How to Adjust the Belt Deviation of a Belt Conveyor?

First, it is necessary to understand the causes of belt deviation and then take targeted measures. Common causes of belt deviation are as follows:

1.Belt deviation caused by the misalignment of the centers of the head, tail, and intermediate frames.
This situation is usually caused by installation. Since the centers of these three parts are not on the same straight line, the longitudinal centerline of the belt is not perpendicular to the axis of the drum, resulting in belt deviation during the operation of the belt conveyor.

2.Belt deviation at the drum caused by the incorrect installation position of the drum. A belt conveyor has multiple drums. The installation positions of all drums must be perpendicular to the centerline of the belt and parallel to the horizontal plane. If the installation level of the drum is insufficient, there is axial movement of the drum, or one end of the drum is in front and the other is behind, making the installation position of the drum not perpendicular to the longitudinal centerline of the belt, or the axis of the drum not parallel to the horizontal plane, then the resultant force of the external forces on the belt in the width direction of the belt is not zero, and the belt will deviate in the direction of the resultant force.

3.Belt deviation in the middle of the conveyor belt caused by an incorrect conveyor belt joint. The commonly used belt joints include mechanical joints and vulcanized joints. No matter which method is used, the joint is required to be flat. If the joint is incorrect, the tension on both sides of the belt will be inconsistent, resulting in deviation during operation. The deviation caused by an incorrect belt joint occurs wherever the belt joint rotates.

4.Belt deviation caused by an incorrect idler frame or loose bolts fixing the idler frame.
When installing a belt conveyor, the symmetry of the centerline of the idler set to the centerline of the conveyor frame should not be greater than 3.0mm, and the upper surface of the idlers should be on the same horizontal plane or inclined plane. If the installation error of the idler set is too large or the fastening bolts become loose, it will cause belt deviation.

5.Belt deviation caused by conveyor belt damage.
The conveyor belt is prone to damage during operation. When the damage degrees on both sides of the centerline of the conveyor belt are different, the stretching ratios on both sides often change. When the stretching ratios on both sides differ greatly, resulting in inconsistent elongation of the belt on both sides, it is likely to cause belt deviation.

6.Belt deviation caused by the material unloading point not being in the middle of the conveyor belt. When the material unloading point is not in the middle of the belt, due to uneven loading, the force on the belt is unevenly distributed along both sides of the longitudinal centerline. When the difference between the two is large, it will directly lead to belt deviation during operation. If the conveyor belt does not deviate when it is empty but always deviates to one side when it is loaded, it indicates that the conveyor belt has uneven loading. At this time, the position of the receiving hopper or the conveyor should be adjusted to make the conveyor belt evenly loaded to prevent deviation.

7.Belt deviation caused by material dropping impact.
When materials fall onto the belt, due to the gravity and inertia of the materials, an impact is generated on the belt, which may cause belt deviation.

8.Belt deviation caused by material accumulation on drums and idlers. For materials with certain viscosity such as iron powder, after scattering, they adhere unevenly to idlers and drums, making the local parts of the drums or idlers uneven. Due to uneven tension, deviation occurs. After deviation, the material scattering phenomenon becomes more serious, creating a vicious cycle. This kind of fault is more likely to occur in humid weather and port operations. Therefore, the belt cleaner should be ensured to work properly.

9.Belt deviation caused by inaccurate installation angle of idlers. If the error between the centerline of the carrying belt conveyor and the installation position of the idlers is large, the belt will be subjected to a lateral force during operation, causing the belt to deviate to one side in the carrying section. If the installation positions of the reversing drum and the idler set are incorrect, then, whether in the return section or the carrying section, the further forward the belt runs, the lighter the deviation will be, and it will gradually return to the centerline of the frame. However, if the driving drum is inclined, the deviation phenomenon will become more and more serious.

10.Belt deviation caused by unqualified belt quality.
If the density of the belt core is uneven, the force along the width direction of the belt is uneven. Under the action of tension, the elongation of the belt during operation is inconsistent, resulting in belt deviation. If the uneven density of the belt is caused by a system failure of the production equipment and has a certain regularity, the direction of deviation will also show a certain regularity.

11.Belt deviation caused by installation and debugging errors of the belt conveyor tensioning device.
Due to reasons such as unskilled operation, lack of responsibility, and lax acceptance during the installation and debugging process, the belt tensioning device does not work properly. The different tension levels on both sides of the belt and uneven force cause belt deviation.

12.Belt deviation caused by aging and deformation due to long - term use. After the belt has been used for a cycle, it will become loose, resulting in uneven distribution of internal stress in the belt, thus increasing the chance of belt deviation.

13.Belt deviation caused by frame inclination.
If the centerline of the frame is skewed or the left and right sides of the frame are horizontally inclined, the belt may be subjected to a certain lateral tension, pulling the belt to one side.

14.Belt deviation caused by severe equipment vibration.
During the operation of the belt, the violent vibration of the belt conveyor equipment can also lead to belt deviation, especially the radial runout of the idlers, which causes the most obvious belt deviation.

15.Belt deviation caused by too small a curvature radius of the concave - section belt conveyor.
For a belt conveyor designed with a concave section, if the curvature radius of the concave section is too small, when starting without materials on the belt, the belt will bounce up in the concave - section area. In windy weather, the belt may also be blown off - track.