Experimental setup.
4.2.1 Belt conveyor facility

The belt conveyor facility consists of two parallel belt conveyors which feed each other
via storage bins and feeders. The main parameters of the testing facility can be found in
Table 4.1.
Table 4.1: Parameters of the belt conveyor facility.
Parameter Value Parameter Value

belt type PN300/2 idler spacing (m) 1.25
belt width (m) 0.6 roll length (m) 0.224
belt velocity (m/s) 1 trough angle (°) 35

River sand has been chosen as the bulk material during all tests. The reason for choos-
ing river sand is that the material has high bulk density (1720 kg /m 3 as measured in the
test). The median grain size is 1 to 6 mm, which is much smaller than the size of the
sensel (10 mm x 10 mm) in the sensor pad. This can minimize the influence of grain size
on the accuracy of measurements.
4.2.2 Tekscan measurement system

The Tekscan pressure measurement system consists of a tactile pressure sensor pad, a
sensor handle, I-Scan software and a laptop (Figure 4.1, the sensor pad is covered by
rubber). Tekscan pressure sensor model 5315 is used in this experimental study (Figure
4.2). The 5315 sensor pad is 622 mm x 530 mm in size, and the sensing area is 488 mm
x 427 mm consisting of a 48 sensels x 42 sensels matrix (Tekscan Inc., 2014). The sen-
sor pad is made of two layers of polyester film, which consists of resistive materials and
pressure-sensitive ink. The exerted force/pressure at each sensel is determined by mea-
suring the change in the resistivity through the circuit of the two layers. The distribution
of the pressure over the sensing area can be stored as a movie consisting of frames with
a recording frequency of 25 Hz. This sensor model is chosen because the sensing area of
the pad fits the loading area of river sand. The Tekscan software I-Scan is applied for the
4 pre-processing of the acquired data.
Figure 4.2: Tekscan pressure sensor model 5315.
Tactile pressure sensors are developed to measure the force, pressure and area of a
loaded surface (Nicholas et al., 2012). Tekscan pressure sensors have been proved to be
successful in the pressure measurement in static environment, for instance, the measure-
ment of the load on the support structures buried in bulk stockpiles (He et al., 2014), the
normal stress variation in the Jenike shear cell (Bilgili et al., 2004), and the normal wall
stresses in hoppers (Johanson and Bucklin, 2004).
On the other hand, tactile pressure sensors have intrinsic limitations including the
hysteresis and the susceptibility to curves (Buis and Convery, 1997). The sensors can
be influenced by the loading rate, post-loading effects, creep, and hysteresis (Paikowsky
and Hajduk, 1997). Further limitations like loss of the sensitivity and repeatability, in-
accuracies between individual sensels were also reported (Dumbleton et al., 2009). Rose
and Stith (2004) realized that Tekscan pressure sensors can produce varying measurement
results depending on calibrations and sensor covering materials. As a result, customized
calibration processes of tactile pressure sensors according to different applications draw
intensive attention from researchers [i.e. (Paikowsky and Hajduk, 1997; Rose and Stith,
2004; Brimacombe et al., 2009; Palmer et al., 2009; Cazzola et al., 2013; Ganainy et al.,
2014)]. However, customized calibration is quite challenging in the application of the
pressure measurement on a running conveyor belt due to the difficulty in simulating a
curved contact between the belt and the sensor.
4.3. E XPERIMENTAL PROCEDURES 67
4.2.3 Independent instruments

A conveyor scale and an instrumented idler apparatus are applied as independent refer-
ences to assess the accuracy of measurements from the Tekscan pressure sensor. The con-
veyor scale utilized in this study is 3 m long, with an accuracy of ±5 percent of read-out.
The conveyor scale can provide the measurement of the bulk weight. The instrumented
idler apparatus was designed to measure the normal and axial forces at each idler roll
support (Wheeler, 2003b). The apparatus is utilized to compare with the Tekscan sensor
in terms of the normal forces on the WBSs and the CBS. Detailed descriptions of the in-
strumented idler apparatus can be found in Wheeler (2003b). Within the two independent
references, the conveyor scale was chosen as the main reference due to its accuracy, and
the loss of the axial force registrations from the instrumented idler apparatus.
4.3 Experimental procedures 4

During the experiments the pressure caused by the bulk material is measured on a running
belt with three levels of throughput: 245 t/h (100 percent loading level), 185 t/h (75
percent loading level), and 135 t/h (55 percent loading level). For each level of throughput,
four trials were conducted. Three minutes of rest was provided between trials.
Prior to installation, the Tekscan pressure sensor was conditioned according to the
manufacturer’s recommendation. After that, the sensor pad was fixed to the top surface
of the belt by glue tape, and covered using a thin rubber pad. The rubber pad can protect
the sensor and minimize the influence of the shear force on the Tekscan sensor. The
Tekscan sensor pad was placed in such a way that the width of the sensing area fits the
loaded dimension of the belt (the loaded transversal dimension of the belt under 100
percent loading capacity is 490 mm according to standard DIN 22101 (German Institute
for Standardization, 2002).
River sand was loaded from the feeder and shaped on the Tekscan sensor pad accord-
ing to the theoretical geometry after DIN 22101 (German Institute for Standardization,
2002) before conducting each trial. The cross section of river sand was controlled by the
clearance edge distance and the surcharge angle. To minimize slip-back, river sand was
loaded on the belt within approximately three idler spacings.
Prior to the starting of the belt conveyor, the conveyor scale and the instrumented
idler apparatus were calibrated carefully. During each trial, the conveyor scale and the
instrumented idler apparatus registered the weight of river sand and the normal forces at
roll supports independently.
After preparing all data acquisition systems, the belt conveyor was started. During
each trial, the river sand passed around 30 idlers, including the conveyor scale and the
instrumented idler apparatus before being stopped. Each trial lasted for about 40 seconds,
and around 1000 frames of Tekscan data were collected per test (sampling frequency 25
Hz).
4.4 Results and discussion

The preliminary results from the Tekscan pressure measurement system cannot provide
the bulk load within one idler spacing directly. Therefore, re-arrangement of the data is
necessary. Facing the errors of measurements from the Tekscan system, a post-process
scheme is further developed. The processed data are used to present the bulk load and
compare this with the results from the SD model.

4.4.1 Re-arrangement of preliminary results
Figure 4.3 shows representative results from the Tekscan pressure measurement system.
In Figure 4.3 (a), the colored areas depict the pressure mapping while the red color in-
dicates the pressure exceeding the saturation value of the sensel. The pressure mapping
shows significant variations of the pressure distribution caused by the bulk material on
the belt. Note that high peak pressures can be observed at the belt junctions [Figure 4.3
(a)] which face the idler junctions. From the pressure mapping in Figure 4.3 (b), it is
also noticed that the contact area measured by the Tekscan pressure sensor is smaller than
reality. As mentioned in Section 4.3, the whole sensing area of the Tekscan sensor pad
was loaded by river sand. However, the sensels at the edge of the pad failed to register the
pressure [white spots in Figure 4.3 (b)]. This is possibly due to a low magnitude of the
4 pressure on the WBSs compared to the pressure on the CBS.
belt junctions
(a) (b)
Conveyor Scale Instrumented idler
(c)
Figure 4.3: Pressure measurement results, (a) 2D pressure mapping, (b) 3D

pressure mapping, (c) the total force vs frames.
Figure 4.3 (c) shows the total force exerted on the sensor pad versus sequential frames
in one trial. The Tekscan sensor pad can produce 25 frames per second. As a result, Figure
4.3 (c) also depicts the temporal variation of the total force that the sensor pad experiences
during 40 seconds running time. From the diagram, it can be seen that the Tekscan sensor
pad experiences a high peak force when it passes over each idler. The positions of the
conveyor scale and the instrumented idler apparatus are also shown on the diagram. No-
tice that the peak forces have variations. Larger differences can be seen before and after
the pad passes the conveyor scale. One possible explanation is the difference of the belt
sag due to the fact that the idler spacing of the conveyor scale (0.77m) is much smaller
4.4. R ESULTS AND DISCUSSION 69
than the normal idler spacing within the belt conveyor (1.25 m). The difference may also
attribute to the offset versus inline roll configurations between normal idler sets in the
conveyor and the idlers utilized in the conveyor scale.
The first challenge of data re-arrangement is to extract the pressure matrix within one
idler spacing from the massive data collected by the tactile pressure sensor. For each
trial, 1000 frames of raw pressure matrices were collected. I-Scan software provides
the diagram of the force exerted on the whole frame versus the frame number [Figure
4.3 (c)]. From the diagram, it is possible to track the frame numbers during which the
Tekscan sensor passed the conveyor scale. In addition, the corresponding frame numbers
of two consecutive idlers from the peaks of the diagram was distinguished. Aware that
the frequency of data acquisition for the Tekscan pressure sensor is 25 Hz, four rows
of each frame were extracted to build up a pressure matrix which presents the pressure
distribution on the belt within one idler spacing.
Figure 4.4 illustrates a typical 3D distribution of the normal pressure on the belt by 4
using the filtering method mentioned above. For a better illustration, the pressure distri-
bution within two idler spacings was presented. High peaks of the normal pressure at the
idler roll junctions can be observed in Figure 4.4. The "mountains" of pressure develop
from one idler to the neighboring one. Moreover, the Tekscan pressure sensor captured
"high peaks" of pressure on the belt while the belt passes over each idler. The "high
peaks" of pressure also correlates with the peak forces shown in Figure 4.3 (c). Further-
more, the pattern of the pressure mapping repeats at regular intervals the same as the idler
spacing. However, the source of the "high peaks" of pressure has not been distinguished.
The “high peaks” might come from the impact of idler rolls, or they may be exaggerated
by the sensels due to the large deformation of the sensor pad facing the idler junctions.
Another observation is that the normal pressure does not vary smoothly possibly due to
the differences between individual sensels. With a Tekscan tactile pressure sensor, Ilic
(2013) observed similar but lower magnitude of "high peaks" of the pressure on a belt
simulation test rig.
The MATLAB program can also calculate the weight of the bulk material within one
idler spacing. Table 4.2 summarizes the measured bulk weight from the conveyor scale.
Figure 4.5 compares the measurements from the conveyor scale and the Tekscan pressure
sensor. Taking the mean values of measurements from the conveyor scale as the refer-
ences, the percentage of error of measurement is calculated and plotted for each trial.
The Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) is also calculated to estimate the mean error of
measurements from the Tekscan pressure sensor.
Table 4.2: Measurements of bulk weight from the conveyor scale.
55 percent loading Test T1 T2 T3 T4 Mean value

level Weight (kg) 115.7 115.7 115.4 115.6 115.6
level Weight (kg) 156.9 156.5 156.3 156.2 156.5
level Weight (kg) 206.4 206.3 206.8 206.7 206.6

Note: The length of the conveyor scale is 3m.
From Figure 4.5, it can be seen that the percentage of error varies from 8.7 percent to
16
14
12
Pressure kPa
10
4 2
−0.4
−0.3
W
idt −0.2
h alo −0.1 2.5
n gb
elt 0 2 (m)
cro tio
s 0.1 1.5 d irec
s− l
se ina
cti 0.2 tud
ngi
1
on 0.3 t lo
(m 0.5 bel
) ng
0.4
0 alo
gth
Len
Figure 4.4: Typical 3D distribution of raw normal pressure distribution within two
idler spacings.
40 40
35 T1 T3 35
(%)
30 RMSE 30
T4
Scale - Tekscan
25 T2 25
RMSE (%)
T1 T3 RMSE T1 T3
20 T2 T4 20
Scale
RMSE
15 T4 15
10 T2 10
5 5
0 0
55% loading 75% loading 100% loading
Three sets of tests
Figure 4.5: Comparison of measurements from the conveyor scale and the Tekscan.
sensor.
Note: For each loading level, four trials (T1, T2, T3, T4) were performed, and the root mean
square error (RMSE) was calculated.
33.7 percent for the measurements from the Tekscan pressure sensor. The RMSE ranges
from 16.2 percent to 28 percent. The inaccuracies of measurement results corroborate
the findings of other researchers [i.e. (Brimacombe et al., 2009; Drewniak et al., 2007;
Gao and Wang, 2013)]. The inaccuracies of measurements by the Tekscan sensor are
acceptable for an in-situ dynamic applications to provide qualitative information for the
purpose of scientific research.
For the four trials under the 55 percent loading level, small variations between trials
can be observed. Meanwhile, large variations of measurement results can be seen for trials
under the 75 percent and 100 percent loading levels. The variation may be accounted for
the limited activation of sensels at the edge of the Tekscan sensor pad, as depicted in
Figure 4.3 (b).
There are four potential reasons for the measurement errors by using the Tekscan tac-
tile pressure sensor. One possibility is that the measurement range of the sensor pad is too
high compared to the actual pressure level during the tests which means that the accuracy
4
of the sensor may not meet the expected one. Another potentiality is that the rubber pad
which is used to protect the sensor may affect the output of the Tekscan pressure sensor as
Rose and Stith (2004) discovered in their experiments. Thirdly, the opening and closing
of the belt during conveyance provided a very poor contact between the sensor pad and the
belt. The last possibility is the misalignment of the belt during the experiment. Though
the Tekscan sensor pad was placed in the center of the conveyor belt at the beginning of
each trial, the belt was observed to misalign during the running.
On the other hand, the instrumented idler apparatus is applied to compare the normal
forces on the WBSs and the CBS. The pressure mapping in Figure 4.5 was divided into
three sections, the Left Wing Belt Section (LWBS), the Center Belt Section (CBS), and the
Right Wing Belt Section (RWBS). The division of the pressure matrix was based on the
length of the rolls. The resultant LWBS matrix consists of 1-12 columns of the pressure
matrix, while the CBS matrix consists of 13-36 columns and the RWBS matrix consists
of 37-48 columns. In addition, the mean values and standard deviations of the pressure
in the LWBS, CBS, and RWBS were calculated separately. The pressure which is more
than 2 standard deviation away from the mean value was filtered out. The pressure in each
section is summed up and compared with the normal forces measured by the instrumented
idler apparatus (the weight of the empty belt was subtracted).
Table 4.3 compares the results from the instrumented idler apparatus and the Tekscan
pressure sensor. In general, the results for the CBS from the Tekscan pressure sensor cor-
relate reasonably well with the results from the instrumented idler apparatus. However,
the Tekscan results for the WBSs are much lower than the measurements of the instru-
mented idler apparatus. The reasons for the differences have been discussed previously in
the comparison between the conveyor scale and the Tekscan pressure sensor (i.e. limited
activation of sensels in the Tekscan sensor).
4.4.2 Post-process scheme

Preliminary experimental results in Section 4.4.1 indicate that the percentage of error
from the Tekscan pressure sensor varied from 8.7 percent to 33.7 percent, which is a
rather large error range. Since no satisfying customized calibration process has been
found, a post-process scheme has been developed in MATLAB. The post-process scheme
is to compensate the low read-out of measured results, and to average the output of the
sensor.
Table 4.3: Comparison of measurements from the instrumented idler apparatus

and the Tekscan sensor.
4
Tekscan pressure sensor Instrumented idler apparatus
NFLWBS NFCBS NFRWBS

NFLWBS NFCBS NFRWBS
Tests Force Error Force Error Force Error Force (N) Force(N) Force (N)
(N) (%) (N) (%) (N) (%)
T1 68 28.9 285.4 8.5 34.1 48.8
55% T2 67.1 29.9 294.8 5.5 36.8 44.7
loading 95.7 312 66.6
level T3 64.8 32.3 287.5 7.9 32.6 51
T4 68 28.9 266.7 14.5 33.7 49.4
T1 111.6 24.6 346.7 12.5 84.1 22.4

75% T2 122.8 17 397.1 -0.2 92.9 14.3
loading 148 396.3 108.4
level T3 133.4 9.9 332.3 16.1 71.9 33.7
T4 120.5 18.6 381.9 3.6 76.1 29.8
T1 102.9 48.3 431.8 13.3 40.3 75.7

100% T2 143.3 28.1 460.6 7.5 69.1 58.4
loading 199.2 498 166
level T3 173.4 13 441.7 11.3 79.8 51.9
T4 180 9.6 447.6 10.1 103.9 37.4

Note: For each set of test, four trails (T1, T2, T3, T4) were performed. NFLWBS – Normal Force
on the Left Wing Belt Section; NFCBS – Normal Force on the Center Belt Section; NFRWBS –
Normal Force on the Right Wing Belt Section; the values from the instrumented idler apparatus
are the mean values of the four trials for each loading capacity; error is derived by comparing the
measurement of the force using the Tekscan pressure sensor with the measurements of the force
using the instrumented idler apparatus.
A compensation factor is applied to compensate the low read-out of raw measure-

ments from the Tekscan pressure sensor. Palmer et al. (2009) provided an assessment of
tactile pressure sensors for geotechnical applications. They utilized the same sensor as
we used in this research. From their research, we noticed that the measurements from the
pressure sensor presented linearity in a low loading range. Due to the fact that the sensor
was under a very low loading level, a linear compensation factor is considered to provide
adequate accuracy. By comparing the measurements from the conveyor scale and the tac-
tile pressure sensor in terms of the bulk weight within one idler spacing (Figure 4.5), a
constant compensation factor of 1.4 was applied to all raw results of the tactile pressure
sensor. This may indicate a systematic deviation exists for the measurement of the pres-
sure on the belt by using the tactile pressure sensor. Table 4.4 shows the comparisons
between the compensated results of Tekscan data and measurements from the conveyor
scale.
4
Table 4.4: Comparisons of bulk weight between compensated Tekscan data and the
conveyor scale.
Trial 1 Trial 2 Trial 3 Trial 4 (N)

Loading conveyor
Level (%) weight error weight error weight error weight error scale (N)
(N) (%) (N) (%) (N) (%) (N) (%)
55 451.4 2.8 464.3 0 449.3 3.2 427.6 7.9 464.3
75 628.6 0 713.1 -13.4 616.9 1.9 671.3 -6.8 628.7
100 725.1 12.4 847.1 -2.3 738 10.8 914.2 -10.4 827.8

Note: error is derived by comparing the weight from the Tekscan pressure sensor with the weight
from the conveyor scale.
Furthermore, an averaging algorithm which averages the pressure at each sensel with
surrounding eight sensels was also applied to smooth the output of the sensor. Figure 4.6
and 4.6 show the distribution of the pressure at each sensel before and after the averaging
algorithm separately. From the comparison between Figure 4.6 and 4.7, it can be seen
that the high peak pressures were largely eliminated. The pressure was distributed more
evenly. Another benefit is that much more sensels were considered to produce output after
applying the averaging algorithm compared to the number of raw sensels. This overcomes
the drawback that some sensels failed to register the pressure.
Figure 4.8 illustrates a typical 3D distribution of the normal pressure within two idler
spacings after applying the re-arrangement and post-process scheme. Compared to Figure
4.4, relative high peaks can still be observed at the idler junctions. One possible expla-
nation is that the pressure at idler junctions is exaggerated by the folding behavior of the
thin sensor pad and the rubber cover sheet forced by the trough shape of the idler sets.
Another possibility is the impact of the idler junction gap. The conveyor belt may bend at
the idler junctions. The idler junction bending of the belt induces additional compression
in the belt’s top cover and the high pressure captured by the Tekscan pressure sensor.
In Figure 4.8, the pressure on the CBS is not evenly distributed. In fact, two "moun-
tains" of high pressure can be observed following the idler junctions. Between the two
"mountains", the pressure is relatively low. The two "mountains" of the pressure may
be interpreted due to the excessive deformation of the belt by the bending at the idler
junctions.
7000
6000
Numbers of sensels 5000
4000
3000
2000
4 1000
0
0 5 10 15 20
Pressure at each sensel (kPa)
Figure 4.6: Distribution of the raw measured pressure.

Note: The number of sensels within pressure range 10-20 kPa is too small to be visualized in the
figure.
3000
2500
Numbers of sensels
2000
1500
1000
500
0
0 2 4 6 8 10
Pressure at each sensel (kPa)
Figure 4.7: Distribution of the pressure after post-process.

Note: The number of sensels within pressure range 6-10 kPa is too small to be visualized in the
figure.
10
8
Pressure (kPa)
−0.4
−0.3
−0.2 2.5
Tr
an
sv −0.1 2
ers
al 0 )
dir 1.5 (m
ec
tio 0.1 on
cti
n( ire
m) 0.2 1 ld
ina
ud
git
0.3 0.5
n
0.4 Lo
0
Figure 4.8: Typical 3D distribution of processed normal pressure within two idler
spacings.
The phenomena of the pressure in Figure 4.8 correlate with the findings of Zhang
(2015). He defined an idler junction bending area as an area along the belt travel direction
and separates the belt’s contact with the center roll and the wing roll (Figure 4.9). From a
finite element analysis, Zhang (2015) recognized that high level of compression can occur
to the belt’s top cover around the idler junction bending area, and excessive tension may
occur to the bottom cover. This reconfirms the two "mountains" of the pressure along
the belt travel direction as shown in Figure 4.8. In addition, he also recognized that the
contact pressure at the idler junction can be much higher than the rest of the contact area
between the belt and the idler due to the impact of the cords and the edge of the center roll
and the wing rolls. This gives an explanation of the "peaks" of the pressure at the idler
junctions in Figure 4.8.
Figure 4.9: Equivalent strain in the belt bottom cover of a steel cord belt from finite
element modeling, derived from Zhang (2015).
Zhang (2015) further summarized that the main factors that influence the belt bending
at the idler junctions are the trough angle, belt thickness, the bulk load, idler spacing and
convex and concave curves. In addition, the impact can be more serious for a fabric belt
with low transverse stiffness as the belt used in this study compared to a steel cord belt
because the belt can form a small bending curvature by the idler junction and experience
high "peaks" of compression in the top cover in the idler bending area. The bending
curvature can be so small that the belt may contact the edge of the center roll and the
wing roll (Figure 4.10). This leads to excessive contact stress within the belt junction area
of the belt.
Figure 4.11 depicts the comparison of percentage of the total normal force on the
LWBS, CBS and RWBS under different loading capacities. The total normal forces were
calculated by summing up the pressure in each section, and multiplying the corresponding
area. Generally, the percentage of the normal force on LWBS and RWBS increases with
growing capacities, meanwhile the percentage of the normal force on the CBS decreases.
In Figure 4.11, the percentage of the normal force on the LWBS varies from 16.8 percent
up to 23 percent, and the percentage for the CBS changes from 74.2 percent to 66.2
percent, while the percentage for the RWBS alters from 8.5 percent to 10.8 percent. The
difference between the LWBS and RWBS is due to the misalignment of the belt during
experiments.
Figure 4.10: The belt contacting the edge of idler rolls, derived from Zhang (2015).
100
55% capacity
90 75% capacity
Percentage of normal force (N)
80 100% capacity
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
whole belt LWBS CBS RWBS
Figure 4.11: Comparison of the normal forces in different belt sections.

4.4.3 Comparisons of experimental and theoretical results

Figure 4.12 shows the transverse distribution of the measured bulk load at 55 percent
loading level of the conveyor in (a) active stress state and (b) passive stress state, together
with the calculated bulk load from the SD model. The origin of the horizontal axis is set
at the center of the belt. Active and passive stress states are determined by considering the
stress state of the bulk material on the WBSs. Following the assumption in Chapter 3, it is
considered that active stress occurs within the first half idler spacing, while passive stress
exists in the second half. Therefore the pressure matrix derived from the re-arrangement
scheme is divided into two equal halves to represent active and passive pressure. The
measured results (markers in Figure 4.12) are achieved by the mean value of the active or
passive pressure matrix. In addition, a curve fitting (CF in Figure 4.12) is achieved after
applying the moving average and the smoothing spline fitting technique in MATLAB. The
4 window size of the moving average technique is set as 5. The same techniques are applied
in Figure 4.13 and 4.14.
In Figure 4.12 (a), The pressure on the LWBS and RWBS is rather low because there
is little bulk material on the WBSs for 55 percent loading level of the conveyor. The
measured pressure on the CBS is rather high with a double hump shaped distribution
from the curve fitting (CF in Figure 4.12). Two peaks can be observed from the measured
results, the left peak (1.3 kPa) is located at the left idler junction, and the right peak (1.9
kPa) occurs on the CBS close to the right idler junction. The two pressure peaks are
most likely due to the effect of folding behavior of the sensels facing the idler junctions
plus the idler junction bending of the belt as discussed in subsection 4.4.2. Therefore, the
pressure peaks in Figure 4.12 are not considered to represent the actual pressure on the
belt junctions caused by the bulk material.
In Figure 4.12 (a), a reasonably good agreement can be observed between the mea-
surements and the calculated result from the SD model. The measured pressure on the
CBS shows large deviations, especially at the idler junctions. On contrary, the SD model
considers that the pressure on the CBS is equally distributed while does not take the idler
junction bending into account. It remains unclear to what extent the idler junction bend-
ing influences the measured pressure at the belt junctions. In this case, a mean value of
the measured pressure on the CBS (EX in Figure 4.12) is retrieved and compared to the
calculated pressure from the SD model (SD in Figure 4.12). The calculated pressure (1.5
kPa) on the CBS from the SD model is close to the mean value of the measurements (1.2
kPa). The measured and calculated normal pressure on the LWBS and RWBS correlate
well.
Figure 4.12 (b) shows the distribution of the bulk load from experimental measure-
ments and the SD model in passive stress state. A similar pattern of the pressure dis-
tribution as Figure 4.12 (a) can be observed. For the measured pressure on the LWBS,
it increases to about 1.2 kPa at the left idler junction while the calculated passive pres-
sure on the WBSs from the SD model grows to 1 kPa at the idler junctions. The measured
pressure on the CBS presents a double hump shaped distribution varying from 0.75 kPa to
1.7 kPa from the curve fitting. The mean measured pressure on the CBS is 1.19 kPa while
the calculated pressure from the SD model is 1.22 kPa. As a result, a good correlation is
achieved between the measurements and the calculated results from the SD model.
Comparisons between Figure 4.12 (a) and (b) indicate that there is no significant dif-
ference between measured active and passive pressure on the belt at the 55 percent loading
level. Another observation is that the SD model overestimates the pressure on the CBS in
3
T1
2.5 T2
Normal pressure (kPa)
T3
T4
2 SD
EX
CF
1.5
1
4
0.5
0
−0.25 −0.2 −0.15−0.1 −0.05 0 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2 0.2
Belt transversal direction (m)
(a)
3
T1
T2
2.5 T3
T4
2 SD
EX
CF
1.5
0.5
0
−0.25 −0.2 −0.15−0.1 −0.05 0 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2 0.25
(b)
Figure 4.12: Transverse distribution of the bulk load at 55 percent loading level
from experimental measurements and the SD model in (a) active stress state and (b)
passive stress state.
Note: T1, T2, T3, T4 are four trials, SD represents predictions from the SD model, EX represents
the mean pressure on the CBS from measurements, and CF represents the result of curve fitting.
both active and passive stress states.

Figure 4.13 illustrates the transverse distribution of the measured bulk load and the
calculated bulk load from the SD model at 75 percent loading level of the conveyor in both
active and passive stress states. Regarding the distribution of the measured bulk load, a
hump shaped distribution of the pressure can be observed in Figure 4.13 (a) and (b).
Again, pressure peaks are observed at the idler junction area due to the folding behavior
of the sensels and the idler junction bending of the belt. The measured normal pressure
on the LWBS in Figure 4.13 (a) increases to a maximum of 1.9 kPa when approaching
the left idler junction. From the curve fitting, the measured pressure on the CBS (CF in
Figure 4.13) presents a variation between 0.7 kPa and 2.8 kPa, with a mean pressure of
1.6 kPa (EX in Figure 4.13). The calculated bulk load on the CBS from the SD model is
1.9 kPa. The measured pressure on the RWBS presents a small peak in the middle of the
RWBS. The reason for that remains unclear.
4 In Figure 4.13 (b), a reasonably good correlation between the measured and calculated
bulk load on the LWBS and CBS is achieved. The calculated bulk load from the SD model
correlates with the measured pressure distribution on the LWBS quite well. The calculated
pressure (1.6 kPa) from the SD model on the CBS is very close to the mean value of the
measurements (1.5 kPa). The measured and calculated bulk load on the RWBS is hardly
comparable due to the unexpected peak of pressure.
Comparisons from Figure 4.13 (a) and (b) indicate that a reasonably good agreement
between the measurements and the results from the SD model is achieved. For the normal
pressure on the WBSs in both active and passive stress states, the SD model produces
lower value compared to the experimental measurements. On contrary, the SD model
overestimates the pressure on the CBS compared to the measurements.
Figure 4.14 shows the distribution of the measured and calculated bulk load at 100
percent loading level of the conveyor in both active and passive stress states. Again, a
hump shaped pattern is recognized from the curve fitting for the distribution the bulk load
from the experimental measurements. In Figure 4.14 (a), the measured bulk load on the
LWBS grows smoothly from the edge to the idler junction, reaching the maximum value
of 2 kPa at the left idler junction. Another measured pressure peak of 2.9 kPa is observed
near the right idler junction. In Figure 4.14 (b), a similar pattern of the pressure distribu-
tion can be observed, with two pressure peaks reaching 2.1 kPa and 3 kPa respectively.
These pressure peaks are most likely caused by the idler junction bending of the belt and
further exaggerated by the folding of the sensor pad in the idler junction area, rather than
caused by the bulk load.
From Figure 4.14, the SD model correlates reasonably well with the measurements
in both active and passive stress states. In Figure 4.14 (a), the calculated pressure on the
WBSs from the SD model is lower than the measurements in four trials. If the pressure
peaks are averaged with the pressure at the rest of the CBS, the measured pressure on the
CBS has a mean value of 1.6 kPa [EX in Figure 4.14 (a)] while the calculated pressure
from the SD model is 2.5 kPa [EX in Figure 4.14 (b)]. In Figure 4.14 (b), the calculated
and measured bulk load achieve a good agreement. For the pressure distribution on the
LWBS and RWBS, the measured pressure and the calculated pressure correlate quite well.
For the mean pressure on the CBS, the measured pressure (1.6 kPa) is close to the calcu-
lated pressure (1.9 kPa) from the SD model. Though the SD model correlates reasonably
well with the measurements, it has to be mentioned the SD model overestimates the pres-
sure on the CBS in both active and passive stress states. Another observation is that the
4
T1
3.5 T2
T3
3 T4
SD
2.5 EX
CF
2
1.5 4
1
0.5
0
−0.25−0.2 −0.15−0.1 −0.05 0 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2 0.25
(a)
4
T1
3.5 T2
T3
3 T4
SD
2.5 EX
CF
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
−0.25 −0.2 −0.15 −0.1 −0.05 0 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2 0.25
(b)
6
T1
5 T2
T3
T4
4 SD
EX
3 CF
4 2
0
−0.25−0.2 −0.15−0.1 −0.05 0 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2 0.25
(a)
6
T1
5 T2
T3
T4
4 SD
EX
CF
3
0
−0.25 −0.2 −0.15 −0.1 −0.05 0 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2 0.25
(b)
measured results from four trials have some dispersion. The dispersion may be attributed
to the noises of the measurements.
The pattern of the pressure distribution in Figure 4.14 is reconfirmed by Ilic (2013)
with Tekscan measurement results of the pressure on a belt simulation test facility and
on a standstill conveyor belt caused by river sand. From the measured pressure on the
belt simulation test facility (Figure 4.15), it can be seen that the pressure peaks cannot be
noticed in active stress state while in passive stress state small pressure peaks also exist.
However, from the measurements of the pressure on the standstill conveyor belt [Figure
6-10 in Ilic (2013)], the pressure peaks can be hardly observed at the sections of the belt
at the idler (passive stress state), but can be clearly observed at the belt sag section (active
stress state).
As a result, the Tekscan pressure sensor is considered to capture the belt behavior
(bending and impact stress) at the idler junctions into the measurement of the bulk load
on the running conveyor belt. Since the SD model does not take the belt behavior into 4
account, the comparisons of the results from the SD model with the Tekscan measurement
results cannot provide quantitative conclusions.
4.5 Conclusions
This chapter introduces the experimental study on direct measurements of the bulk load on
a running conveyor belt by applying a tactile pressure sensor. The percentage of error for
the measurements from the tactile pressure sensor varied from 8.7 percent to 33.7 percent.
A filtering and post-process scheme was developed to process the data. Comparisons
reveal that the tactile pressure sensor is able to provide qualitative insight of the bulk load
distribution for scientific purpose. However, the measurements of the tactile pressure
sensor provide limited quantitative information on the transverse distribution of the bulk
load due to its intrinsic limitations (i.e. sensitivity and the susceptibility to curves) and
the belt behavior at idler junctions observed in this study. This prevents the measurements
of the tactile pressure sensor from being compared with results from the SD model in
quantitative details. An experimental study on a steel cord conveyor belt is recommended
to investigate the influence of the belt behavior at idler junctions on the measurement of
the bulk load by using tactile pressure sensors.
(a)
(b)
Figure 4.15: Transverse distribution of the bulk load from a belt simulation test
facility in (a) belt opening/active stress state and (b) belt closing/passive stress state,
derived from Figure 5-34 (Ilic, 2013)
5
E XPERIMENTAL CONDITION
MONITORING OF IDLER ROLLS
Idler rolls will eventually fail to function due to deterioration. In Chapter 1 it was stated
that the detection of idler roll failures is important to ensure the reliability of a belt con-
veyor. Chapter 2 asserted that the detection can be achieved by applying condition mon-
itoring techniques. Solutions for the condition monitoring of the idler rolls are under de-
velopment. However, the choice of monitoring parameters in these solutions is arbitrary.
This chapter aims to investigate which parameters can represent the technical condition
of idler rolls. Section 5.1 reviews the development of condition monitoring of belt con-
veyor idlers. Section 5.2 presents a laboratory experimental study on the detectability of
certain monitoring parameters with respect to idler rolls in both incipient and final failure
stages. Section 5.3 shows a preliminary in-situ experimental study on the field application
of selected sensors. Section 5.4 provides some conclusive remarks.
5.1 Condition monitoring of the idlers

Idler maintenance can be divided into three categories of activities: condition monitoring,
decision making, and roll replacement. Condition monitoring is defined as the continuous
or periodical inspections and the interpretation of inspection results to indicate the condi-
tion of an item (Sharpe and Leaney, 1999). The inspection refers to the act of checking
or testing in order to collect a qualitative and/or quantitative description regarding the
item. The decision making refers to the process of achieving decisions on when to in-
spect the next time and/or when to replace the item. The roll replacement encompasses
all maintenance tactics that are associated with replacing an idler roll.
There are four types of maintenance strategies for belt conveyor systems: preventive
maintenance, random maintenance, corrective maintenance, and predictive maintenance
(Lodewijks, 2003). Pang (2010) prompted five steps towards automated maintenance of
belt conveyor systems according to the level of automation. Out of the five steps, this
section categorizes the development of condition monitoring of belt conveyor idlers into
85
86 5. E XPERIMENTAL CONDITION MONITORING OF IDLER ROLLS
three steps:
• human sensory inspection and interpretation;

• sensor assisted inspection and human interpretation;
• automated inspection and interpretation.
5.1.1 Human sensory inspection and interpretation

In this practice, the condition monitoring of idlers consists of periodical inspections by
human conveyor inspectors through “eye watching” and “ear listening” as shown in Fig-
ure 5.1 (Owen, 1997; Leonida, 2013). The content of the inspection is to check whether
a certain idler roll makes serious noise, shows excessive wear, or stops running (Tomsky,
1985). Based on such qualitative inspections, the conveyor inspectors can achieve subjec-
tive interpretation on the condition of the idler rolls. This practice can still be found on
most conveyor sites (Lodewijks, 2003).
Figure 5.1: Manual inspection of belt conveyor idlers, figure courtesy of

Martin Engineering (2014).
The advantages of this practice are high flexibility and low infrastructure investment.
The conveyor inspectors are considered to easily adjust their inspection routine if neces-
sary. On the other hand, this practice exclusively relies on human labor on most conveyor
sites, so there is no need of extra infrastructure for the idler inspection.
The disadvantages of this practice include substandard inspection, arbitrary interpre-
tation, labor intensiveness, inefficiency, and high total maintenance cost. Human sensory
inspection can be inaccurate and inconsistent (Lodewijks and Ottjes, 2005b). The inter-
pretation of inspection results also varies significantly according to the knowledge and
experience of conveyor inspectors (Surtees, 1995). Moreover, conveyor inspectors are
normally requested to repeat the daily routine to spot failed rolls, which is time consum-
ing. The total maintenance cost can be very high considering the high labor cost, and the
cost of unplanned downtime due to overdue detection of idler roll failures.
5.1.2 Sensor assisted inspection and human interpretation
In this practice, the inspection is carried out by conveyor inspectors with the assistance
of sensors while the interpretation of measurement results remains to be done only by
5.1. C ONDITION MONITORING OF THE IDLERS 87
humans. The deterioration of roll bearings involves the evolution of certain parameters
such as the temperature, vibration, and acoustic emission (Niebel, 1994). Sensors which
can detect these parameters are utilized to assist conveyor inspectors, for instance (Health
and Safety Executive, 2004):
• thermometry sensors (i.e. infrared sensors and thermocouples),
• temperature transition identification techniques (i.e. heat sensitive paints),
• thermal imaging sensors (i.e. infrared cameras),
• noise and vibration sensors (i.e. accelerometers and microphones).
Applications of these sensors for the idler monitoring are qualitatively reported in a
limited number of publications, while quantitative results of these applications are very
rare. A merged visual-infrared image fire detector was developed to monitor the tempera-
ture of idler rolls and pulleys (Fernandez et al., 2013). Bearing failures were simulated by
drilling into bearings and then introducing sand into the bearings, or alternatively by heat- 5
ing a roll purposely up to 150 ◦ C. The results show the effective detection of hot spots on
the failed idler rolls by the detector over certain distances. However, the accuracy and the
area of interest of the detector were not provided. In addition, the temperature evolution
of idler rolls at different failure stages was not analyzed.
Acoustic sensors are also applied to assist idler roll inspection. For instance, SKF
(2012) has developed the idler sound monitoring kit to assist conveyor inspectors to spot
idler rolls which generate abnormal sound. However, the representation of the technical
condition of idler rolls by using the sound monitoring kit has not been reported.
A test bench based on vibration measurement was developed to examine detached gar-
land idler rolls (König and Burkhard, 2013). It is stated that the vibration measurement
is capable to detect bearing failures. However, the test bench is also reported to be over
sensitive even to slight imbalance of the driving wheel. Furthermore, the vibration mea-
surement shows “disturbances” from the sealing system instead of the bearings, which
also exists during the normal operation of idlers. The test bench is limited to inspect
detached rolls instead of on-site rolls.
The advantages of the sensor assisted inspection include improved accuracy, quantita-
tive information, and less downtime. With the assistance of sensors, conveyor inspectors
are able to collect data and to achieve objective interpretations. This will lower the prob-
ability of unnoticed idler roll failures and therefore reduce breakdowns of belt conveyors.
Meanwhile, this practice still requires a large amount of human labor and knowledge.
It necessitates large involvement of conveyor inspectors to conduct periodical inspections.
Guidelines on how to utilize sensors properly to derive accurate inspection results are still
missing.
5.1.3 Automated inspection and interpretation

In this practice, inspections of idler rolls are conducted fully by sensors and the acquired
data is also transferred into information automatically. Depending on the mobility of
applied sensors, there are mobile and fixed monitoring systems.
Mobile monitoring systems

A mobile monitoring system may consist of multiple sensors, one or multiple robot
manipulators, and a moving base. One example is the robotic idler prediction system
(Figure 5.2). The system consists of a thermal imaging sensor for idler roll inspection,
sensors for robot positioning, a six-axis robot manipulator, and a track. It is stated that
the system is capable of automatically positioning itself at a required location along a
conveyor, scanning appointed idlers rolls, and transferring imaging data to the central
control system for further analysis (Scott Automation & Robotics, 2014). However, there
is no quantitative information that can show the effectiveness of the thermal imaging
sensor for the detection of idler roll failures.
Figure 5.2: Robotic idler prediction system, figure courtesy of

Scott Automation & Robotics (2014).
One advantage of mobile monitoring systems is that they are more flexible than fixed
monitoring systems. Without much permanent infrastructure, it is easier for a mobile
monitoring system to be transferred from one belt conveyor to another.
The drawback of such systems can be that the inspection cycle is longer than that of
fixed monitoring systems. The positioning of a robot for the inspection of a certain idler
roll may take quite some time. In addition, mobile monitoring systems can only provide
periodic inspections. Economic comparison of these automated monitoring systems is
difficult to be carried out as there is hardly sufficient information on the cost regarding
idler maintenance (Thieme, 2014).
Fixed monitoring systems
In a fixed monitoring system, sensors are permanently installed on idler rolls. Data is
acquired and transferred to the central control system continuously or periodically. Three
examples of fixed monitoring systems are addressed as follows.
The first example is the "Smart Idler" (Figure 5.3). The "Smart Idler" is an idler
roll equipped with a temperature sensor and a RFID node (Lodewijks et al., 2007). The
"Smart Idler" may utilize batteries or a self-power electromagnetic mechanism to harvest
energy for the sensors (Pang and Lodewijks, 2011). The "Smart Idler" enables continuous
monitoring of the temperature of idler rolls and real-time data transferring. Commercial-
ization of such "Smart Idlers" start to emerge, for instance Vayeron Pty Ltd (2013) claim
their "Smart Idler" equips a wireless device that will perform temperature, vibration and
acoustic measurements which is fitted into an idler roll.
The second example is a fiber optic-based distributed temperature sensing system
(Figure 5.4). The fiber optic cable is fixed to idler brackets to monitor the temperature.
5.1. C ONDITION MONITORING OF THE IDLERS 89
Figure 5.3: The "Smart Idler" at the RFID Laboratory of Delft University of
Technology (Pang and Lodewijks, 2011).
5
Yang (2014) stated that the system is capable to spot a failed roll by justifying the assump-
tion that the temperature of idler brackets can represent the condition of installed rolls.
During his test the shaft end of a wing roll was heated up to 100 ◦ C (ambient temperature
is 32 ◦ C), but the fiber optic cable only measured approximately 2.5 ◦ C extra temperature
increase at the bracket with the heated roll than other brackets with normal rolls. This
means either the sensitivity of the system is very low or the temperature of idler brackets
cannot represent the condition of idler rolls. Fiber optic-based distributed temperature
sensing systems are reported to have been installed in underground belt conveyor systems
for early detection of hot idler rolls. Fiber optic-based distributed temperature sensing
systems are reported to have been installed in belt conveyors for the early detection of hot
idler rolls which may cause fire (Vogel, 2011; Grzybek, 2011).
Figure 5.4: Fibre optic-based distributed temperature sensing system,

derived from Yang (2014).
The third example is a fixed monitoring system using vibration sensors. Intium Solu-
tions (2014) has developed a roll condition monitoring system which utilizes accelerom-
eters to measure the vibration of idler frames in order to examine the condition of idler
rolls. Wireless sensor nodes are also applied to transfer the data to the central control sys-
tem. However, there is no quantitative report on the effectiveness of the accelerometers

on the detection of idler roll failures.
In summary, the existing condition monitoring of belt conveyor idlers mainly relies
on the conveyor inspectors which is costly, inconsistent and periodical. The utilization of
sensors to assist manual inspection and further automated monitoring solutions are under
development. However, the choice of sensors in these solutions is still arbitrary. The
reason is that suitable monitoring parameters are still uncertain. Therefore, laboratory
and in-situ experimental studies are conducted to investigate which parameters among the
temperature, vibration and acoustic emission can represent the technical condition of idler
rolls.
5.2 Laboratory idler experiments

The focus of the laboratory idler experiments is on the detectability of roll bearing failures
at two stages, the incipient and final failure stages (referring to Section 2.4). Roll bearings
at the incipient failure stage have small defects, while those at the final failure stage have
serious damages. A variety of sensors was applied to measure the temperature, vibration
5 and acoustic emission of the rolls in order to examine which parameters can be used to
detect idler roll failures.
Section 5.2 is structured as follows. Subsection 5.2.1 introduces the design of the
test rig. Subsection 5.2.2 presents the preparation of idler rolls with different types of
defects and damages. Subsection 5.2.3 introduces the selected sensors. Subsection 5.2.4
introduces the installation of the sensors on the test rig. Subsection 5.2.5 illustrates the
procedures of the experiments. Subsection 5.2.6 presents the data analysis and results.
5.2.1 Design of the test rig

The test rig (Figure 5.5) consists of a belt conveyor, an idler frame, a control box, and
a data acquisition system. The main parameters of the belt conveyor are summarized in
Table 5.1. The belt velocity and belt tension can be adjusted.
Table 5.1: Parameters of the belt conveyor.
Parameter Value
maximum belt speed (m/s) 1.8
type of conveyor belt EP 500/3
belt width (mm) 1080
central length (mm) 3000
The idler frame (3 in Figure 5.5) is capable of changing the trough angle up to 15◦ .
A mechanism is designed to adjust the height of the idler frame relative to the conveyor
frame. With the installation of load cells underneath the idler frame, the load on the idler
rolls by the conveyor belt can be determined.
5.2.2 Inducement of bearing defects and damages

The idler rolls used in the experiments have a shell diameter of 108 mm, shell length of
380 mm, and the diameter of the shaft end is 30 mm. The type of bearing is deep groove
5.2. L ABORATORY IDLER EXPERIMENTS 91
Figure 5.5: The test rig. 5

Note: 1 is data acquisition system, 2 is control box, 3 is idler frame, 4 is belt conveyor.
single roll ball bearing (6206). The inducement of the bearing defects is summarized in
Table 5.2. Four samples are prepared for each type of roll. The rolls with bearing defects
are prepared by Rulli Rulmeca S.p.A., Italy.
In Table 5.2 two types of defect bearings can be distinguished. For one type of defects
(roll code B, C and D), a specific component (i.e. the inner raceway) of the bearing is
damaged. For the rest, it is not possible to determine the exact location of the induced
defect.
The inducement of the damages to the idler rolls is presented in Table 5.3. Different
damages are induced in order to simulate different levels of failure. The inducement of
the damages to the rolls G3, K1 and K2 is similar to the way Fernandez et al. (2013) did.
5.2.3 Sensor selection

In order to choose proper sensors, the expected measurement ranges of the temperature,
vibration and acoustic emission are estimated and presented in Table 5.4.
Based on the estimated ranges, a variety of sensors is selected and summarized in
Table 5.5. For the temperature measurements, thermocouples, infrared sensors and an
infrared camera are chosen. Contact sensors like thermocouples may be suitable for fixed
monitoring systems, while non-contact sensors (i.e. infrared sensors and infrared cam-
eras) are useful for mobile monitoring systems. Omni- and uni-directional microphones,
as well as a sound level meter were used to capture the acoustic emission. Particularly,
the uni-directional microphones are capable to collect acoustic emission from the pointed
direction while minimizing the background noise. For the vibration measurement, ac-
celerometers with 3-axis sensing capability are selected.
Besides the sensors mentioned in Table 5.5, some accessory sensors including a belt
velocity sensor and load cells are also utilized in order to control the test conditions.
Table 5.2: Summary of induced bearing defects.
Roll code: A Roll code: B Roll code: C

No defect Outer race defect Inner race defect
Defect details: Scratch Defect details: Scratch
5 perpendicular to raceway,
width 1 mm, depth 0.5 mm.
perpendicular to raceway,
width 1 mm, depth 0.5 mm.
Roll code: D Roll code: E Roll code: F

Rolling element defect Debris in lubricant Radial overloading
Defect details: damage on Defect details: MICRON+ Defect details: applying 18
one element, diameter 0.5 MDA particles, size 0.04 - kN radial load, duration 0.5-
mm, depth 0.5 mm. 0.08 mm, contamination 2 hours.
level 5 vol.%.
Roll code: H Roll code: I

No lubrication Corrosion
Defect details: new bearings Defect details: one week in
without any lubricant. salty water, one week in air.
Note: Intact rolls (Code A) are included for reference.

Table 5.3: Summary of induced bearing damages.
Roll code: G1 Roll code: G2 Roll code: G3

Damage details: dust cover Damage details: a hole drill- Damage details: three holes
damaged using a hammar ed through the dust cover drilled into the bearing, filled
and seals till the bearing with metal particles, cage
damaged. 5
Roll code: K1 Roll code: K2 Roll code: K3

Damage details: five holes Damage details: five holes Damage details: covers re-
drilled into the bearing, cage drilled into the bearing, filled moved from bearing house,
damaged. with metal particles, cage cage damaged.
damaged.
Table 5.4: Expected ranges of measured parameters.
Physical parameter Range

temperature (°C) 0 to 100
vibration (g) ±2
sound level (dB) 30-130
Table 5.5: Summary of the selected sensors.
Temperature sensors Acoustic sensors Accelerometer
thermocouple omni-directional microphone accelerometer

Model: RS BMS-K-C70-MP Model: CEM-C9745JAD46- Model: ADXL 337
Main specifications: 2P2.54R Main specifications:
range (°C): -50 ~ 250; Main specifications: range (g): ±3;
5 accuracy (°C): 1; range (Hz): 100 ~ 10k;
sensitivity (dB): -46±2 at 1kHz
nonlinearity: ±0.3%;
with magnet button. 3-axis sensing.
Max. input S.P.L: 110 dB.
infrared sensor uni-directional microphone

Model: OS35-RS-100C-V10 Model: CEM-C9745JAD46-
-24V 2P2.54R
Main specifications: Main specifications:
range (°C): 0 ~ 100; range (Hz): 100 ~ 10k;
accuracy (°C): 1; sensitivity (dB): -46±3 at 1kHz
Field of view: 2:1. Max. input S.P.L: 110 dB.
infrared camera sound level meter

Model: FLIR AX8 Model: ISO-TECH SLM 52N
Main specifications: Main specifications:
range (°C): -10 ~ 150; range (Hz): 31.5 ~ 8000;
accuracy (°C): 2; sensitivity (Hz): -37 dB;
Resolution (pixels): 80×60. sound range (dB): 30 ~ 130.
Note: The datasheets of the sensors can be found in Appendix B.
5.2.4 Sensor installation

Figure 5.6 shows the locations of the sensors installed on the test rig. The shaft ends
of the three rolls are named as ShL1, ShL2, ShC1, ShC2, ShR1 and ShR2 respectively.
Eight thermocouples are installed on the test rig (No.1 to 8 in Figure 5.6), of which six
on the shaft ends, one on the idler frame, and one on the conveyor frame. Six infrared
sensors are also installed towards the shaft ends with neglectable distance. In total seven
accelerometers are installed, of which six are installed at the shaft ends, one in the middle
of the idler frame. Four microphones are installed as shown in Figure 5.6. The infrared
camera and the sound level meter will be focused on the shaft end of interest during
different sets of experiments.
22 15 1 9 23 16 10 2 3 11 17 24 18 12 4 5 13 19 6 14 20 25
5
8
Idler frame
Conveyor frame
7 21
ShL1 ShL2 ShC1 ShC2 ShR1 ShR2
Left wing roll Center roll Right wing roll
No. Type of sensor position No. Type of sensor position

1 thermocouple ShL1 11 infrared ShC1
2 thermocouple ShL2 12 infrared ShC2
3 thermocouple ShC1 13 infrared ShR1 No. Type of sensor position
4 thermocouple ShC2 14 infrared ShR2 21 accelerometer Idler frame center
5 thermocouple ShR1 15 accelerometer ShL1 22 microphone ShL1
6 thermocouple ShR2 16 accelerometer ShL2 23 microphone ShL2_C1
7 thermocouple Idler frame center 17 accelerometer ShC1 24 microphone ShC2_R1
8 thermocouple conveyor frame 18 accelerometer ShC2 25 microphone ShR2
9 infrared ShL1 19 accelerometer ShR1 26 sound meter to be determined
10 infrared ShL2 20 accelerometer ShR2 27 infrared camera to be determined
Figure 5.6: Installation locations of the sensors on the test rig.
The sensors at the shaft end ShL1 are taken as an example to explain how the sensors
are installed on the test rig (Figure 5.7). The thermocouple is installed on the top of the
shaft end using a magnet button. The infrared sensor is installed into a bracket which
hosts the shaft end. The accelerometer is bolted onto the shaft end. The X-axis of the
accelerometer is set in the horizontal direction, while the Y-axis is set in the vertical
direction. Flexible holders with magnetic base are used to hold the infrared camera, the
microphone and the sound level meter towards the shaft end ShL1 with a distance of 200
mm, 110 mm, and 200 mm respectively.
Thermocouple Infrared Camera
Infrared Sensor Accelerometer
5
Microphone Sound Level Meter
Figure 5.7: Sensor installation at the shaft end ShL1.
5.2.5 Experimental procedures

The first step is to install the rolls on the idler frame. The second step is to install and
adjust the sensors. The third step is to apply a certain amount of load on the rolls by
tensioning the conveyor belt or adjusting the height of the idler frame. After that, the
data acquisition can be initialized and calibrated. The program LabVIEW (Version 11,
National Instruments Inc.) is applied for the data acquisition. Figure 5.8 shows the pro-
gram that has been developed for the laboratory idler experiments. The sampling time
and frequency can be adjusted. The analog signal from the sensors is converted by an
AD converter. The data can be saved into txt files. After preparing the data acquisition
system, the belt conveyor can be started and ran for a certain period of time with a certain
belt velocity.
After data acquisition, Matlab (Version 2012B, Mathworks, Inc.) programs are devel-
oped to process the data. Depending on the type of signal, time domain and/or frequency
domain data processing can be conducted. The frequency domain data analysis applies
the Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) technique. In summary, data provided by the Matlab
programs are as follows:
• values of the measurements from the thermocouples,
• values of the measurements from the infrared sensors,
• values of the measurements from the infrared camera,
• RMS levels of the measurements from the accelerometers (in X and Y directions),
Figure 5.8: LabVIEW interface.

5
• frequency plots of the measurements from the accelerometers (in X and Y direc-
tions),
• frequency plots of the measurements from the microphones.
5.2.6 Results and discussion

Four types of experiments are conducted: a verification test, defect roll tests, damaged roll
tests and endurance tests. The verification test is performed to verify the data processing
by the developed FFT program and to find out the eigenfrequency of the roll and the idler
frame as a whole structure. The verification test (von Bodegom, 2015; Sikkes, 2016) is
presented in Appendix C. The defect roll tests are conducted to investigate whether it is
possible to detect idler rolls with incipient failures by temperature measurements (using
the thermocouples, infrared sensors and infrared camera) and/or vibration measurements
(using the accelerometers). The damaged roll tests are carried out to investigate whether
it is possible to detect idler rolls with final failures by the temperature (using the ther-
mocouples, infrared sensors and infrared camera), vibration (using the accelerometers)
and/or acoustic emission measurements (using omni and uni-directional microphones).
The endurance tests are to explore the evolution of the temperature (measured by the ther-
mocouples) of defect rolls and damaged rolls over a reasonably long period of time. A
summary of all experiments is presented in Table 5.6.
Defect roll tests
Eight sets of defect roll tests are performed with different levels of load on the idler
rolls, in combination with different belt velocities (Table 5.6). The duration of the test for
each roll is 120 minutes.
Typical evolutions of the temperature for the defect rolls are shown in Figure 5.9.
A regressive pattern can be observed for all three rolls. Another observation is that the
Table 5.6: Summary of laboratory idler experiments.
Test conditions
Location of Load on the Duration
Type of test Name Belt velocity
bearing of bearing of (min×trials)
(m/s)
interest interest (N)
verification test FFT verification ShL1 35.0 1.8 10 × 1
ShC1_1 ShC1 566.0 1.8 120 × 8
ShC1_2 ShC1 566.0 1.8 120 × 8
ShC1_3 ShC1 766.5 1.8 120 × 8
ShC1_4 ShC1 766.5 1.8 120 × 8
defect roll tests
ShC2_1 ShC2 965.1 1.8 120 × 8
5 ShC2_2
Trough_ShR1_1
ShC2
ShR1
965.1
674.1
1.8
1.0
120 × 8
120 × 8
Trough_ShR1_2 ShR1 674.1 1.0 120 × 8
ShL1_G1_1 ShL1 256.6 1.4 120 × 2
ShL1_G1_2 ShL1 256.6 1.8 120 × 2
ShL1_G1_3 ShL1 347.5 1.8 120 × 2
ShL1_G2_1 ShL1 256.6 1.4 120 × 1
ShL1_G2_2 ShL1 256.6 1.4 120 × 1
damaged roll tests
ShL1_G3_1 ShL1 347.5 1.8 120 × 2
ShL1_G3_2 ShL1 437.5 1.8 120 × 2
ShR2_K3_1 ShR2 256.6 0.4 30 × 1
ShR2_K3_2 ShR2 256.6 1.0 30 × 1
ShR2 ShR2 566.0 1.8 15× 6
I_A_A ShL1 42.5 1.0 480 × 1
ShL1, ShC1 55.6 for I,
I_H_A 1.2 480 × 1
117.7 for H
ShL1, ShC1 55.6 for B,
B_H_A_1 1.2 900 × 1
117.7 for I
endurance tests ShL1, ShC1 124.3 for B,
B_H_A_2 1.8 900 × 1
269.8 for H
ShL1, ShR2 425.8 for K2,
K2_A_K1 1.8 480 × 1
585.8 for K1
ShL1, ShR2 425.8 for G3,
G3_A_K2 1.8 6000 × 1
585.8 for K2
Note: The location of the bearing of interest refers to the location of the shaft end as shown in
Figure 5.6. The results of the verification test is presented in Appendix B.The utilized sensors in
each set of experiments can be traced by the location of the bearing of interest.
starting temperature for each roll is slightly different. It is recognized that the bracket may
be warmed up by the previous test. From Figure 5.9 a very small difference is observed
between the intact roll A and the defect rolls regarding the temperature increase during
the test. The temperature increase of the intact roll A is 6 ◦ C while those of the defect rolls
are 7 ◦ C. Considering the accuracy (1 ◦ C) of the thermocouple, it is difficult to distinguish
the defect rolls from the intact rolls.
35 35 35
Temperature (°C)
Temperature (°C)
Temperature (°C)
30 30 30
25 25 25
20 20 20
0 30 60 90 120 0 30 60 90 120 0 30 60 90 120
Time (min) Time (min) Time (min)
(a) (b) (c)

5
Figure 5.9: Temperature measurements by the thermocouple at the shaft end ShC1
for the roll A (a), roll B (b), and roll F (c) during the defect roll test ShC1_3.
Note: The central mark is the mean value (µ), the edges of the box are the 25th and 75th
percentiles, the whiskers present µ ± 2.7σ, in which σ is the standard deviation.
Similar observations apply to the measurements of the infrared sensors and infrared
camera. For instance, Figure 5.10 shows the measurements from the infrared sensor and
the infrared camera for the roll F during the defect roll test ShC1_3. The measured tem-
perature also shows a regressive pattern of evolution. Compared to Figure 5.9 (c), a small
difference exists among the measurements of the thermocouple, infrared sensor and in-
frared camera. The difference can be attributed to the accuracy of the sensors, and the
emissivity of the shaft end as discovered from the emissivity test in Appendix C. How-
ever, the difference does not influence the detectability of the sensors as the temperature
increase derived from the sensors are investigated separately.
A summary of the temperature increase of the idler rolls during the defect roll tests
is presented in Table 5.7. The temperature increase is achieved by subtracting the value
of the measurement at 120 minutes by the ambient temperature to diminish the influence
of warming-up brackets. In Table 5.7, the defect rolls are generally observed to have a
slightly higher temperature increase than the intact rolls. It is considered that the bearing
defects induce extra friction during rotating which generates additional thermal energy.
However, the difference of the temperature increase is very small. In most tests the dif-
ference is just 1 to 2 ◦ C. Considering the accuracy of the thermocouples (1 ◦ C), infrared
sensors (1 ◦ C) and infrared camera (2 ◦ C), it is not possible to clarify that the temperature
difference is caused by the induced bearing defects or due to the error of measurements.
In a few cases the temperature increase of the defect rolls is distinctly bigger than the
intact rolls, for instance the roll I in the test ShC1_3, the roll E in the tests ShC1_4 and
ShC2_2 in Table 5.7. However, the distinct difference cannot be consistently observed.
For the sample of roll E, it is recognized that the shaft end is substandardly machined.
Consequently, abnormal vibration occurs between the shaft end and the bracket and gen-
35 35
Temperature (°C)
Temperature ( °C)
30 30
25 25
20 20
0 30 60 90 120 0 30 60 90 120
Time (min) Time (min)
(a) (b)
Figure 5.10: Temperature measurements by (a) the infrared sensor and (b) the
infrared camera for roll F during the defect roll test ShC1_3.
Note: For Figure 5.10 (a), the central mark is the mean value (µ), the edges of the box are the
25th and 75th percentiles, the whiskers present µ ± 2.7σ, in which σ is the standard deviation.
5
erates additional heat during the tests ShC1_4 and ShC2_2.
Therefore, the temperature measurements with the thermalcouples, infrared sensors
and the infrared camera are not capable to distinguish the defect rolls from the intact rolls
under the test conditions.
Table 5.7: Summary of the temperature increase during the defect roll tests.
Test
Measurements ShC1_1 ShC1_2 ShC1_3 ShC1_4 ShC2_1 ShC2_2 Trough_ShR1_1 Trough_ShR1_2
A 7 5 6 7 6 7 4 3
B 7 6 7 7 7 7 5 3
C 8 6 7 8 8 5 6 4
thermocouple D 6 5 8 9 8 6 5 5
measurements
(°C) E 7 5 8 30 7 19 7 6 5
F 8 6 7 7 7 7 6 6
H 6 5 8 7 7 7 5 4
I 8 6 9 8 8 7 6 4
A 6 4 5 6 6 6 4 4
B 7 5 6 7 6 7 5 5
C 7 6 7 7 8 8 6 5
infrared sensor D 6 5 7 8 8 6 5 6
measurements
(°C) E 7 9 7 26 7 23 7 6
F 7 6 8 6 7 8 6 7
H 6 4 8 7 7 7 5 5
I 8 5 9 7 7 8 6 6
A 6 5 7 8 - 7 4 4
B 7 7 8 8 - 8 5 5
C 8 8 10 8 - 7 5 6
infrared camera D 5 7 10 9 - 7 5 7
measurements
(°C) E 6 9 8 22 - 19 6 7
F 6 7 9 7 - 7 6 8
H 6 7 10 9 - 8 5 6
I 7 7 10 8 - 9 7 7
Note: To diminish the effect of the warming up brackets at the beginning of each test, the ambient
temperature (measured by the thermocouple on the conveyor frame shown in Figure 5.6) is used as
the starting temperature of each test.
5
102
Table 5.8: Summary of the RMS levels of the vibration during the defect roll tests.
RMS level ShC1_1 ShC1_2 ShC1_3 ShC1_4 ShC2_1 ShC2_2 Trough_ShR1_1 Trough_ShR1_2
Tests
5. E XPERIMENTAL CONDITION MONITORING OF IDLER ROLLS

A 0.16 0.21 0.19 0.20 0.14 0.10 0.17 0.15
B 0.19 0.20 0.20 0.21 0.13 0.11 0.20 0.13
C 0.20 0.17 0.21 0.19 0.15 0.11 0.20 0.13
RMS level of
horizontal (X) D 0.18 0.17 0.23 0.20 0.15 0.11 0.18 0.13
vibration E 0.19 0.17 0.23 0.30 0.15 0.17 0.21 0.14
(g)
F 0.21 0.18 0.23 0.18 0.14 0.11 0.23 0.11
H 0.19 0.18 0.22 0.20 0.13 0.11 0.16 0.12
I 0.19 0.18 0.20 0.19 0.14 0.11 0.17 0.12
A 1.01 0.99 1.01 1.02 1.01 0.96 0.98 0.91
B 1.01 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.01 0.96 0.98 0.91
C 1.01 0.98 1.01 1.02 1.03 0.97 0.98 0.92
RMS level of
vertical (Y) D 1.00 0.98 1.01 1.02 1.02 0.96 0.99 0.92
vibration E 1.01 0.99 1.01 1.04 1.01 1.01 0.99 0.93
(g)
F 1.00 0.98 1.01 1.02 1.00 0.96 0.98 0.91
H 1.00 0.99 1.01 1.02 1.02 0.98 0.99 0.91
I 1.01 0.98 1.01 1.01 1.01 0.96 0.98 0.91
The analyses of the vibration signal are carried out in both time domain and frequency
domain. In the time domain, the RMS level is chosen as it is one of the most widely used
parameters to investigate the vibration amplitude of rotating elements (Qiu et al., 2003;
Jayaswal et al., 2011). The RMS level X RM S can be expressed as:
v
N
u
u1 X
X RM S = t |X n |2 (5.1)
N n=1
in which N is the total number of samples (200 samples in this analysis) in one calculation,
X n is the n th sample of the vibration measurement.
Figure 5.11 illustrates the RMS levels of the vibration in the horizontal direction ac-
quired by the accelerometer ShC1 for the rolls A, C and F respectively during the test
ShC1_3. For each data acquisition, five RMS levels are derived. It can be seen that the
RMS levels of the three rolls are all around 0.2 g. There is hardly noticeable difference
between the RMS levels of the intact roll and those of the defect rolls.
0.3 0.3 0.3
5
RMS level (g)
RMS level (g)
RMS level (g)

0.2 0.2 0.2
0.1 0.1 0.1
0 0 0
0 30 60 90 120 0 30 60 90 120 0 30 60 90 120
Time (min) Time (min) Time (min)
(a) (b) (c)
Figure 5.11: RMS levels of the vibration in the horizontal (X) direction for the roll
A (a), roll C (b) and roll F (c) during the test ShC1_3.
Note: For each measurement (i.e. 30 min) 1000 samples are acquired and five RMS level are
derived as 200 samples are taken for each calculation of the RMS level.
The RMS levels of the rolls during the defect roll tests are calculated and presented
in Table 5.8. In general, there is no distinguishable difference between the defect rolls
and the intact roll, in both the horizontal and vertical directions. Therefore, it can be
concluded that the RMS level is not appropriate to distinguish the defect rolls from the
intact rolls.
Besides the time domain analysis, the frequency domain analysis may also provide a
potential to detect defect idler rolls, especially for the bearing defects on the inner race
(rolls B), outer race (rolls C) and rolling elements (rolls D). It is suggested to check
whether the frequencies exhibiting highest levels of vibration energy in the frequency
spectrum match the calculated defect frequencies for the rolls B, C, and D respectively.
The defect frequencies can be calculated according to the formulas as follows (Harris,
2001):
The defect frequency f bo when the defect is located on the outer race:
n BD
f bo = f r ot (1 − cos γ1 ) (5.2)
2 PD
The defect frequency f er when the defect is located on the rolling element:
¶2 ¸
PD BD
· µ
f er = f r ot 1 − cos γ1 (5.3)
2B D PD
The defect frequency f bi when the defect is located on the inner raceway:
n BD
f bi = f r ot (1 + cos γ1 ) (5.4)
2 PD
in which f r ot is the rotating frequency of the bearing, n is the number of rolling elements
in the bearing (eight in this case), B D is the diameter of the rolling element (0.01m), P D
is the diameter of the center of the cage (0.046m), γ is the angle of contact (0 for deep
groove bearings in this case).
For a belt velocity of 1.8 m/s, the calculated rotating frequency and defect frequencies,
as well as their harmonics less than 50 Hz are presented in Table 5.9.
Table 5.9: Summary of specific frequencies for belt speed 1.8 m/s.
5
Type of Corresponding Frequency and its
frequency roll code harmonics (Hz)
5.3, 10.6, 15.9, 21.2, 26.5,
rotating frequency -
31.8, 37.1, 42.4, 47.7
outer race defect
B 18.7, 37.4
frequency
inner race defect
C 29.1
frequency
rolling element
D 24.5, 49
defect frequency
The time domain data from the accelerometers of all defect roll tests is transferred into
frequency plots of vibration energy by applying the FFT program. Figure 5.12 presents
the energy spectra of the vibration in the horizontal and vertical directions for the rolls
B, C and D during the defect roll test ShC1_4. It can be seen that the energy at 37 Hz is
exclusively dominant for the three rolls. 37 Hz can be considered as a harmonic of the
rotating frequency (37.1 Hz in Table 5.9) of the bearing. It can also be correlated to the
eigenfrequency of the roll and the idler frame as discovered in Appendix C.
For Figure 5.12 (a) and (d), 37 Hz matches the harmonic (37.4 Hz) of the outer race
defect frequency. This indicates that the frequency plots may indicate the outer race de-
fect. However, the results of the tests Trough_ShR1_1 and Trough_ShR1_2 contradict
this hypothesis. In Figure 5.13, 34 Hz is dominant for the roll B under the belt velocity
of 1 m/s. However, 34 Hz does not match any homanics of the outer race defect frequen-
cies (10.4 Hz, 20.8 Hz, 31.2 Hz and 41.6 Hz after calculation with belt velocity 1 m/s).
Therefore, it is not possible to pick up the defect frequencies and their harmonics from
the energy spectra of the vibration for the seeded defect rolls B, C, and D.
The influence of changing the idler frame (or the trough angle) on the vibration of
the idler rolls is further investigated. For this purpose, the defect roll test Trough_ShR1_1
and Trough_ShR1_2 are carried out by which the wing rolls are set at a trough angle of 12
degree. From Table 5.8, it can be seen that there is no distinguishable difference regarding
the RMS levels as the trough angle is changed from 0 to 12 degree.
0.06 0.06 0.06

0.05 0.05 0.05
Energy (g2)
Energy (g2)
Energy (g2)
0.04 0.04 0.04
0.03 0.03 0.03
0.02 0.02 0.02
0.01 0.01 0.01 5
0 0 0
10 20 30 40 50 10 20 30 40 50 10 20 30 40 50
Frequency (Hz) Frequency (Hz) Frequency (Hz)
(a) (b) (c)

0.06 0.06 0.06
0.05 0.05 0.05
Energy (g2)
Energy (g2)
Energy (g2)
0.04 0.04 0.04

0.03 0.03 0.03
0.02 0.02 0.02
0.01 0.01 0.01
0 0 0
10 20 30 40 50 10 20 30 40 50 10 20 30 40 50
(d) (e) (f)
Figure 5.12: Energy spectra of the vibration in the horizontal (X) direction for the
roll B (a), roll C (b), roll D (c), and in the vertical (Y) direction for the roll B (d), roll
C (e), roll D (f) measured at 120 minutes during the test ShC1_4.
Figure 5.13 shows the energy spectra of the vibration in the horizontal direction for
the rolls B, C and D during the test Trough_ShR1_1. It can be seen that the frequency
around 34 Hz is dominant for each roll. Comparing with Figure 5.12, the change of the
idler frame shifts the dominant frequency from 37 Hz to 34 Hz. This is due to the change
of the eigenfrequency of the idler frame with the change of the structure. On the other
hand, the energy spectra still cannot provide information regarding the defect type of the
rolls.
0.06 0.06 0.06
0.05 0.05 0.05
Energy (g2)
Energy (g2)
Energy (g2)
0.04 0.04 0.04
0.03 0.03 0.03
0.02 0.02 0.02
0.01 0.01 0.01
0 0 0
10 20 30 40 50 10 20 30 40 50 10 20 30 40 50
5 (a) (b) (c)
Figure 5.13: Energy spectra of the vibration in the horizontal (X) direction for roll
B (a), roll C (b), and roll D (c) measured at 120 minutes during the test
Trough_ShR1_1.
Therefore, the vibration measurements in both the horizontal and vertical directions
are not able to detect the idler rolls with bearing defects.
From the defect roll tests, it can be concluded that with the used test rig and rolls it is
not possible to distinguish a defect roll from an intact roll from the measurements of the
temperature and vibration.
Damaged roll tests
In total ten sets of damaged roll tests are performed as shown in Table 5.6. The load
on the damaged bearing varies from 256.6 N to 566 N, the belt velocity is in a range of
0.4 to 1.8 m/s. The duration of the test varies from 15 to 120 minutes depending on the
purpose of the test. The acquired data from the damaged roll tests will be analyzed with
respect to the temperature, vibration and acoustic emission respectively.
Typical temperature evolutions of the damaged rolls from the measurements of the
thermocouple ShL1 are presented in Figure 5.14. The temperature of the roll G1 rose up
to 66 ◦ C [Figure 5.14 (a)], and the temperature of the roll G3 increased to 63 ◦ C (b) after
120 minutes running time. Compared to Figure 5.9, the damaged rolls show a significant
raise in temperature that can be picked up by the thermocouples.
70 70
60 60
5
Temperature ( °C)
Temperature ( °C)
50 50
40 40
30 30
20 20
0 30 60 90 120 0 30 60 90 120
(a) (b)
Figure 5.14: Typical temperature evolutions from the measurements of

thermocouples, a) trial 2 from the test ShL1_G1_2, b) trial 2 from the test
ShL1_G3_1.
Note: The central mark is the mean value (µ), the edges of the box are the 25th and 75th
percentiles, the whiskers present µ ± 2.7σ, in which σ is the standard deviation.
5
108
Table 5.10: Summary of the temperature increase during the damaged roll tests.
Tests ShL1_G1_1 ShL1_G1_2 ShL1_G1_3 ShL1_G2_1 ShL1_G2_2 ShL1_G3_1 ShL1_G3_2 ShR2
Measurements
thermocouple trial 1 23 32 17 21 23 28 18 G1: 18, G2: 20, G3: 18
measurements
(°C) trial 2 26 44 19 - - 40 19 K1: 25, K2: 19, K3: 4
5. E XPERIMENTAL CONDITION MONITORING OF IDLER ROLLS

infrared sensor trial 1 15 28 13 18 26 22 17 -
measurements
(°C) trial 2 17 29 15 - - 33 17 -
infrared camera trial 1 23 - 16 23 24 - 20 -
measurements
(°C) trial 2 28 - 19 - - - 20 -
Note: To diminish the effect of the warming up brackets at the beginning of each test, the ambient temperature (measured by the thermocouple on the
conveyor frame shown in Figure 5.6) is used as the starting temperature of each test.
Table 5.11: Summary of the RMS level of the vibration during the damaged roll tests.
Tests
Measurements ShL1_G1_1 ShL1_G1_2 ShL1_G1_3 ShL1_G2_1 ShL1_G2_2 ShL1_G3_1 ShL1_G3_2 ShR2
RMS level of Trial 1 - 0.35 0.37 - 0.33 0.37 0.38 G1: 0.3, G2:
horizontal (X) 0.32, G3: 0.31
vibration K1: 0.31, K2:
(g) Trial 2 - 1.02 1.02 - 1.04 1.04 1.04 0.25, K3: 0.3
horizontal (Y) 1.05, G3: 1.04
(g) Trial 2 - 1.02 1.02 - 1.03 1.03 1.04 1.04, K3: 1.05

Note: To diminish the effect of the warming up brackets at the beginning of each test, the ambient temperature (measured by the thermocouple on the
conveyor frame shown in Figure 5.6) is used as the starting temperature of each test.
A summary of the temperature increase of the damaged rolls is presented in Table

5.10. It can be seen that all damaged rolls show significant temperature increase during
the tests. Therefore, a certain threshold of temperature exists which can distinguish the
damaged rolls from the intact rolls. The exact value of the threshold is out of scope of this
research.
In Table 5.10, noticeable difference regarding the temperature measurements by the
thermocouple, infrared sensor and infrared camera exist. It is largely due to the influence
of the emissivity. The emissivity is the measure of an object’s capability to emit infrared
energy (Raytek Corporation, 1999), with a value which varies from 0 (i.e. shiny mirror)
to 1 (i.e. blackbody). The shafts of the idler rolls used in the experiments are made of
polished mild steel. The emissivity of the polished mild steel is about 0.1 to 0.35 (Raytek
Corporation, 1999). However, the emissivity factor of the infrared sensors is fixed as 0.9.
Therefore, the infrared sensors provide measurement results lower than the true values.
The emissivity factor of the infrared camera can be changed by the users.
An emissivity test is conducted to investigate the influence of the emissivity on the
temperature measurements of the painted shaft end, polished shaft end, and rusted shaft
end by the thermocouple, infrared sensor and infrared camera (Appendix D). From the
emissivity test, it can be seen that different treatments have influence on the accuracy of
5
the measurements. The painted shaft end provides the most accurate measurements for
all three types of sensors. Considering the idler rolls in the field are normally painted for
corrosion protection. The sensors are supposed to provide accurate measurements of the
temperature. For the polished and rusted shaft ends, the accuracy of measurements may
not affect the diagnosis as different threshold values can be chosen for different sensors.
The achievable temperature increase of the damaged rolls may vary significantly ac-
cording to the loading level and rotational speed. For instance, in an experimental study,
Hawksworth et al. (2003) obtained the temperature evolution of a failed roll bearing which
steadily rose up to around 100 ◦ C followed by sharp increase to 200 ◦ C within 60 minutes.
The failure of the roll bearing in that case was induced by 125 percent axial overloading,
1200 kN radial force, and a rotational speed of 570 rpm.
Due to the limitations of the test rig, the damaged idler rolls in our tests did not achieve
so a dramatic temperature increase. However, it can already be concluded from the sig-
nificant temperature increase in our tests that the temperature measurement is capable to
detect the damaged rolls in the final failure stage.
From the perspective of the vibration measurement, the RMS level of the horizontal
vibration shows distinct differences between the damaged rolls and the intact rolls. Figure
5.15 (a) and (b) show the RMS levels of the horizontal vibration for the damaged roll G1
and the intact roll A respectively. It can be seen that the RMS level of the damaged roll
G1 is around 0.3 g while that of the intact roll A is around 0.15 g. Therefore, the RMS
level of the horizontal vibration can distinguish the damaged roll from the intact roll.
A summary of the RMS levels of the damaged rolls is presented in Table 5.11. It
can be seen that the RMS levels of all damaged rolls in the horizontal direction are more
than 0.25 g. Compared to the RMS levels of the intact rolls and defect rolls in Table 5.8,
distinct differences can be observed.
On the other hand, the RMS level of the vertical vibration cannot provide distinguish-
able differences between the damaged rolls and the intact rolls. The RMS levels of the
vertical vibration of the damaged rolls (Table 5.11). are very close to those of the intact
rolls (Table 5.8). It is considered that the conveyor belt provides much higher load in the
0.6 0.6
0.5 0.5
0.4 0.4
RMS level (g)
RMS level (g)

0.3 0.3
0.2 0.2
0.1 0.1
0 0
0 30 60 90 120 0 30 60 90 120
(a) (b)
5 Figure 5.15: RMS levels of the horizontal (X) vibration of the damaged roll G1 (a)
and an intact roll A (b) during trial 2 of the test ShL1_G1_2.
vertical direction to the rolls than the horizontal direction. Therefore, the shaft ends of
the rolls are pushed against the bracket tightly which makes the bearings very difficult to
vibrate in the vertical direction.
The analysis of the acoustic emission of the damaged idler rolls is conducted Audacity
(Version 2.1.2) and Matlab. Figure 5.16 shows part (0.04 second) of the recorded audio by
the uni-directional microphone in Audacity in which the abnormal acoustic emission from
the damaged bearing is highlighted. The audio was recorded during the test ShR2_K3_1.
The distance between the damaged roll and the uni-directional microphone is 10 mm. The
sampling frequency of the microphone is 30 kHz.
From Figure 5.16, it can be seen that the acoustic emission from the damaged bearing
exhibits characteristics of a stimulation following with quick damping (the upper plot),
discontinuous sound level (the medium plot), and covering a wide range of frequency
(the lower plot). Especially from the lower plot of the spectrogram, it can be seen that the
acoustic emission around 3 kHz from the damaged roll has high sound intensity. It can
also be noticed that the frequency of the background noise from the engine is mainly less
than 1 kHz.
Figure 5.17 shows the acoustic analysis program developed in Matlab. The acous-
tic analysis program presents the waveform of sound in the time domain and frequency
domain. Both bandpass filter and bandstop filter are developed in the acoustic analysis
program in order to filter out the background noise and to investigate the characteristics
of the audio within certain band width. In addition, an audio player is also integrated in
the program to give both audible and visual examination of the signal before and after
applying filters.
In Figure 5.17, W1 shows the time waveform of the recorded audio by the uni-
directional microphone for the roll K3 during the test ShR2_2. It can be seen that there is
no clear pattern due to the background noise. W2 shows the frequency plot of the original
signal, in which most background noise is located at the band width less than 1 kHz as
Figure 5.16: Part of recorded audio in Audacity showing abnormal acoustic

emission from the damaged bearing of the roll K3, in waveform (the upper plot), dB
waveform (the medium plot), and spectrogram (the lower plot).
Figure 5.17: The developed acoustic analysis program in Matlab equipped with
5 both band pass filter and band stop filter.
Note: W1 is the waveform of the original signal in time domain, W2 is the FFT plot of the original
signal, W3 is the waveform of the signal after the first filter (F1), W4 is the FFT plot of the signal
after the first filtering (F1), W5 is the waveform of the signal after the second filter (F2), W6 is the
FFT plot of the signal after the second filtering (F2). The window of Audio Data shows the real
time signal during play in which the acoustic emission of the damaged bearing is highlighted.
found in Audacity. By applying the bandpass filter (W4), it can be seen that there are two
characteristic peaks of sound power, one peak is around 3.1 kHz and the other around 8.9
kHz. Therefore, the band stop filter is further applied which filters out the signal between
two peaks (W6). If playing the filtered signal, the acoustic emission from the damaged
bearing can be distinguished clearly.
The test Sh_R2 is carried out to compare the detectability and timeliness of the tem-
perature, vibration and acoustic emission measurements for the damaged rolls. From the
measurement results (Table 5.10 and 5.11), the detectability of the measured parameters
is summarized in Table 5.12. It can be seen that the temperature measurement is able to
detect all damaged rolls. The damaged roll K3 only shows a temperature increase of 4 ◦ C
because the bearing cover has been removed so the generated heat easily dissipates. The
vibration measurement can detect all damaged rolls as the RMS levels of the damaged
rolls are higher than that of the intact roll. For the measurement of the acoustic emission,
the damaged rolls G3, K1 and K3 are observed distinct audible sound and characteristics
in frequency.
To conclude, the temperature, vibration and acoustic emission measurements are capa-
ble to detect the damaged rolls at the final failure stage. The measurement results become
more apparent for large damages. The selected sensors, including the thermocouples, in-
frared sensors, infrared camera, accelerometers, and the uni-directional microphone can
provide distinct features between the damaged rolls and the intact roll.
Endurance tests
5.3. I N - SITU IDLER EXPERIMENTS 113
Table 5.12: Summary of detectability of measured parameters for the damaged

rolls.
Tests
Measurements ShL1_G1_1 ShL1_G1_2 ShL1_G1_3 ShL1_G2_1 ShL1_G2_2 ShL1_G3_1 ShL1_G3_2 ShR2
horizontal (X) 0.32, G3: 0.31
(g) Trial 2 - 1.02 1.02 - 1.04 1.04 1.04 0.25, K3: 0.3
horizontal (Y) 1.05, G3: 1.04
(g) Trial 2 - 1.02 1.02 - 1.03 1.03 1.04 1.04, K3: 1.05

Figure 5.18 illustrates the temperature evolution of the intact roll A and the defect
roll B over fifteen hours running time. For both rolls, a regressive pattern of temperature
evolution can be recognized. After about eight hours, the temperature of the rolls A and
B stabilizes at about 28 ◦ C till the end of the test. This reconfirms that there is no distinct
difference between the intact roll and the defect rolls in long period of time.
Another endurance test that will be elaborated is the test Endurance_test_G3_A_K2.
In this test, the damaged roll G3 is installed on the left wing brackets while the intact roll
A is installed on the center roll brackets. Figure 5.19 presents the temperature evolution
5
during the endurance test. From Figure 5.19 (a), it can be seen that the temperature of
the shaft end ShL1 (where the damaged bearing locates) increases sharply in the first
two hours up to 74 ◦ C. After that, the temperature decreases moderately and stabilizes at
around 50 ◦ C. Figure 5.19 (b) shows the temperature evolution of the other shaft end of the
roll G3. It can also be seen that the temperature increases quickly in the first three hours
up to 37 ◦ C. After that, it maintains at around 35 ◦ C. The temperature of the shaft end
ShL2 is much lower than ShL1. Figure 5.19 (c) shows the temperature evolution of the
intact roll A. It can be seen that the temperature increases in the first three hours and then
maintains at around 30 ◦ C. Comparing the plots (a), (b) and (c), a distinct temperature
difference consistently exists during the one hundred hours endurance test. In addition,
it is necessary to use two temperature sensors at both shaft ends of an idler roll to ensure
reliable detection of either bearing failure. Another conclusion is that the detection of the
failed idler rolls can provide sufficient time for arranging roll replacement as the damaged
rolls ran at least 100 hours under the test conditions.
5.3 In-situ idler experiments

To further investigate which parameters can represent the technical condition of the on-
situ idler rolls, an experimental study is carried out on a bulk terminal belt conveyor.
5.3.1 Experimental setup

The in-situ idler experiments were carried out on a belt conveyor at Rizhao Port, China.
The design capacity of the belt conveyor is 7500 t/h, the belt velocity is 3.15 m/s, and the
belt width is 1.8 m. Each idler consists of three identical rolls with a roll length of 0.65
m, and the diameter of the roll shell is 0.159 m. The idler spacing is 1 m. The shaft ends
of the idlers are painted. An infrared camera and a sound level meter are applied in the
in-situ idler experiments to measure the temperature and the acoustic emission of the rolls
(Figure 5.20). The distance between the Infrared camera and the roll shaft end is 28 cm,
while the distance for the sound level meter is 8 cm.
30
28
Temperature (°C)
26
24
5 22
20
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
Time (hour)
(a)
30
28
Temperature (°C)
26
24
22
20
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
Time (hour)
(b)
Figure 5.18: The temperature evolution from the test Endurance_test_B_H_A_2,

(a) the intact roll A, (b) the defect roll B.
(a)
80
Temperature (°C)
70
60
50
40
30
20
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95 100
(b) Time (hour)
80
Temperature (°C)
70
60
50
40
30
20
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95 100
Time (hour)
(c)
80
Temperature (°C)
70
60
50
5
40
30
20
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95 100
Time (hour)
Figure 5.19: Temperature evolution from the test Endurance_test_G3_A_K2, (a)

shaft end ShL1, (b) shaft end ShL2, (c) shaft end ShC1.
Note: Shaft end ShL1 is where the damaged bearing of the roll G3 is located, shaft ends ShC1 and
ShC2 are of the roll A, shaft end ShR2 is where the damaged bearing of the roll K2 is located.
Figure 5.20: In-situ idler experimental setup.

Ten idler rolls are randomly selected on the belt conveyor to measure the temperature
and sound level. The measurements are conducted during the running of the belt with a
throughput of 2500 t/h and under constant speed. The ambient temperature is about 25
◦
C.
After the on-site measurements, the rolls are taken out from the belt conveyor to mea-
sure their rotating resistance. Figure 5.21 shows the apparatus for the measurement of the
rotating resistance. Each roll is placed on the pivot supports which is constrained from
rotating. Two plates are placed on the roll shell to apply a certain radial force and a drive
torque to rotate the roll at a given speed. The maximum normal load that the apparatus
can apply to the roll is 484 N. The rotational speed of the roll is set to be 600 rpm. For
each roll, the running time is 22 minutes. The rotating resistance of the roll is measured
by the force to hold the shaft stationary.
Figure 5.21: Idler roll rotating resistance measurement apparatus, figure courtesy
of Rizhao Changyun Industry Transport Equipment Co., Ltd.
5.3.2 Results and discussion

Figure 5.22 shows the measurements of the temperature and sound level of the ten random
idler rolls. Overall, the temperature varies from 30 ◦ C to 43 ◦ C, and the sound level
varies from 81.4 dB to 96.8 dB. By applying the correlation analysis to the ten samples,
a coefficient of correlation of 0.76 is derived. The coefficient of correlation S generally
varies between -1 and 1. If S = 1, a perfect positive correlation between two variables
exists while if S = −1 it means a perfect negative correlation (Scheaffer and McClave,
1990). Therefore, the coefficient of 0.76 indicates that a positive and strong correlation
exists between the temperature and the sound level of the rolls.
Of the ten rolls, the rotating resistance of four rolls is so high that the apparatus cannot
provide measurements. Figure 5.23 shows the temperature versus the rotating resistance
for the remaining six rolls. A positive correlation between the temperature and the ro-
tating resistance can be observed, with a coefficient of correlation of 0.69. Similarly, a
coefficient of correlation of 0.62 is derived between the sound intensity and the rotating
resistance for the six idler rolls. Therefore, both the temperature and sound level have
positive correlations with the rotating resistance of the rolls.
Furthermore, five rolls of 0, 0.5, 1.5, 2.5, and 4.5 years usage time are selected from
the belt conveyor and measured their rotating resistance as in Figure 5.24. It can be seen
that the rotating resistance of the new roll is about 5.4 N, while those of the used rolls
are around 7 N. In addition, an increasing trend of the rotating resistance along with the
45
S = 0.76
Temperature (°C)
10
40 8
6
9 5
35
7 2
30 1
3 4
25
80 85 90 95 100
Sound level (dB)
Figure 5.22: Temperature versus acoustic emission for the ten measured rolls.
5
45
S = 0.69
10
Temperature (° C)
40
6
35
2
4 1
30 3
25
5 5.5 6 6.5 7 7.5 8
Rotating resistance (N)
Figure 5.23: Plot of temperature versus rotating resistance for the ten measured
rolls.
Note: Markers represent the measurements of the six rolls with numbering after Figure 5.22.
usage age can be observed. Measurements of the rotating resistance of idler rolls over
their lifetime were also conducted by Gladysiewicz et al. (2004) on a laboratory idler test
rig. From the study it is found that sealing system and grease are two main determinant
of the increasing rotating resistance over the lifetime of idler rolls.
8
Rotating resistance (N) 7.5
6.5
5.5
5
0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4 4.5
Usage age (year)
5
Figure 5.24: The rotating resistance versus the usage age for five idler rolls.
Even though the measured rotating resistance did not show significant increase along
with the usage age in this study due to limited loading conditions, one may expect signifi-
cant increase of the rotating resistance of idler rolls approaching failure in belt conveyors.
Gladysiewicz and Kawalec (2010) found that the rotating resistance of idler rolls increases
remarkably along with growing radial load on the rolls. Therefore, detection and in time
replacement of failed rolls gain benefit of energy saving.
To conclude from the in-situ idler experiments, positive correlations exist between
each two of the temperature, sound level and the rotating resistance of the idler rolls. In
addition, the rotating resistance of the rolls increases along with the usage time.
5.4 Conclusions
Several conclusions can be drawn from the laboratory and in-situ idler experiments:
• Idler rolls in the final failure stage can be detected. The detection of failed idler rolls
can provide sufficient time for arranging roll replacements. However, idler rolls in
the incipient failure stage cannot be detected under the laboratory test conditions.
• Measurements of the temperature, vibration and acoustic emission can detect idler
rolls in the final failure stage.
• Measurement of the temperature at shaft ends of idler rolls is a straightforward and
effective approach to detect idler roll failures.
• The RMS level of the horizontal vibration at the shaft end is an indicator of the final
failure of an idler roll.
• The acoustic emission of idler rolls in the final failure stage shows some distinct
difference from that of intact rolls within certain band width (between 1.5 kHz and
9 kHz in this case).
• Considering the sensor installation, signal interpretability, and timeliness, the mea-
surement of the temperature is suggested to be the most effective inspection solu-
tion.
• Positive correlation exists between the measured temperature, acoustic emission
and rotating resistance.
The laboratory idler experiments are limited by the test rig conditions such as the low
achievable belt velocity and the load on the idler rolls. Meanwhile, the limited number of
measured idler rolls in the in-situ idler experiments can only provide qualitative insight
into the relationship among the temperature, acoustic emission, rotating resistance and
the usage time of the rolls.
Two recommendations for further research are formulated. The first recommendation
is to investigate the threshold value of a certain measurement parameter (i.e. the temper-
ature) for the interpretation on the condition of idler rolls. The second recommendation
is to investigate the deterioration rate of idler rolls at different stages and the achievable
operating time between the final and catastrophic failure stages.
5
6
I NTEGRATED MAINTENANCE
DECISION MAKING
Chapter 2 stated that a theoretical approach to calculate the lifetime or the reliability of
a population of idler rolls is available. However, maintenance decision making cannot
merely rely on the theoretical calculation because large deviations of the predicted life-
time/reliability exist compared to the reality. Chapter 5 presented experimental studies
on the applicable condition monitoring parameters for the idler rolls. Nevertheless, the
knowledge for the maintenance decision making is still missing. This chapter aims to
explore the option of integrating the theoretical calculation and the condition monitoring
for a more accurate maintenance decision making.
6.1 Introduction
Assuming a condition monitoring system is available for the idler rolls within a belt con-
veyor system, the decisions for the idler maintenance include: the diagnosis on whether a
roll has failed, and an answer to the question when to inspect all (or part of the ) rolls the
next time (the inspection interval). As the monitoring data are always associated with the
identities of the idler rolls, the failed rolls can be identified from the diagnoses and be re-
placed after each inspection assuming that there is a time window for the roll replacement
afterwards.
The existing diagnostics techniques for the bearing failures are mostly threshold-based
(Heng et al., 2009). A threshold value for the monitoring parameter is presumed to rep-
resent a roll bearing failure (Figure 6.1). Diagnosis is conducted in such a way that it is
based on whether the value of the monitoring parameter of the roll bearing exceeds the
presumed threshold value. In any application, the presumed thresholds are based on em-
pirical experiences or manufacturers’ recommendations (Heng et al., 2009). For instance,
Owen (1997) claimed a warning threshold for roll bearings can be set at 70 ◦ C, an alarm
threshold can be 80 ◦ C, and a failure threshold value of 90 ◦ C. Lodewijks et al. (2007)
considered the temperature of a roll bearing reaching 80 to 120 ◦ C is a clear sign of po-
121
122 6. I NTEGRATED MAINTENANCE DECISION MAKING
tential failure. In another application, an alarm threshold for the roll bearings is set as 50
◦
C (Mitteldeutsche Braunkohlengesellschaft mbH, 2015).
In fact, each inspection of the idler rolls provides a sample of the monitoring param-
eter. From the sample, a relative frequency function (rff) of the monitoring parameter
( f ti (x) in Figure 6.1) can be obtained at each time t i . From the temporal evolution of the
rffs, the process of wear out of the population of bearings can be observed. Assume that
the temperature is the monitoring parameter in Figure 6.1, the rff f t1 (x) at time t 1 presents
high density in very low temperature region and low density in high temperature region.
When it comes to time t 3 , the rff f t3 (x) stretches over low and high temperature regions
more evenly. When it approaches the end of the lifetime of the population at time t i , the
rff f ti (x) is expected to present high density in the higher temperature region.
rff
ti
t i-1
t3
t2
6 t1
ld
sho mon
thre itor ft (x)
ing i
par
am
ete
r
Figure 6.1: Illustration of rffs of a monitoring parameter in temporal sequence.
Facing such an evolution of the monitoring parameter along the aging of the rolls,
it is a challenge to determine an appropriate threshold for a given application since it
depends on the application (i.e. the load, rotational speed, operational time), the ambient
conditions (Lodewijks et al., 2007), and the mode of evolution. In reality, it is often
observed that the presumed threshold value is either too high or too low (Goode et al.,
2000). If the threshold is set too low, an unacceptable number of false alarms may be
triggered which cause a waste of healthy rolls that are replaced too early. On the other
hand, roll failures may not be identified in time if the threshold is set too high. So there
is a need for the determination of a proper threshold for the sound diagnoses on the roll
failures for a given application.
Regarding the determination of the inspection interval, there is no direct method avail-
able in literature. The industry empirically sets the idler inspection as daily routine as dis-
covered by Thieme (2014) from a survey of several big conveyor operators. Some idler
manufacturers, for instance Douglas Manufacturing Co. Inc. (2011), recommend to listen
for unusual sound or vibrations daily while to check wear or stuck rolls weekly.
The L 10 bearing lifetime theory from Lundberg and Palmgren (1949) is the most
widely used to calculate the lifetime or reliability for a population of bearings. How-
ever, the theory has not been linked to the determination of the inspection interval due
6.2. F RAMEWORK OF INTEGRATED MAINTENANCE DECISION MAKING 123
to the large dispersion from the reality (Tomsky, 1985). Therefore, the question how to
improve the accuracy of theoretical calculation of the reliability (or the failure rate) in a
given application is of interest. With improved theoretical prediction of the failure rate,
the inspection interval can be determined more accurately.
The aim of this chapter is to explore how to achieve accurate maintenance decision
making by integrating the theoretical calculation of the failure rate and the real time mon-
itoring data. For this purpose, a framework of integrated maintenance decision making is
developed and presented in Section 6.2. Section 6.3 illustrates a case study to present the
results of a simulation with the implementation of the framework. Section 6.4 provides
some conclusive remarks.
6.2 Framework of integrated maintenance decision mak-

ing
Figure 6.2 illustrates the framework for the integrated maintenance decision making. The
framework takes the real time throughput and belt velocity of the belt conveyor, the prop-
erties of the conveyed bulk material, the parameters of the belt conveyor (i.e. the belt
width), the operational time, and the acquired condition monitoring data as inputs. The
outputs of the framework will be answers to the questions which idler rolls are failed and
need to be replaced, as well as when to inspect the idler rolls the next time.
6
throughput
belt velocity
integrated maintenance decision making
model based roll bearing
material load calculation
properties
conveyor
parameters
operational L10 bearing lifetime theoretical calculation of

time theory failure rate of roll bearings
monitoring
decision making algorithm
data
1. which rolls are failed and are to be replaced

2. time for next inspection
Figure 6.2: Framework of integrated maintenance decision making.
From the top left side of the framework in Figure 6.2, the SD model or the hybrid
(SD+KH) model in Chapter 3 can be used to calculate the load on the roll bearings. The
load is a critical input for the theoretical calculation of the reliability of the bearings. Fol-
lowing the calculation of the reliability, an estimate of the failure rate of the roll bearings
between two consecutive inspections can be calculated.
Meanwhile, from the bottom left side, the condition monitoring can also provide an
estimate of the failure rate of the roll bearings between two consecutive inspections. With
a given threshold value, the failure rate can be considered as the percentage of the roll
bearings whose values of the monitoring parameter exceeding the threshold.
With the derivation of the failure rates from both the theoretical calculation and the
monitoring data, comparisons can be conducted after each inspection. Based on the com-
parisons of the two failure rates, the theoretical calculation will be amended by introduc-
ing an error term, and the threshold value will also be updated. In this way, the integration
of the theoretical calculation and the condition monitoring is achieved.
Figure 6.3 shows the algorithm of the decision making in Figure 6.2. It is recognized
that the load on the center roll bearings and the wing roll bearings are quite different. The
center roll bearings are taken in this chapter to illustrate the algorithm. It is also assumed
that there are a number of historical inspections at times t 1 , t 2 , · · · , t i available.
6
6.2. F RAMEWORK OF INTEGRATED MAINTENANCE DECISION MAKING
i=i+1 determine next
initialization ε (t i-1) ε (t i ) model of error term ε (t) inspection time
theoretical calculation of failure amended failure rate

rate h TC(t i) of roll bearings h'TC (t i)
>
TH (t i+1 ) = TH (t i )+Θ
' (ti )
∂ (ti)=hCM (t i) - hTC > =
∂ (t i ) <
=0 TH (t i+1 ) = TH (t i )
<
TH (t 0 ) TH (t i+1 ) = TH (t i )-Θ
monitoring data failure rate

f t i (x) h CM(t i)
i=i+1
initialization TH (t i-1) TH (t i )
determine which rolls are
failed and to be replace
Figure 6.3: Algorithm of the integrated decision making.
125
6
To initialize the algorithm, the first step is to calculate the failure rate hT C (t i ) for each
inspection. For a population of identical ball bearings under the same working conditions,
there is a relationship between the reliability, the rating life L 10 , and the achieved opera-
tional time as shown in Eq. (2.8). Therefore, the cumulative distribution function (cdf)
for the failure of the roll bearings is:
³ ¡ ¢10/9 ´
F T C (t ) = 1 − R B (t ) = 1 − exp −0.1053 L S (t )/L 10,m (6.1)
in which R B (t ) is the reliability of roll bearings, L 10,m is the L 10 rating life of the roll
bearings according to the design capacity of the conveyor which can be derived from Eq.
(2.9), L S (t ) is the achieved operational time and can be calculated as:
N µP ¶3
X NG, j
L S (t ) = Tj (6.2)
j =1 Pm
in which P NG, j is the radial force on the center bearing (the axial force is assumed to be
zero in straight sections of the conveyor) corresponding to the j th level of the throughput
of the conveyor derived from Eq. (3.60), T j is the corresponding subtotal operational time
N
P
of the jth level of the throughput and the total achieved operational time t = T j , N is
j =1
the total number of the throughput levels, and P m is the radial force on the center bearing
6 corresponding to the design capacity of the conveyor derived from Eq. (3.60).
If the throughput and belt velocity of the belt conveyor are kept constant, Eq. (6.2)
can be simplified as:
¶3
P NG
µ
L S (t ) = t (6.3)
Pm
Being aware that Eq. (2.8) is valid between R(t ) = 0.93 (correspondingly L S (t ) =
0.7L 10 ) and R(t ) = 0.4 (correspondingly L S (t ) = 7L 10 ) as stated by Harris (2001), as well
as the deviation between the predicted failure rate and the reality, an error term ε(t ) is
introduced into the theoretical calculation of the failure rate between two consecutive
inspections at time t i −1 and t i as:
0
Z ti
h T C (t i ) = F T C (t )d t + ε (t i −1 ) (6.4)
t i −1
With a constant throughput and belt velocity, substituting Eq. (C.1) into Eq. (6.4)
generates:
Ã ¶10/9 ! Ã ¶10/9 !
L S (t i −1 ) L S (t i )
µ µ
0
h T C (t i ) = exp −0.1053 − exp −0.1053 + ε (t i −1 ) (6.5)
L 10,m L 10,m
The next step is to calculate the failure rate hC M (t i ) from the condition monitoring
data as:
number of bearings exceeding threshold T H (t i −1 ) at t i

Z +∞
hC M (t i ) = = f ti (x)d x
the total number of bearings T H (t i −1 )
(6.6)
6.3. C ASE STUDY 127
in which f ti (x) is the rff of the monitoring parameter at time t i .

0
Therefore, the discrepancy ∂(t i ) between hC M (t i ) and hT C (t i ) can be derived as:
0
∂(t i ) = hC M (t i ) − h T C (t i ) (6.7)
Given the error terms ε (t 0 ) , ε (t 1 ) , ε (t 2 ) , · · · , ε (t i −1 ) and the discrepancy ∂(t i ), the

error term ε(t i ) can be calculated. The error terms ε (t 0 ) , ε (t 1 ) , ε (t 2 ) , · · · , ε (t i −1 ) and
the discrepancy ∂(t i ) can be fitted by using an appropriate model (i.e. a linear model,
exponential model), depending on the mode of evolution of the deviation between the
calculated failure rate and the one from the condition monitoring. With the development
of the model, the error term ε(t i ) can be calculated. The derived ε(t i ) is further used for
0
the theoretical calculation of the failure rate hT C (t i +1 ) at time t i +1 . It is noted that the
parameters of the error term model may be updated after each inspection.
On the other hand, the threshold value T H (t i ) can also be updated by considering the
discrepancy ∂(t i ). For instance, if ∂(t i ) > 0, then the threshold T H (t i +1 ) can be updated to
a higher value for time t i +1 (Figure 6.3). On contrary, if ∂(t i ) < 0, the threshold T H (t i +1 )
should be updated to a lower value for time t i +1 as:
T H (t i +1 ) = T H (t ) − Θ (6.8)
in which Θ is the increment of the threshold.

In this framework, the diagnoses on the roll failures is based on the updated threshold.
6
After the inspection at time t i , the diagnoses are achieved by checking the roll bearings
whose values of the monitoring parameter exceed the updated threshold T H (t i ). Either
of the two bearings within one roll reaching the threshold value indicates the failure of the
roll. The determination of the inspection interval or the time for next inspection is based
0
on the theoretical calculation of the failure rate hT C (t i ) after introducing the error term
(Figure 6.3). A variety of approaches like Fuzzy Logic can be applied (Lodewijks and
Ottjes, 2005b; Pang, 2010). The framework considers the inspection of all idler rolls. In
fact, the inspection may also be focused on the idler rolls whose values of the monitoring
parameter approach the threshold value.
The current framework does not consider the replacement of the rolls. To take the roll
replacement into account, one recommended way is to divide the bearings into different
groups based on the replacement time. If the amount of roll replacements is big for each
time, then each roll replacement event will generate a new group. If the amount of roll
replacements is small, then several consecutive roll replacement events produces a new
group. For each of these groups, the current framework can still be applied.
6.3 Case study

A simulation case study is conducted to verify the effectiveness of the framework for the
integrated maintenance decision making. This case study uses most of the simulation
configurations from previous studies by Lodewijks (2003) and Lodewijks et al. (2007).
The simulation configurations are summarized in Table 6.1. The simulation is conducted
for the whole design lifetime of the belt conveyor. The temperature is selected as the
monitoring parameter. The initial threshold value is set as 40 ◦ C at the beginning of the
simulation. The center roll bearings are chosen as the object of this simulation study.
Table 6.1: Configurations for the simulation.
Parameters Values Parameters Values

conveyor length (km) 10 idler spacing (m) 2
transported material coal number of upper idler frames 5001
design capacity (t/h) 6000 design lifetime of the conveyor (year) 10
throughput (t/h) 5000 operational time (hour/day) 20
belt velocity (m/s) 5 operational days (days/year) 360
belt width (m) 2 roll bearing size 6306
belt weight (kg/m) 93.2 rotational speed of idler rolls (r/min) 600

A belt conveyor with a length of 10 km is chosen for the simulation. The belt conveyor
is assumed to transport coal with constant throughput of 5000 t/h. By applying the SD
model in Chapter 3, it is obtained that the radial force on each center roll bearing is 2791
N. From the L 10 bearing lifetime theory, it can be obtained that the L 10 rating life for the
6 center roll bearings is 33171 hour, which means 10 percent of the roll bearings will fail
by this running time.
In order to represent the evolution of the temperature in Figure 6.1, the temperature of
the 10002 center roll bearings is randomly assigned in such a way that their rffs present a
pattern as illustrated in Figure 6.4. The simulated temperature measurements from each
inspection are assumed to follow a normal distribution. When the roll bearings are at their
early age (within first 40 months), the mean values of the rffs are in the low temperature
region. With the growing age of the roll bearings, the mean value of the rff is increasing
while the deviation also becomes slightly larger. During the middle age (41 to 80 months)
of the roll bearings, the mean value continues to rise while the variance is kept constant
for the simulated temperature measurements. Within the old age (81 to 120 months) of
the roll bearings, the mean value of the rff further increases while the deviation becomes
smaller. This is to simulate the temperature of old bearings which is concentrated in
high temperature region. In this way, the simulated temperature measurements of the
inspections represent the hypothetical evolution of the monitoring parameter in Figure
6.1.
For the simulation case study, a constant inspection interval of 1 month is applied.
Regarding the error term ε(t ) in the framework in Section 6.2, a linear model (ε(t i ) =
α1,i + α2,i · t i ) is considered. A program is developed in Matlab to derive the two pa-
rameters α1,i and α2,i based on the error terms ε (t 0 ) , ε (t 1 ) , ε (t 2 ) , · · · , ε (t i −1 ) and the
discrepancy ∂(t i ). The increment of the threshold Θ is set as 0.3 ◦ C during the simulation.
Figure 6.5 illustrates the failure rates from the amended theoretical calculation after
introducing the error term, the monitoring data with updated threshold from the frame-
work, and merely applying the L 10 bearing lifetime theory respectively. From Figure 6.5,
it can be seen that the failure rate from the amended theoretical calculation lies between
the failure rates from the condition monitoring and the L 10 theory. In the first 23 months,
the failure rate from the L 10 theory is the highest with a regressively increasing trend. Dur-
6.3. C ASE STUDY 129
0.7
rffs of early age
rffs of middle age
0.6
rffs of old age
0.5
0.4
rff
0.3
0.2
0.1
0
20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60
Temperature (°C)
Figure 6.4: Simulation of temperature for a population of bearings at different ages.
ing this period, the rff of the temperature concentrates in the low temperature region (<32
◦
C in Figure 6.4), which means very few roll bearings’ temperature exceeds the threshold
value. Therefore, the failure rate from the condition monitoring is very low. The failure
rate from the amended theoretical calculation is roughly the mean of the failure rates from 6
the theoretical calculation and the condition monitoring.
0.03
from amended theoretical calculation
from monitoring data with updated threshold
0.025 from L10 bearing lifetime thoery
0.02
Failure rate
0.015
0.01
0.005
0 20 40 60 80 100 120
Lifetime (month)
Figure 6.5: Failure rates from the amended theoretical calculation, the condition
monitoring with updated threshold and the L 10 bearing lifetime theory.
After 23 months, the failure rate from the condition monitoring becomes higher than
the one from the L 10 theory. This is because the simulated rff of the temperature shifts to
high values which results in more bearings’ temperatures exceeding the threshold. It is
also noticed that the failure rate from the condition monitoring may change significantly.
This can be attributed to the simultaneous change of both the simulated temperature mea-
surements and the threshold value. The failure rate from the L 10 theory is almost constant
at 0.2 percent. This is because the inspection interval (600 hours) in the simulation is too
small considering the L 10 rating life (33171 hours) for the results of Eq. (6.5). Mean-
while, the failure rate from the amended theoretical calculation is observed to change
more smoothly than the one from the condition monitoring. From Figure 6.5 it can be
concluded that the failure rate from the amended theoretical calculation is more accurate
than the one from the L 10 theory because it incorporates the real time condition data.
Figure 6.6 illustrates the updating of the threshold during the simulation. In the first
23 months, the threshold decreases linearly from the initial 40 ◦ C to 31.2 ◦ C. Afterwards,
the threshold is observed to increase and ends up at 44.5 ◦ C after 120 months at the end
of the simulation. Figure 6.6 shows that it is possible to update the threshold with a given
initial value, real time data and the theoretical calculation. Though the variation of the
threshold is not big in this case study, considering the large population of the roll bearings,
the number of false replacement of idler rolls can still be considerable with a change of
the threshold value of just 1 ◦ C.
100
90
80
Temperature ( C)
o 70
60
6 50
40
30
20
0 20 40 60 80 100 120
Lifetime (month)
Figure 6.6: Evolution of the threshold during the simulation.
Figure 6.7 presents the cumulative distribution of the roll bearing failures from the
framework for the integrated decision making, the conventional approach with a constant
threshold (40 ◦ C) and the L 10 theory respectively. As the failed rolls are assumed to be
replaced immediately, the cdfs are equal to the percentage of roll replacement compared
to the whole population. In general, the cdf from the L 10 theory is observed to increase
linearly in the 120 months, the one from the framework increases moderately while the
one from the conventional approach remains very low during the first 60 months and rises
dramatically afterwards before reaching 100 percent of roll replacement. This means that
if the threshold value was fixed at 40 ◦ C, all roll bearings should have been replaced
before 86 months. On the other hand, the framework suggests the percentage of roll
replacement is 45 percent till 86 months. This indicates that the concept of updating the
threshold in the framework may save 55 percent of roll bearing replacement compared to
the conventional approach.
In Figure 6.7, the cdf from the framework is about 62 percent at 120 months. This
means that 62 percent of the roll bearings have been replaced in the ten years. Mean-
while, the L 10 theory shows that only 22 percent of the roll bearings are replaced till the
end of 120 months. Therefore, it is reasonable to claim that for this simulation case study
1
0.9 from integrated framework
from constant threshold
0.8 from L10 lifetime theory
0.7
cdf of failure
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0 20 40 60 80 100 120
Lifetime (month)
Figure 6.7: Cumulative distribution of roll bearing failures from the integrated
maintenance framework, the condition monitoring with a constant threshold value
and the L 10 bearing lifetime theory.
the constant threshold approach overestimates the roll bearing failures while the L 10 the-
ory underestimates the failures. The framework for the integrated maintenance decision
making provides a more accurate estimation of the number of roll bearing failures.
In summary, the simulation case study verifies the effectiveness of the framework for
the integrated maintenance decision making. From the simulation, it can be concluded
6
that the amended theoretical calculation of the failure rate is more accurate than the L 10
theory. In addition, the framework may save a considerable amount of roll replacements
compared to the conventional constant threshold approach.
6.4 Conclusions
In this chapter a framework for the integrated decision making of the idler maintenance
was developed. The framework incorporates the failure rates from both the theoretical
calculation of the reliability and condition monitoring data. In the framework, a con-
ceptual interaction between the two approaches is prompted, which leads to continuous
amendment of the theoretical calculation of the failure rate and the update of the threshold
value. By implementing the framework, the diagnoses on roll failures and the determina-
tion of inspection intervals can be achieved. A simulation case study was also conducted.
The case study shows that the framework can improve the predictability of the failure rate
of idler roll bearings, and improve the diagnoses on roll failures compared to the conven-
tional constant threshold approach. For further research, it is recommended to investigate
how to develop an accurate model for the error term and how to derive appropriate in-
spection intervals based on the framework.
7
C ONCLUSIONS AND
RECOMMENDATIONS
This thesis aims to improve the reliability of belt conveyor systems with a focus on idlers.
To reflect the research in previous chapters on the goal, this chapter provides conclusions
in Section 7.1 corresponding to the research questions in Chapter 1. Recommendations
for future research are provided in Section 7.2.
7.1 Conclusions
In this thesis, the following main research question is answered: How to improve the reli-
ability of belt conveyor systems? The reliability of a belt conveyor system is the integrated
reliability of all components. Considering idler rolls are still a big challenge for the reli-
able performance of belt conveyors, this thesis investigated how to improve the reliability
of idler rolls. The emphasis of this research is on enhancing the predictability of idler roll
failures.
In addition, the four sub research questions formulated in Chapter 1 are answered as
follows:
• How to predict idler roll failures?
Three approaches are proposed to predict idler roll failures (Chapter 2): theoretical
calculation of the reliability of idler rolls, diagnoses on roll failures based on condition
monitoring data, and integrated decision making which combines both the theoretical
approach and the condition monitoring approach. The three approaches are discussed
respectively in different chapters.
• How to calculate the reliability of idler rolls?
From literature it is found that the bearing lifetime theory from Lundberg and Palm-
gren (1949) is the most widely accepted theoretical approach for the calculation of the
133
134 7. C ONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
reliability of idler roll bearings (Chapter 2). Considering the determination of the load on
roll bearings is very important to apply the bearing lifetime theory, this thesis investigated
the determination of the load using both theoretical and experimental approaches.
An analytical approach is developed to determine the load on roll bearings due to the
conveyed bulk material, the belt and the roll. For the load from the belt, it is concluded
that the effect of belt sagging can be neglected. A new analytical model (the SD model)
is developed to provide a lower bound solution for the bulk load. Combining the SD
model with an upper bound model (the KH model) from Krause and Hettler (1974), an
aggregation model for the bulk load is also developed. Comparisons between the SD
model, the KH model and the aggregation model with experimental measurements show
that the aggregation model is able to provide more accurate prediction of the bulk load
than the SD model or the KH model.
In addition, for the direct measurement of the bulk load, the applicability of a tactile
pressure sensor is examined (Chapter 4). The percentage of error for the measurements
using the tactile pressure sensor varied from 8.7 percent to 33.7 percent. It is concluded
that the tactile pressure sensor is able to provide qualitative insight into the bulk load
distribution for scientific purpose. However, the measurements of the tactile pressure
sensor provide limited quantitative information on the transverse distribution of the bulk
load due to its intrinsic limitations and the belt behavior at idler junctions for the fabric
belt used in this study.
• How to detect idler roll failures?
From the experimental study it is concluded that idler rolls in the final failure stage
7 can be detected by applying condition monitoring techniques (Chapter 5). Parameters
including the temperature, vibration and acoustic emission are applicable for the condition
monitoring of idler rolls. Within the three parameters, the measurement of the temperature
is suggested to be the most effective inspection solution. Specifically, the measurement
of the temperature at shaft ends of idler rolls is a straightforward and effective approach
to detect idler roll failures. The RMS level of the horizontal vibration is also an indicator.
The acoustic emission of idler rolls in the final failure stage shows some distinct difference
from intact rolls between 1.5 kHz and 9 kHz in this study. It is also concluded that positive
correlation exists between the measured temperature, acoustic emission and the rotating
resistance of idler rolls.
• Is it possible to achieve integrated decision making on idler maintenance?
The decisions regarding the idler maintenance, i.e. the inspection interval and roll re-
placement scheduling, is important to ensure the reliable performance of idler rolls. The
maintenance decision making which is only based on theoretical calculation of the relia-
bility of idler rolls or condition monitoring data is considered to be inadequate. Therefore,
A framework for the integrated maintenance decision making is proposed. The proposed
framework incorporates the failure rate as the population characteristic from the theoreti-
cal calculation of the reliability of roll bearings, and the condition of individual roll from
real time data. By implementing the framework, appropriate inspection intervals and roll
replacement scheduling can be achieved.
7.2. R ECOMMENDATIONS 135
7.2 Recommendations
Recommendations for further investigations in the sub topics are formulated as follows:
• Theoretical determination of the bulk load
It is recommended to further investigate the movement of bulk particles on a belt

during conveyance. The understanding of the movement of bulk particles is important to
study the interaction between the particles and the belt. During the development of the
theoretical model in this research, a new hypothesis of the movement of bulk particles
was prompted. However, further investigation is needed to verify the hypothesis.
A second recommendation is to investigate the aggregation factor which controls the
level of aggregation between the upper bound model (the KH model) and the lower bound
model (the SD model). The aggregation factor is considered to be dependent on the char-
acteristics of bulk materials (i.e. the internal friction and wall friction), the parameters of
a belt (i.e. the bending stiffness) and the loading level of a conveyor. Further experimental
measurements are needed to achieve the derivation of the aggregation factor.
• Experimental determination of the bulk load
Experimental study on the determination of the bulk load on steel cord conveyor belts
by using tactile pressure sensors is recommended. Steel cord conveyor belts have much
higher bending stiffness than fabric belts. Therefore, it is expected that the influence
of idler junctions will be minimized on the measurement of the bulk load by using tactile
pressure sensors. In this way, the assessment of the applicability of tactile pressure sensors
can be further improved.
7
• Experimental condition monitoring of belt conveyor idlers
Two recommendations for further research are formulated. The first recommendation
is to investigate the threshold value of a certain measurement parameter (i.e. the temper-
ature) for the interpretation on the condition of idler rolls. The second recommendation
is to investigate the deterioration rate of idler rolls at different stages and the achievable
operational time between the final and catastrophic failure stages.
• Integrated maintenance decision making framework
This research only proposed a conceptual framework for the integrated maintenance
decision making by cooperating the theoretical approach and the condition monitoring
approach. Further research is needed to implement the framework for decision making in
real applications, including but not limited to an adequate model for the error term in the
framework.
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A PPENDIX
Appendix A: Idler roll load sharing optimization program

The SD model can be applied to enable a balanced load sharing between the center roll
and the wing rolls by searching for an optimal combination of a trough angle and a ratio
between the length of the center roll and the wing roll. For this purpose, a program is
developed in Matlab (version 2011b, The Mathworks Inc.), which can be seen in Figure
A.1. The program is object oriented and has a user friendly interface, it can be easily
applied in the design phase of belt conveyor idlers.
Figure A.1: Idler roll load sharing optimization program.
In order to use the program, the parameters of the conveyed bulk material (includ-
ing the surcharge angle, density, internal friction angle and wall friction angle), and the
parameters of the belt conveyor (including the trough angle, wing roll length, center roll
length, capacity, belt velocity, idler spacing, belt width, and belt weight) are required.
With these inputs, the tool can produce intermedia results such as the weight of the bulk
149
150 A PPENDIX
material within one idler spacing, and the useful length of loaded wing belt. In addition,
two plots will be produced to present the pressure distribution in cases of active and pas-
sive stress states. For the final result of single calculation, the total normal and axial forces
on each wing roll, as well as the total normal force on the center roll can be calculated
and printed on the screen. It has to be mentioned that for the belt load only the weight of
the conveyor belt is considered.
In addition, the program can accept multi inputs of trough angles and ratios between
the length of the center roll and the wing roll. With the multi inputs of these two variables,
a database of the normal and axial forces on the wing rolls, as well as the normal force on
the center roll can be produced. The user can find an optimum solution with respect to a
balanced load sharing between the wing rolls and the center roll.
In order to explain how the program works, a case study is presented. The inputs for
the program are summarized in Table A.1. A belt conveyor with a design capacity of
6000 t /h which will be used for transport of coal is chosen. The parameters regarding the
belt conveyor are determined based on industrial experience. The parameters of coal are
decided with consultation of the values that Ilic derived from experimental tests [Table
4-2 in (Ilic, 2013)].
Table A.1: Summary of input parameters.
Figure A.2 shows the evolution of the percentage of the load on each wing roll and the
center roll due to the bulk material and the belt with varying trough angle. The results are
achieved with a roll length of 0.75 m for both the center and wing rolls. It can be seen that
with growing trough angle, higher percentage of the load is exerted on the center roll and
the opposite trend is observed regarding the wing rolls. With a trough angle of 20◦ , 46.8
percent of the load from the bulk material and the belt is loaded on the center roll, and
26.6 percent of the load is on each wing roll. In comparison, if the trough angle is 45◦ , 77
percent of the load from the bulk material and the belt is loaded on the center roll, while
11.5 percent of the load is on each wing roll. With increasing trough angle, the depth of
the bulk material on the CBS is larger. As a result, more bulk material is loaded on the
CBS.
Figure A.3 shows the percentage of the load on the center roll and each wing roll with
varying ratio of the roll length. The ratio is calculated as the length of the center roll
divided by that of the wing roll. The results in Figure A.3 are achieved with a trough
angle of 35◦ . Higher percentage of the load is on the center roll with larger ratio of the
roll length while the opposite trend can be observed for the wing roll. For example, 24.4
percent of the load due to the bulk material and the belt is considered to be exerted on the
center roll and 37.8 percent of the load on each wing roll for a ratio of 0.3. If the ratio
A PPENDIX 151
100
Percentage of load on center roll
90 Percentage ofload on wing roll
80
70
Percentage (%)
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
0 20 25 30 35 40 45
Trough angle (o )
Figure A.2: Percentage of the load on each wing roll and the center roll with
varying trough angle.
goes up to 1.0, which means an equal length of the wing roll and the center roll, it can
be seen that 72 percent of the load is on the center roll while only 14 percent of the load
on one wing roll. The load sharing can be balanced at a ratio around 0.4, for which the
length of the wing roll is 0.9 m and the length of the center roll is 0.4 m. The difference
between the wing roll length and the center roll length is a bit big. However, by setting a
smaller trough angle, the difference in the roll length is expected to be smaller to achieve
a balanced load sharing between the wing rolls and the center roll.
From the case study, it can be seen that the program enables an analysis of the resultant
idler roll load with many design parameters of the belt conveyor given the characteristics
of the bulk material to be transported. The program can also improve the design of belt
conveyor idlers with an aim to achieve balanced load sharing and therefore close to equal
lifetime of the center and wing rolls.
152 A PPENDIX
100
Percentage of load on center roll
90 Percentage ofload on wing roll
80
70
Percentage (%)
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
0 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1.0
Ratio
Figure A.3: Percentage of the load on each wing roll and the center roll with
varying ratio of roll length. The ratio is calculated as the length of the center roll
divided by the length of the wing roll while maintaining the total length of three
rolls as 2.25 m.
A PPENDIX 153
Appendix B: Datasheets of the sensors

B.1. Datasheet of the thermocouple
Note: This datasheet is derived from nl.rs-online.com.

154 A PPENDIX
B.2. Datasheet of the infrared sensor
Note: This datasheet is derived from omega.nl.

A PPENDIX 155
B.3. Datasheet of the infrared camera
Note: This datasheet is derived from flir.com.

156 A PPENDIX
B.4. Datasheet of the omni-directional microphone
Note: This datasheet is derived from challengeelectronics.com.

A PPENDIX 157
B.5. Datasheet of the uni-directional microphone
Note: This datasheet is derived from nl.rs-online.com.

158 A PPENDIX
B.6. Datasheet of the sound level meter
Parameter Value Parameter Value

Microphone
Model SLM 52N MC-21
model
Main processing weighing A &
Sensitivity -37 dB
functions weighing C
Frequency
Total range (dB) 30 ~ 130 31.5 ~ 8000
response (Hz)
Warm-up time Max. input
≤2 131
(min) sound level (dB)
AC output & Operating
Output -10 ~ 50
DC output temperature (°C)
Preamplifier
Power 9V battery AP-21
model

Note: This datasheet is extracted from the manual of sound level meter SLM 52N.
A PPENDIX 159
B.7. Datasheet of the accelerometer
ADXL337
SPECIFICATIONS
TA = 25°C, VS = 3 V, CX = CY = CZ = 0.1 μF, acceleration = 0 g, unless otherwise noted. All minimum and maximum specifications are
guaranteed. Typical specifications are not guaranteed.
Table 1.
Parameter Test Conditions/Comments Min Typ Max Unit
SENSOR INPUT Each axis
Measurement Range ±3 ±3.6 g
Nonlinearity % of full scale ±0.3 %
Package Alignment Error ±1 Degrees
Interaxis Alignment Error ±0.1 Degrees
Cross-Axis Sensitivity 1 ±1 %
SENSITIVITY (RATIOMETRIC) 2 Each axis
Sensitivity at XOUT, YOUT, ZOUT VS = 3 V 270 300 330 mV/g
Sensitivity Change Due to Temperature 3 VS = 3 V ±0.01 %/°C
0 g BIAS LEVEL (RATIOMETRIC)
0 g Voltage at XOUT, YOUT VS = 3 V 1.35 1.5 1.65 V
0 g Voltage at ZOUT VS = 3 V 1.2 1.5 1.8 V
0 g Offset vs. Temperature XOUT, YOUT ±1.1 mg/°C
0 g Offset vs. Temperature ZOUT ±1.6 mg/°C
NOISE PERFORMANCE
Noise Density XOUT, YOUT 175 μg/√Hz rms
Noise Density ZOUT 300 μg/√Hz rms
FREQUENCY RESPONSE 4
Bandwidth XOUT, YOUT 5 No external filter 1600 Hz
Bandwidth ZOUT5 No external filter 550 Hz
RFILT Tolerance 32 ± 15% kΩ
Sensor Resonant Frequency 5.5 kHz
SELF TEST 6
Logic Input Low 0.6 V
Logic Input High 2.4 V
ST Actuation Current 60 μA
Output Change at XOUT Self test 0 to 1 −150 −325 −600 mV
Output Change at YOUT Self test 0 to 1 +150 +325 +600 mV
Output Change at ZOUT Self test 0 to 1 +150 +550 +1000 mV
OUTPUT AMPLIFIER
Output Swing Low No load 0.1 V
Output Swing High No load 2.8 V
POWER SUPPLY
Operating Voltage Range 7 1.8 3.0 3.6 V
Supply Current VS = 3 V 300 μA
Turn-On Time 8 No external filter 1 ms
TEMPERATURE
Operating Temperature Range −40 +85 °C
1
Defined as coupling between any two axes.
2
Sensitivity is essentially ratiometric to VS.
3
Defined as the output change from ambient-to-maximum temperature or ambient-to-minimum temperature.
4
Actual frequency response controlled by user-supplied external filter capacitors (CX, CY, CZ).
5
Bandwidth with external capacitors = 1/(2 × π × 32 kΩ × C). For CX, CY = 0.003 μF, bandwidth = 1.6 kHz. For CZ = 0.01 μF, bandwidth = 500 Hz. For CX, CY, CZ = 10 μF,
bandwidth = 0.5 Hz.
6
Self test response changes cubically with VS.
7
Tested at 3.0 V and guaranteed by design only (not tested) to work over the full range from 1.8 V to 3.6 V.
8
Turn-on time is dependent on CX, CY, CZ and is approximately 160 × (CX or CY or CZ) + 1, where CX, CY, and CZ are in μF and the resulting turn-on time is in ms.
Note: This datasheet Rev.

is 0derived
| Page 3 of 16
from sparkfun.com.
160 A PPENDIX
Appendix C: The verification test

For the verification test, an idler roll is prepared by gluing a rubber strip (thickness of 5
mm) on the shell. After that it is installed on the test rig (Figure C.1). The rubber strip
will cause significant vibration when it contacts the belt during the roll’s running. The
verification test is conducted with a belt velocity of 1.8 m/s, and the load on the roll is 108
N. The data acquisition is conducted with a sampling frequency of 100 Hz and a duration
of 10 seconds.
Figure C.1: The verification test for the FFT program.
The verification of the FFT program is achieved by comparing the peak frequencies
found in the frequency plots from the FFT program (data acquired from the accelerometer
at ShL1) with the induced vibration frequency by the rubber strip. With the given belt
velocity, the induced vibration frequency f r ot can be calculated as:
v
f r ot = = 5.3 Hz (C.1)
πd 0
in which v is the belt velocity, d0 is the outer diameter of the shell (108 mm in this case).
In addition, the harmonics of the induced vibration frequency less than 50 Hz are as
follows: 10.6 Hz, 15.9 Hz, 21.2 Hz, 26.5 Hz, 31.8 Hz, 37.1 Hz, 42.4 Hz, 47.7 Hz.
Figure C.2 shows the energy spectra of the vibration in the frequency domain after
applying the FFT program. Figure C.2 (a) is the spectrum of the horizontal vibration,
while (b) is the spectrum of the vertical vibration. From the energy spectra, it can be
clearly observed that high peaks of energy is located at the induced vibration frequency
(5.3 Hz) and its harmonics.
In addition, it can be seen that the energy at 37.1 Hz in Figure C.3 (a) is much higher
than the energy at the induced vibration frequency of 5.3 Hz. To clarify the reason, the
eigenfrequency of the roll and the idler frame as an aggregate structure is explored. Fig-
ure C.3 (a) and (b) show the frequency response of the roll in the horizontal direction
from the accelerometer at ShL2 after a shock hit in the horizontal and vertical direction
respectively. While Figure C.3 (c) is a typical energy plot of the vibration in the horizontal
direction at the shaft end ShL2 during the defect roll tests with a belt velocity of 1.8 m/s.
From Figure C.3 (a) and (b), the eigenfrequency of the aggregate structure is considered
A PPENDIX 161
0.025 0.025
0.02 0.02
Energy (g 2 )
Energy (g 2 )
0.015 0.015
0.01 0.01
0.005 0.005
0 0
0 10 20 30 40 50 0 10 20 30 40 50
Frequency (Hz) Frequency (Hz)
(a) (b)
Figure C.2: Energy spectra of the vibration in frequency domain, a) spectrum of
the horizontal (X) vibration, and b) spectrum of the vertical (Y) vibration.
to be 39.2 Hz as shown the peaks in the two plots. This explains why the energy at 37.1
Hz is even higher than the energy at 5.3 Hz in Figure C.3 (a), as well as the peak at 37 Hz
in Figure B.3 (c), which are caused by the resonance. The difference between the 37 Hz
and 39 Hz can be attributed to the influence of the running conveyor belt.
× 10 -3 × 10 -3 × 10 -3
5 5 5
4 4 4
Energy (g 2)
Energy (g2 )
Energy (g2 )
3 3 3
2 2 2
1 1 1
0 0 0
10 20 30 40 50 10 20 30 40 50 10 20 30 40 50
(a) (b) (c)
Figure C.3: Energy spectra of the vibration in frequency domain, a) spectrum of
the vibration in the horizontal direction at the shaft end ShL2 after a shock hit on
the middle of the roll in the horizontal direction, b) spectrum of the vibration in the
horizontal direction at the shaft end ShL2 after a shock hit on the middle of the roll
in the vertical direction, and c) typical spectrum of the vibration in the horizontal
direction at the shaft end ShL2 during defect roll tests while the roll without the
rubber strip.
162 A PPENDIX
Appendix D: The emissivity test

To investigate the influence of the emissivity of the shaft end on the measurements of
different sensors, tests are conducted to measure the temperature of purposely heated
shaft ends (Figure D.1). The shaft is heated up using a heat gun (model Steinel HL
1800E) for 120 minutes to reach a stable temperature. There are three treatments of the
shaft ends, the first one is untreated which is commonly seen polished shaft end in new
idler rolls, the second one is painted with black heat resistant matte finish paint, the third
one is immersed into salty water (5 percent salt) for five days and is then exposed in air
for another five days to grow rust on the surface.
Figure D.1: Test setup. The top picture shows the overview of the test setup, the
lower left picture shows the treatment of the shaft ends, and the lower right picture
shows the heat gun used in the tests.
Figure D.2 illustrates the temperature evolutions of the painted, polished and rusted
shaft ends which are derived from the measurements of the infrared sensor, the infrared
camera, and the thermocouple. It can be seen that all shaft ends present a regressive
pattern of temperature evolution. Furthermore, for the infrared sensor, the measured tem-
perature of the painted shaft end is the highest, while the temperature of the polished shaft
end is the lowest. The reason can be attributed to the emissivity. The painted shaft end has
the highest emissivity (around 1) while the polished shaft end has the lowest emissivity
(about 0.1 to 0.35). The rusted shaft end is considered to an emissivity between 0.7 and
0.9 (Raytek Corporation, 1999). The emissivity factor for the applied infrared sensor is
fixed as 0.9. Therefore, the measurements of the polished shaft end have big error.
For the infrared camera, the measurements of the painted shaft end have very good
results. On the other hand, the measurements of the polished shaft end overestimate the
temperature even though the emissivity factor is set as 0.3. During the experiments, it is
recognized that a challenge exists to find a proper emissivity factor for the measurements
of the infrared camera because the emissivity factor is not only surface finish dependent
A PPENDIX 163
100
90
80
70
Temperature (°C)
60
50
40 Painted__IRCamera
Painted__TC
Painted__IRSensor
30 Polished__IRCamera
Polished__TC
Polished__IRSensor
20 Rusted__IRCamera
Rusted__TC
Rusted__IRSensor
10
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120
Time (min)
Appendix D.2: The temperature evolution of the painted, polished and rusted shaft
ends under heating for 120 minutes, derived from the measurements of the infrared
sensor (IRSensor), the infrared camera (IRCamera), and the thermocouple (TC).
but temperature dependent.

For the thermocouple, the measured temperature of the painted and polished shaft
ends is considered quite good while that of the rusted shaft end is lower than the true
value. The reason may be attributed to the fact that the thermocouple cannot contact the
surface tightly due to the rust on the surface.
Table D.1: Summary of applicability of temperature sensors.

Painted shaft end Polished shaft end Rusted shaft end
thermocouple √ √
infrared sensor √ √
infrared camera √ √ √

Table D.1 summarizes the applicability of the three types of temperature sensors for
different shaft ends. It can be seen that the three sensors are all applicable to measure the
painted shaft end.

G LOSSARY

List
of symbols and notations.
a distance between a roll bearing and a shaft bracket [m]
a1 , a2 , a3 factors used to calculate the lifetime of bearings
b loaded belt length [m]
c distance between two roll bearings [m]
d diameter of the shaft of an idler roll [m]
d0 diameter of the shell of an idler roll [m]
f bi inner race defect frequency [Hz]
f bo outer race defect frequency [Hz]
fd dynamic factor [-]
f er rolling element defect frequency [Hz]
f rot rotating frequency of bearing [Hz]
g acceleration of gravity [ m/s 2 ]
l idler spacing [m]
l1 length of bulk material along the wing belt section [m]
lM length of the shell of the center roll [m]
lsag belt sag [m]
m belt width [m]
mbelt
' mass of belt per unit length [kg/m]
mbulk
'
mass of bulk material per unit length [kg/m]
n rotational speed of a bearing [rmp]
p principle stress [ N/m 2 ]
q load on the shell of an idler roll [N/m]
qa active principle stress [ N/m 2 ]
r radii of Mohr circles [ N/m 2 ]
s thickness of the shell of an idler roll [m]
v belt velocity [m/s]
y shell , yshaft angular deflections of the shell and shaft [-]
z depth of bulk material element from surface [m]

165

166 G LOSSARY
theoretical area of the filling cross section according to CEMA and DIN
As , Ath
22101 [ m 2 ]
BD diameter of bearing rolling element [m]
C dynamic load rating of bearings [N]
E Young’s modulus [GPa]
Fbulk bulk load [N]
FG ,belt , FG ,cbelt weight of wing belt section and center belt section [N]
Fmax,a , Fmax, p maximum active and passive thrust force on a retaining structure [N]
FNG ,bulk , a , FNG ,bulk , p normal forces on the belt in active and passive stress states [N]
FNA ,bulk , a , FNA ,bulk , p shear forces on the belt in active and passive stress states [N]
FNG , FNG
'
radial force on an idler roll [N]
FNG ,c radial force on the centre roll [N]
FNG , w radial force on the wing belt section [N]
FNA , w axial force on the wing belt section [N]
Iy moment of inertia with respect to y-axis [ m 4 ]
L achieved service time of bearings [hour]
L10 rating lifetime of a population of bearings [hour]
Ka , K p coefficients in active and passive stress states [-]
Ks belt sag ratio [-]
K1 lump adjustment factor [-]
H height of a soil mass [m]
P equivalent load on a bearing [N]
PD diameter of the center of bearing cage [m]
Pdesign load on roll bearings corresponding to design capacity of a conveyor [N]
Pi load on roll bearings corresponding to ith level of throughput [N]
Pm load on roll bearings corresponding to design capacity of a conveyor [N]
PNA,L1 axial force on the wing roll [N]
PNG ,L1 , PNG ,L 2 radial forces on the wing roll bearings [N]
PNG ,c radial force on the center roll bearing [N]
Qi ith level of throughput [t/h]
Qdesign design capacity of a belt conveyor [t/h]
R the reliability [-]
T belt tension [N]
Ti operational time of the conveyor corresponding to ith level of throughput
[hour]
X RMS RMS level [g]
 trough angle of the idler configuration or the retaining wall [°]
1 ,  2 parameters
 conveyor surcharge angle of bulk material or surface slope angle of soil
[°]
 aggregation factor [-]
G LOSSARY 167
1 aggregation factor [-]

 strength mobilized on the stress discontinuity [-]
 , o rotations of the major principal stress [°]
a , p rotations of major principal stresses in active and passive stress states [°]
 density of bulk material [ kg/m3 ]
 ,  b,a normal stress on bulk element [ N/m 2 ]
 OC 1 ,  OC 2 average effective stresses in active stress state [ N/m 2 ]
 w,a ,  w, p normal stresses in active and passive stress states in zone 2 [ N/m 2 ]
 shear stress on bulk element [ N/m 2 ]
 w,a shear stress in active stress state in zone 2 [ N/m 2 ]
 angle between the horizon and the tangent to the belt [°]
B idler roll service factor [-]
 Betr factor [-]
 filling effective filling ratio [-]
i internal friction angle of bulk material [°]

St Factor [-]
w wall friction angle between the belt and bulk material [°]

 angle of slope [°]
a ,crit ,  p ,crit
critical inclination angle for active and passive failure planes [°]
 idler roll service factor [-]
 ,  ,  ,  ,  angles in Mohr circle [-]
1 2 3 4
 , 1 error [-]

List
of abbreviations.
CBS center belt section
CEMA Conveyor Equipment Manufacturers Association
FFT fast Fourier transform
KH model the model developed by Krause and Hettler (1974)
SD model the model developed in this research
WBS wing belt section
LWBS left wing belt section
RWBS right wing belt section

S UMMARY
Belt conveyor systems are widely utilized for the continuous transport of bulk materials
over varying distances. The reliability of belt conveyor systems is of major concern for
the operators. The financial loss due to the downtime of belt conveyor systems can be very
high, considering the loss of revenue from material conveying and shutdowns of subse-
quent material processing facilities. The reliability of a belt conveyor can be considered
as an integrated reliability of its main components, including a belt, pulleys, a drive unit,
and idler rolls etc.
This thesis focuses on how to improve the reliability of belt conveyor systems with
respect to idler rolls. The performance of idler rolls has a large impact on the reliable
operation of belt conveyor systems. The malfunction of idler rolls may lead to extra
energy consumption and noise pollution. More seriously, idler roll failures can induce
serious damages to conveyor belts, which builds up downtime and maintenance cost of
belt conveyor systems.
In order to tackle the problem, this research aims to improve the predictability of idler
roll failures. The prediction of idler roll failures will enable the implementation of pre-
dictive maintenance for idler rolls, which can largely prevent idler rolls from running into
catastrophic failures. Theoretical and experimental research are conducted to improve the
predictability of idler roll bearing failures.
Theoretical approaches to predict the reliability of bearings are available. To apply
such an approach, it is essential to determine the load on roll bearings accurately. With a
consideration that an adequate method to calculate the load on idler roll bearings due to
conveyed bulk material and the belt is still missing, this research develops an analytical
approach for this purpose. Within the approach, a new lower bound model for the cal-
culation of the load on a conveyor belt due to bulk materials is developed and verified.
By aggregating the developed lower bound model with a widely recognized upper bound
model, the analytical approach is considered to determine the load on idler roll bearings
more accurately.
Experimental study is also conducted to advance the measurement of the load on a
conveyor belt due to bulk materials by using a tactile pressure sensor. Compared to con-
ventional load cells or strain gauges, tactile pressure sensors enable direct measurements
of the pressure distribution on a conveyor belt, which is important for the verification of
theoretical models and in-depth understanding of the interaction between bulk materials
and a belt. From the experimental study, it is recognized that the tactile pressure sen-
sor can provide qualitative insight into the bulk load distribution for scientific purpose.
169
170 S UMMARY
However, it is still a challenge to provide very accurate measurement of the pressure on a

conveyor belt in running state.
In addition, experimental study is carried out to investigate how to detect idler roll
failures by applying condition monitoring techniques. For this purpose, a test rig based
on a full scale belt conveyor is designed. Different types of defects and damages are in-
duced to idler rolls to simulate different levels of failure. A variety of sensors, including
temperature sensors, acoustic sensors and accelerometers are applied during the experi-
ments to monitor the idler rolls. It is found that it is possible to detect idler roll failures
by monitoring parameters such as the temperature, vibration and acoustic emission with
certain features.
With a consideration of limitations of the theoretical approach and the condition mon-
itoring techniques, an integrated maintenance decision making framework which com-
bines the two approaches is also proposed in this research. The framework incorporates
the failure rates of idler rolls derived from both the theoretical approach and condition
monitoring data. In this way, a more accurate decision making algorithm is introduced
into predictive maintenance for idler rolls.
In summary, the predictability of idler roll failures is largely enhanced through this
research.
S AMENVATTING
Bandtransporteurs worden veel gebruikt in het continue transport van bulkgoed. Het be-
trouwbaar functioneren van een bandtransportsysteem is van groot belang voor de gebrui-
ker. De financiële gevolgen van het uitvallen van een transportsysteem kunnen erg groot
zijn door het verlies van inkomsten uit het transport en de kosten van het uitvallen van
faciliteiten die door op het transportsysteem zijn aangesloten. De betrouwbaarheid van
een bandtransportsysteem kan worden beschouwd als de overall betrouwbaarheid van de
onderdelen, zoals de band, de trommels, de aandrijving, de rollen, enz.
Doel van dit onderzoek is het verhogen van de betrouwbaarheid van bandtransport-
systemen, met de nadruk op de draagrollen. Het functioneren van de rollen heeft grote
invloed op het betrouwbaar functioneren van het gehele systeem. Defecten aan de rollen
kunnen een verhoogd energiegebruik of een verhoogde geluidsproductie tot gevolg heb-
ben. In ernstige gevallen kan er schade ontstaan aan de band zelf, en daardoor stilstand
van de band en reparatiekosten.
Dit onderzoek is gericht op een verbetering van de voorspelbaarheid van de defecten
aan draagrollen. Door een betere voorspelling van de defecten aan rollen kan voorspel-
lend preventief onderhoud aan de rollen worden gerealiseerd. Fatale fouten aan de rollen
kunnen daarmee worden voorkomen en het gehele bandtransportsysteem kan betrouw-
baar blijven functioneren. Er is theoretisch en experimenteel onderzoek uitgevoerd ter
verbetering van de voorspelbaarheid van fouten aan de lagers van de rollen.
Er zijn theoretische modellen beschikbaar voor de voorspelling van de resterende ge-
bruiksduur van lagers. Voor het toepassen van die modellen is het nodig om de belasting
van de rol nauwkeurig te bepalen. Omdat er een geschikte methode ontbrak voor de bere-
kening van de belasting van de lagers door het getransporteerde materiaal en de band, is in
dit onderzoek hiervoor een analytische methode ontwikkeld. Als onderdeel van deze me-
thode is een nieuw model voor de berekening van een ondergrens van de belasting van de
transportband ten gevolge van het getransporteerde materiaal ontwikkeld en geverifieerd.
Door combinatie van het ontwikkelde model voor de berekening van een ondergrens met
een algemeen erkend model voor de berekening van de bovengrens kan de belasting op
de lagers nauwkeurig worden bepaald.
Er is experimenteel onderzoek gedaan ter verbetering van de bepaling van de belas-
ting van de transportband ten gevolge van het getransporteerde materiaal met behulp van
druksensoren. Vergeleken met conventionele load cells of rekstrookjes, is het met druk-
sensoren mogelijk om direkte metingen te doen aan de drukverdeling op de band. Dit
is belangrijk voor de verificatie van theoretische modellen en voor een goed begrip van
171
172 S AMENVATTING
de interactie tussen het getransporteerde materiaal en de band. Uit het experimentele on-
derzoek blijkt dat de druksensoren een goed inzicht kunnen geven voor het theoretisch
onderzoek naar de belasting van de band. Maar het blijft een uitdaging om nauwkeurige
metingen te doen aan de belasting van een bewegende band.
Er is tevens experimenteel onderzoek gedaan hoe defecten aan rollen kunnen worden
gesignaleerd met behulp van condition monitoring technieken. Hiervoor is een testopstel-
ling op ware grootte gemaakt. Er zijn aan de rollen verschillende soorten beschadigingen
aangebracht voor het nabootsen van zowel aanloopdefecten als fatale defecten. Bij het
experiment zijn verschillende soorten sensoren, zoals tempertuursensoren, akoestische
sensoren en versnellingsmeters, gebruikt om metingen aan de rollen te doen. Het blijkt
mogelijk om defecten aan rollen te signaleren door het meten van grootheden zoals de
temperatuur, trillingen en geproduceerd geluid.
Omdat zowel de theoretische benadering als de condition monitoring technieken be-
perkingen hebben, wordt in dit onderzoek een geintegreerd onderhoudskader voorgesteld
waarin de beide benaderingen worden gecombineerd. In deze geintegreerde benadering
worden de faalsnelheden van de rollen uit de theoretische benadering gecombineerd met
de gegevens van de condition monitoring. Hiermee wordt een nauwkeuriger beslissings-
methode geïntroduceerd voor het voorspellend preventief onderhoud van de rollen.
Samenvattend: de voorspelbaarheid van defecten aan de rollen is door dit onderzoek
belangrijk verbeterd.
C URRICULUM V ITAE
Xiangwei L IU
Xiangwei Liu was born on August 2nd, 1985 in Rizhao, P.R. China. In 2008 he re-
ceived his BSc degree in Mechanical Engineering at Wuhan University of Technology,
Wuhan, P.R. China. From 2008 to 2010, he worked at Wuhan University of Technology
as a teacher. In 2012, he obtained his MSc degree in Mechanical Engineering at Wuhan
University of Technology.
In 2012 Xiangwei started his Ph.D. at Section of Transport Engineering & Logistics at
Delft University of Technology, the Netherlands. His research project is about intelligent
monitoring, diagnosis and maintenance of large-scale material conveying systems. In this
project he focused on belt conveyor systems and particularly idler rolls. His research in-
terest includes belt conveyor technology, bulk material modeling and engineering.
Publications
1. X. Liu, Y. Pang, and G. Lodewijks. Theoretical and experimental determination
of the pressure distribution on a loaded conveyor belt. Measurement, 77:307–316,
2016. doi: 10.1016/j.measurement.2015.08.041.
2. X. Liu, Y. Pang, and G. Lodewijks. A stress discontinuity approach to model the

stress profile on a loaded conveyor belt. Powder Technology, 273:102–110, 2015.
doi: 10. 1016/j.powtec.2014.12.040.
3. X. Liu, Y. Pang, G. Lodewijks, C.A. Wheeler, and B. Beh. Quantification of the

pressure distribu-tion on a loaded conveyor belt using a tactile pressure sensor. In
Proceedings of the XXI International Conference on Material Handling, Construc-
tions and Logistics (MHCL), Vienna, Austria, 2015.
4. X. Liu, Y. Pang, G. Lodewijks, C.A. Wheeler, and B. Beh. Assessment of the

dynamic pressure measurement on a loaded conveyor belt using a tactile pressure
sensor. In Proceedings of the XXI International Conference on Material Handling,
Constructions and Logistics (MHCL), Vienna, Austria, 2015.
173
174 C URRICULUM V ITAE
5. X. Liu, G. Lodewijks, and Y. Pang. Intelligent maintenance of large-scale belt

conveyor idler rolls: State-of-the-art and opportunities. In Proceedings of the 1st
Symposium on Automated Systems and Technologies, pages 95–103, Hannover,
Germany, 2014.
6. X. Liu, Y. Pang, and G. Lodewijks. A new analytical model of load calculation
for trough idler rolls stress discontinuity model for conveyor idler roll load calcu-
lation. In Proceedings of the MHEA 2014 Bulk Conference, North Lincolnshire,
UK, 2014.
175
TRAIL Thesis Series
The following list contains the most recent dissertations in the TRAIL Thesis Series. For a
complete overview of more than 150 titles see the TRAIL website: www.rsTRAIL.nl.
The TRAIL Thesis Series is a series of the Netherlands TRAIL Research School on transport,
infrastructure and logistics.
Liu, X., Prediction of Belt Conveyor Idler Performance, T2016/14, September 2016, TRAIL
Thesis Series, the Netherlands
Gaast, J.P. van der, Stochastic Models for Order Picking Systems, T2016/13, September 2016,
TRAIL Thesis Series, the Netherlands
Wagenaar, J.C., Practice Oriented Algorithmic Disruption Management in Passenger

Railways, T2016/12, September 2016, TRAIL Thesis Series, the Netherlands
Psarra, I., A Bounded Rationality Model of Short and Long-Term Dynamics of Activity-Travel
Behavior, T2016/11, June 2016, TRAIL Thesis Series, the Netherlands
Ma, Y., The Use of Advanced Transportation Monitoring Data for Official Statistics,
T2016/10, June 2016, TRAIL Thesis Series, the Netherlands
Li, L., Coordinated Model Predictive Control of Synchromodal Freight Transport Systems,
T2016/9, June 2016, TRAIL Thesis Series, the Netherlands
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Liu, S., Modeling, Robust and Distributed Model Predictive Control for Freeway Networks,
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Services, T2016/5, May 2016, TRAIL Thesis Series, the Netherlands
Rasouli, S, Uncertainty in Modeling Activity-Travel Demand in Complex Urban Systems,

T2016/4, March 2016, TRAIL Thesis Series, the Netherlands
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Series, the Netherlands
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and Lane, T2015/9, May 2015, TRAIL Thesis Series, the Netherlands
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System: Policy analysis, transport projections, shipping scenarios, and a new perspective on
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Delft University of Technology

Prediction of belt conveyor idler performance

This work is downloaded from Delft University of Technology.

ter verkrijging van de graad van doctor

Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering,

Composition of the doctoral committee:

TRAIL Thesis Series T2016/14, the Netherlands TRAIL Research School

Copyright © 2016 by Xiangwei Liu

The pursuit of my doctorate at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands during

3.5 Comparisons with the KH model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

productivity of transportation of bulk materials. On contrary, breakdowns of belt conveyor

Figure 1.3: Anatomy of an idler roll, derived from CKIT (2012).

of all components. Unplanned downtime of a belt conveyor system is generally caused

1.1 Aim of the research

How to improve the reliability of belt conveyor systems?

1. How to predict idler roll failures?

3. How to detect idler roll failures?

4. Is it possible to achieve integrated decision making on idler maintenance?

1.2 Research methodology

1.3 Outline of the thesis

Basics of conveyor reliability

Theoretical calculation of the

Measurement of the pressure Chapter 5

Integration of two approaches

Conclusions and recommenda-

Figure 1.5: Thesis outline.

The reliable performance of belt conveyors is critical to ensure uninterrupted transport of

2.1 Reliability of belt conveyors

where R i is the reliability of the i th component.

2.2 Belt conveyor components

2.2.1 The belt

Figure 2.2: X-ray image of damaged splice of a belt, figure courtesy of

Condition monitoring of conveyor belts can also be achieved by applying embedded

2.2.2 The pulleys

2.2.3 The drive unit

Besides vibration, measurements of other electromechanical parameters (i.e. acoustic

2.2.4 The idlers

Conventionally, idler rolls are inspected by maintenance personnel in human sensory

2.3 Idler selection

2.3.1 Idler selection criteria

2.3.2 Idler selection procedures

Figure 2.5: Theoretical cross section of bulk material in case of horizontal

Trough angle (°) Load factor (-)

The selection of the subcomponents in an idler is normally based on the calculated

2.4 Idler roll failure analysis

the conveyor belt (Barry, 2014).

2.5 Prediction of idler roll failures

R B = exp −0.1053(L/L 10 )10/9

Actual throughput (t/h)

Bearing force correponding to actual throughput (N)

Figure 2.11: Record of actual throughputs of a belt conveyor and corresponding

3.1 Derivation of the roll load

Transverse Belt Movement Pas Pas

procedures Thetocyclic transverse

convenience of changing model parameters for different belt conveyors.

3.2 Related earth pressure theories

By constructing equations of forces perpendicular and parallel to the active failure

3.2.2 Rankine’s earth pressure theory ‡

σds = pdx cos ω + q a dy sin ω (3.13)