Due to their speed, efficiency and ease-of-use, conveyor belts have revolutionized the production of materials across all industries.
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A conveyor belt consists of two necessary parts — two motorized pulleys and a thick, durable conveyor material. All conveyor belts are created to serve similar purposes. However, the design and makeup of each belt determine what product, weight, speed and industry the belt is best suited for.
There are five categories of material that make up most conveyor belts in use today. Those materials are:
Each type of conveyor belt material comes with its own set of applications and benefits.
It’s hard to imagine a time before conveyor belts were available to make production and transportation more efficient. Let’s take a look at where conveyor belts come from, how they have changed and what the future of conveyor belts may look like.
Although unconfirmed, many believe the first conveyor belt showed up around the late 1700s to early 1800s. The earliest conveyor belts were constructed with wood and leather and were operated by hand. Back then, belts were used predominantly in agricultural settings to move products more easily. The Industrial Revolution brought with it steam-powered conveyor belts, taking much of the manual labor out of belt operation.
After Charles Goodyear patented vulcanized rubber in 1844, conveyor belts saw another significant shift in production ability. Vulcanized rubber was more durable and heat resistant, making it ideal. Steel belts came along in 1902, and underground conveyor belts followed shortly after that in 1905.
Once Henry Ford famously used a conveyor belt system in his assembly line in 1913, belts began gaining a lot more attention. Changes and developments came in spades. By 1970, the first plastic conveyor belt had arrived.
Conveyor belts are being constantly tweaked, refined and redesigned in the present day. As technology becomes smarter, the production field continues to find new ways to make old methods work even better. Conveyor belts are no exception. Many industries have implemented conveyor belts equipped with smart technology, allowing the belt to “talk” to other parts of the production line. Intelligent conveyor belts are equipped with the ability to send alerts during a malfunction or break down, vary its speed at pre-programmed times and start and stop automatically.
Eco-friendly conveyor belts — such as those powered through solar energy or crafted from recycled material — have also seen a rise in recent years.
Although smart technology and other modern advancements will almost certainly continue to play a large part in the evolution of conveyor belts, traditional conveyor belts will always have a place in production and transportation. Not every industry has the need — or budget — to implement computerized conveyor belt technology into their already efficient production line.
Although there are countless ways to combine belt materials into custom hybrids to suit specific industry needs, there are five basic materials that make up most of today’s conveyor belts.
Thermoplastic conveyor belts are made with a thermoplastic polymer. Because thermoplastic conveyor belts are flexible and constructed with hygiene in mind, they are ideal for several industries, including food handling, textile production and heavy-duty metal transfers. Thermoplastic belts are also lightweight. According to The National Industrial Belting Association, to be defined as a lightweight conveyor belt, it must have a working tension of fewer than 160 pounds per inch of width.
The two most common types of thermoplastic conveyor belts are polyurethane (PU) belts and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) belts.
2. Metal
Metal conveyor belts are strong and very durable, making them ideal for almost every industry — especially industries that deal with raw products, like food service or unpackaged goods. In addition to their durability, these belts are flat and easy to work on. They are also rigid, meaning you do not have to worry about the belt changing shape over time. However, for this same reason, they are not as easy to shape or bend, so possible conveyor paths are limited.
Metal conveyor belts are usually made from either aluminum or shaped stainless or carbon steel.
3. Rubber
If you have spent much time in an airport, you have probably seen rubber conveyor belts in action. They are popular in settings like this, as well as in mining. Rubber conveyor belt material is praised for its flexibility as well as its smooth and seamless design. They are also among the most affordable conveyor belt options.
However, their tolerance to heat and wear-and-tear are much lower than other conveyor belt materials. They are also more challenging to keep clean.
4. Fabric
Fabric conveyor belts are usually medium-impact and cost-effective. They are often used to transport gravel, sand or other bulk materials. Most grocery stores use fabric-based conveyor belts in their check-out lines.
Many early models of conveyor belts were made of leather due to its durability and accessibility. Leather is also shock-resistant and has a good grip.
Today, leather is often used as one part of a hybrid or customized conveyor belt.
SEMCOR has been distributing high-quality industrial products — including conveyor belts — since 1907. Our staff is equipped to help you find the best conveyor belt to fit your needs and budget. SEMCOR also has a custom fabrication option, where our team of experts works with you to create a unit that matches your specifications.
In an emergency, SEMCOR has service personnel available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. We maintain close relationships with each of our suppliers, ensuring the highest level of technical support available.
Our service area includes Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Iowa, Kansas and Missouri. Contact us today to request a quote or learn more about what SEMCOR can do for your business.
The kind of carcass a rubber conveyor belt possesses is essential to its optimum operation.
The role of a carcass is to withstand the forces from the inside and outside of the rubber conveyor belt. It also improves the strength of the rubber belt while limiting its deformation.
Carcass largely determines the performance, service life and use value of rubber conveyor belts. Carcasses are made of textile fiber (including natural fiber and chemical fiber), steel cord, glass fiber, etc. Below are characteristics of common types.
Cotton Canvas
Cotton canvas mainly includes polyester/cotton, acrylic cotton, pure cotton. Cotton fiber has the characteristics of good adhesion to rubber. The conveyor belt made of cotton canvas has the advantages of good flexibility, good trough ability, and low price.
It is mainly suitable for medium and short-distance transportation of small lump and powder materials (wood chips, rice, cement and ore, etc.).
The disadvantages of cotton canvas are low breaking strength, easy corrosion, and short fatigue life.
Nylon Canvas
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Nylon canvas warp and weft are both nylon fibers. With the following advantages
● wear resistance
● fatigue resistance
● high strength.
Nylon canvas can be either 'nylon 6' or 'nylon 66' canvas. Nylon 66 has the same physical properties as nylon 6, but it has higher melting point and better heat resistance.
Therefore, nylon 66 canvas is used in high-performance, high-quality conveyor belts and heat-resistant conveyor belts. Nylon 6 on the other hand is cheap and helps reduce the production cost of conveyor belts.
Conveyor belts made of nylon canvas have the following advantages;
● thin body
● high strength
● impact resistance
● good trough-ability
● good bonding strength
● excellent flexing performance
● long service life
However, the low modulus of nylon fiber will cause the conveyor belt to become longer and longer. For this reason, nylon canvas is mostly used in conveyor belts with moderate transportation distance, large safety factor and good elasticity.
Polyester Canvas
Polyester canvas can either be simply polyester canvas or polyester/nylon canvas. Polyester fiber has the characteristics of high modulus and low shrinkage. Polyester canvas has the following advantages
● low elongation
● good heat resistance
● low price
Conveyor belts made of just polyester canvas have the advantages of high belt modulus, low elongation, fatigue resistance, impact resistance and good trough-ability. Therefore, polyester canvas is mainly used for long conveying distances, large loads, and chemical resistance.
Polyester/nylon canvas is made of high modulus, low shrinkage polyester (like the warp yarn), and nylon 66 (like the weft yarn). Therefore, the canvas has the advantages of small warp elongation and good weft trough-ability. This is why it is mostly the main canvas used in the conveyor belt.
Aramid
Using Aramid as the carcass can
● extend the distance of a single machine,
● reduce the thickness of the belt body and
● Reduce the weight of the conveyor belt itself.
Aramid has obvious advantages as a conveyor belt carcass, especially when it is used on ultra-high-strength fabric conveyor belts.
It has a breaking strength greater than 1800N. Which sometimes is as high as 4000N.
Also, the elongation of the aramid conveyor belt can be lower than 0.5%. Which can not only reduce the power consumption of the conveyor itself, but also enhance the stability of the conveyor belt operation.
In the case of equal quality, Aramd has the following properties;
● The strength is about 7 times that of steel cord
● Its modulus is twice that of steel cord. Making it have the reputation of “synthetic steel cord”.
Aramid is great as it reduces the workload of maintenance and facilitate the handling, installation and disassembly of the conveyor belt.
Contact us to discuss your requirements of Conveyor Belt Fabric. Our experienced sales team can help you identify the options that best suit your needs.