BELTS, PULLEYS & CHAINS FEATURE Recycling the benefits of PU belts
A new production machine at Nitta’s facility is enabling the company to expand its line of thermoplastic polyurethane (PU) conveyor belts
H
igh demands are placed on the lifespan of conveyor belts used in
recycling applications. These belts must not only be strong, wear-resistant and durable, but they need to be suitable for optical and magnetic scanning devices. Meeting the demands, Nitta has
expanded its line of thermoplastic polyurethane (PU) conveyor belts – a material which is exceptionally resistant to grease, oils and chemicals. Thanks to a new production machine, these are available from Nitta in lengths exceeding 3m. PU belts are highly flexible, easy to clean and have an extremely long life.
RECYCLING COMPANY BENEFITS FROM NEW BELT In fact one large European recycling company is seeing the benefits of a two-layer black PU belt, Nitta type 2 LRFP 10/BLK IM M. The durability of this belt exceeded the expectations of the customer, making the ownership and the utilisation of the machines much more favourable. With a thickness of only 2.35mm, this belt is oil and fat resistant, flame retardant and very durable. Piet Vrieling, technical sales manager at
Nitta in Alkmaar, the Netherlands, takes up the story: “The customer has four belts connected, of which at least two are continuously in operation. Each endless belt is 12m long and 2.700mm wide. In this case the transported material is mainly recycled paper and cardboard. With speeds of 4-6m/s, the capacity is high. In particular, the homogenized structure of the PU belt means a substantial increase in life- time. In this application the belt has been running over six months now, which is multiple times the lifespan of previously used PVC belts.” Of further benefit, in non-ferro-
separators, this PU belt can be used effectively in combination with magnetic drums to separate, for example, metal from household waste and glass recycling sources. When conveying recycling material, the
belt material must be chemically inert and there must be an option for fitting sealed edges. Nitta’s new thermoplastic
polyurethane material excels through its exceptional resistance to grease, oils and chemicals. Additional benefits of the belts are better wear resistance and a lower coefficient of friction, which is desirable for applications with accumulated products on the belt.
BELTS IN PRODUCTION The new machine in Nitta’s production facilities in Alkmaar presses and homogenizes the cover material with calendar rollers. This results in a constant and compact structure. The homogeneous structure is a significant advantage in operation because there is less contamination and easier cleaning, helping to reduce the downtime of conveyors and consequently
the entire production line. With Nitta’s new production machine,
thinner PU belts can now also be made, enabling them to run over ‘knife-edges’ with an even smaller diameter. For single ply belts, such rollers can have diameters as small as 4mm. These thinner belts are more flexible, have a more favourable force-elongation ratio, and the increased adhesion prevents delamination of the layers. Additionally, jointing will be much easier with this material. The PU conveyor belts are ideal for
conveying tasks in recycling as well as in food, logistics, agriculture and industrial applications.
Nitta
www.nitta.nl
POUCH CONVEYOR BELT TRANSPORTS BULK MATERIAL SAFELY AND CLEANLY
Over time, many rivers in Tokyo have been built over or regulated to create space to live, and the risk of high waters and flooding is increasing as a result. The city is therefore building an underground catch basin that can hold up to 150,000 cubic meters of water. Without it, this volume of water could flood residential areas, shut down public life and threaten the existence of many people. To help, Continental is supplying a special conveyor belt that can be used to transport the
material from the excavation of the collecting basin safely, cleanly and quietly from the construction site in the middle of a residential area. To build the basin, which is 20m deep, 190m long and 90m wide, thousands of tons of earth
and bulk material must first be excavated and transported out of the huge pit. In December 2020, the installation of a Sicon pouch conveyor belt with a length of more than 1,500m into the steel structure of the plant was finished. The installation is more than 750m long. The 280 tons of material excavated every hour are transported on the conveyor belt at a speed of 1.4 sec/m across the residential area to a nearby main street, where it is discharged onto trucks. “The Sicon conveyor belt is a closed system from the feeding point to the discharging point. It can
negotiate curves of up to 180˚, making it extremely flexible when routing the line and adaptable to any environment. Corners and edges can therefore be bypassed without additional transfer points – curved radii of less than one meter can be achieved,” explained Gabriele Hennig-Juman from Continental Sales for Conveying Solutions in the Asia-Pacific region. By using a snaking route, the belt conveyor is also able to overcome large differences in height in a very tight space. The belt is manufactured in Northeim, Germany, before being shipped to Japan.
Continental
www.continental-industry.com
Nitta’s new production machine can not only manufacture belts in lengths exceeding 3m, but they can be made even thinner
Left: Nitta’s new PU belt
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DESIGN SOLUTIONS | FEBRUARY 2021
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