Chain and flight conveyors

Abstract

In addition to the very familiar belt conveyor and the scarcely less familiar bucket elevator, there are a number of alternative mechanical techniques that are commonly used to carry, drag or scrape bulk solids from one location to another. It is not particularly easy to place these various techniques into distinct categories, and the division of this part of the book into separate chapters and sections, while not being entirely arbitrary, should be regarded as a matter of convenience rather than as a serious attempt at classification of bulk handling systems. In some cases there is an almost continuous gradation of design from one type of conveyor to another, so that the placing of an artificial ‘boundary’ between the two types becomes somewhat subjective. For example, if an apron conveyor is fitted with deep pans and operated on a steep incline it becomes a bucket elevator, and if a bucket elevator is fitted with shallow bottomless buckets and enclosed in a casing it becomes an en-masse conveyor.