Conveying & Transportation

A Fundamental Approach to
Belt Feeder Loads
How to assess loads on Feeders, (practically)
Numerous attempts have been made to describe the process of feeding but quite often
they only cover certain products and hopper construction. Following you will find a more
general approach to this field of problems.

LYN BATES *

F eeders are widely used for metering

Pictures: © Lyn Bates, Ajax Equipment

bulk solids and discharging the con-
tents of hoppers and silos. At the small-
er scale power requirements may not be
economically significant, but for larger units
they become very important, as underass-
essment can have expensive consequences.
It can also be difficult to determine what
power is actually necessary, on which to al-
low a safety factor, so possible gross over-
assessments incur excess capital costs and
long term inefficiencies. The topic has com-
manded considerable interest in recent
years [1-7], but the subject is complex and
general conclusions and formula have been
derived from results and may only by valid
in similar circumstances to the experimen-
tal conditions. A more accurate method of
predicting feeder loads is clearly needed,
(3), but there is also considered to be a
complementary need for an understanding
of the factors that influence the load and of
good practice design features that minimise
their value. Investigations with equipment
that does not exploit the mechanics of the Fig. 1: Typical installation utilising a belt feeder
prevailing stress system will not yield opti-
mum results.
The first task in an investigation is to de-
fine the conditions of interest. In the case of start and re-start conditions by both design 3. Re-start with full bin.
feeder loads the main objective is usually to and operating practice. Also, as running pe- 4. Continuous running with full bin. (In prac­
determine the maximum extraction force riods normally occupies most of the oper- tice, running with lower contents tends to
that has to be provided. The worst case sce- ating time and may be a small fraction of take similar power until nearly empty).
nario is that of starting with a full bin after the starting load, steps should be taken to The geometry of the bin and feeder must
a period of time consolidation, taking into mitigate starting loads and it may be prac- then be considered. These can have differ-
account any local vibrations, input loading tical to accept a temporary drive overload ent characteristics as below: -
during filling and any time-related effects on starting, provided this is within indus- 1. Mass flow with square or round outlet.
on the product condition. However, practi- trial tolerance. 2. Mass flow with slot outlet. (Feeder must
cal steps can be taken to mitigate initial The main operating conditions of inter- have progressive extraction).
est that may apply are: - 3. Funnel flow with square or round outlet.
1. Initial start with full bin following maxi- 4. Funnel flow with slot outlet and progres-
* LYN BATES  mum static storage time. sive extraction feeder.
Ajax Equipment Limited, Bolton, BL2 2AR, U.K. 2. Initial start with full bin immediately af- 5. Funnel flow with slot outlet and local ex-
Tel. +44 1204 386723; E-Mail: info@ajax.co.uk ter filling. traction feeder.

14 bulk solids handling · No. 4 · 2015

 The size of outlet that is required to en-
sure reliable flow from a hopper depends
on whether the flow regime generated dur-
ing discharge is of mass flow or non-mass
flow design, so the mode of flow prevailing
will affect the size of opening, the shape of
the stressed arch that forms over the outlet
when flow has occurred and the degree of
support given to this arch when flow is not
taking place. A slot outlet with Mass flow is
recommended, at least mass flow for the
outlet section, as this offers predictable
flow with a good compromise between
holding capacity and small outlet size.
The nature of the bulk material handled
has an important influence on the power
required by a feeder, particularly:
1. Wall friction on the hopper contact sur-
face. (Incipient value).
2. Wall friction on the hopper contact sur-
face. (Sustained value).
3. Bulk density in differing conditions of
compaction.
4. Internal shear strength. (Incipient value).
In specific state of compaction.
5. Internal shear strength. (Sustained val-
ue). In specific state of compaction.
Note that moisture, chemical, thermal
and time effects may bear significantly on
these values, in which case historical and
ambient conditions may be relevant.
It will be seen that combinations of the
above factors results in many permuta-
tions that makes research on this topic an
extensive subject to investigate and be te-
dious and involve considerable overlapping
to devise a formula to suit each case. A cor-
rectly designed hopper will have outlet di-
mensions that exceeds the ‘critical arching
size’ for the product in the given bin geom-
etry by a comfortable, but not excessive,
margin that is sufficient to satisfy the re-
quired discharge rate and accommodate
foreseeable adverse operating conditions.
A hopper outlet of ‘critical arch’ dimen-
sions would offer no additional load on the
feeder from material above the arch, but
flow reliability would be very suspect un-
less the ‘worst’ operating circumstances on
which a design allowance was made was
very unlikely to occur.
Clearly, the amount by which the size of
opening exceeds the critical arching size
has a great influence on the superimposed
loads passing through the outlet.
A calculated ‘safe’ hopper opening di-
mension for reliable flow itself is likely to
incorporate a degree of safety, but an ad-
ditional factor is also usually applied as a
form of insurance and to accommodate
and uncertainty. The resulting dimension
must relate to the minimum size of open-
ing specified, so a taper slot outlet that is
incorporated to provide an incremental
extraction by a belt feeder in order to gen-
erate live flow along the whole length of a
slot outlet, will present a further increase in
span that allows additional over-pressure
to develop. Also, if the condition to be
stored has a variable condition due to
source, process, age or time consolidation,
then the design must be based on the
‘worst’ flow conditions. When then han-
dling the ‘easiest’ flow conditions that
would pass through a smaller opening, an
even greater over-pressure will be generat-
ed. In practice, therefore, a hopper outlet
size is likely to be significantly larger than
the critical arching span dimension.
A key concept is that material in a hop-
per with outlet larger than the ‘critical arch
span’ will collapse and flow out, as the prin-
ciple stress in the arch exceeds the failure
strength of the bulk material. The magni-
tude of the excess principle stress, times
the principle stress ratio of the bulk solid,
produces a normal force to the surface of
the arch that acts down onto the feeder
when flow is not taking place.
The force acting on the hopper outlet
may be considered to have two compo-
nents: -
1. The force acting down from the failing
arch, which is partially supported by the
hopper walls in the case of a mass flow
discharge pattern, or by mobilised shear
stress on the adjacent static material in a
funnel flow regime.
2. The weight of the mass under the
stressed arch that is totally unsupport-
ed by the hopper walls. i.e. from the ma-
terial in the space between the stressed
arch and the feeder belt.
The force acting from the arch is the
most important as this determines the
‘drag-out’ load on the feeder. The weight of
the mass under the arch is part of the con-
veying load of the equipment, combined
with the continuing load from any exten-
sion of the belt from the feeder exit.
An important consideration is that, even
if flow has not taken place, there is usually
some degree of settlement in the lower re-
gion of the contents as the bin fills due to
the increasing load on the prior contents.
The degree to which settlement takes place
will be much less for hard, granular material
that settle quickly to a stable structure than
it is for powders, which tend to land in a di-
lated condition and consolidate to settle to
a higher density as excess air escapes by per-
colating through the bed. The compacting
load on the contents will be limited by Jans-
sen effects, but any settlement will cause a
reaction at the bins walls as microscopic slip
takes place and develops stressed arches
across the bin walls. Through these arches
are not sufficiently robust to prevent flow
bulk solids handling · No. 4 · 2015
 Conveying & Transportation
Fig. 2: Belt feeder with restrictive outlet profile
taking place when the feeder allows extrac-
tion, they do offer some support for the
material above the stressed arches when
flow is not occurring.
The arches themselves follow a network
of continuous load path between contact-
ing particles and roughly adopt a catenary
shape, small deviations being possible be-
cause contact friction between particles al-
lows slight angular deviations of particle-to-
particle contact forces from straight lines of
action. Surface tension, cohesive, tensile,
electrostatic, molecular and other inter-par-
ticle forces may allow other particles to stick
on the underside of this arch at the outlet
and be subjected to this stress relieving ac-
tion of the unstable arch, but these effects
can normally be neglected for practical pur-
poses.
The line of action at the toes of the arch is
dictated by the slope of the hopper wall
and angle of wall friction in the case of mass
flow hoppers, or by the internal angle of
friction of the bulk solid for a funnel flow
regime. The arch shape can be closely ap-
proximated by a parabola, allowing simple
calculations to establish the height of the
arch and the mass of material between the
stressed arch and the feeder that is solely
borne by the feeder. Added to this down-
ward value acting on the feeder is the force
acting through the stressed arch in either
the static or discharge condition. Stresses in
the static arch can be calculated by the
method used to establish the ‘critical arch-
ing size’. It follows that spans exceeding this
size are not capable of bearing the compres-
sive stress applied and that, to prevent fail-
ure, the arch must be supported by a force
equivalent to the value by which the princi-
ple stress in the arch exceeds the compres-
sive failure stress, multiplied by the princi-
ple stress ratio of the bulk material.
Once flow has started the material di-
lates to a weaker bulk state and lower den-
sity. Pressures decrease towards the out-
let, by an amount depending on the de-
gree of flow restraint offered by the rate at
which the feeder extracts material. How-
ever, the shear value also decreases due to
16
the extra freedom of movement allowed
by the dilatation, so the ‘drag-out’ resist-
ance offered to the feeder also diminishes.
The rub is that the recognised Jenike
type method of measuring the initial shear
force to ‘drag out’ material from under a
hopper outlet is applicable to fine powders,
but is not appropriate for coarse, firm gran-
ular material, because the confining force
does not reflect passive stresses that firmly
oppose an expansion of the shear plane in
totally confined conditions. For initial shear
to take place the mass must dilate locally
so that particles that were overlapping in a
close-nested, settled structure can move
past each other. This dilatation is signifi-
cantly for large particles. If expansion is re-
sisted by confinement, passive stresses can
be exceptionally high, in some cases requir-
ing failure of the particles to allow shear to
take place, even though the material in a
loose condition may be very free-flowing,
as with granular sugar or salt. This condi-
tion may be avoided operational by ex-
tracting a tiny amount of material at an
early stage of initial loading to develop a
shear plane in lightly stressed conditions
and retaining a small heel of material be-
fore re-filling. It also may be avoided by
providing a local region of voidage into
which the shear plane expansion may
move, by way of inserts in the hopper out-
let or offsetting the outlet to remove the
compacting stresses on the shear plane or
providing a local void region.
A second practical point is that the de-
velopment of the shear plane between the
gravity flow of the hopper contents and
the translationary motion of material on
the feeder belt is highly sensitive to the
exit geometry from the hopper. For exam-
ple, Fig. 2 showing a specific arrangement
illustrates an increasing taper connection
from a ‘V’ shaped hopper, which would
usefully generate an expansion of the
shear plane, but then restrains the outlet
by a profiled cut-out that prevents this
shear plane continuing though the end
outlet. It also permits the highest rate of
extraction to be taken from the centre of
bulk solids handling · No. 4 · 2015
Fig. 3: Belt feeder with restricted outlet profile
the bin, which optimises the conveying
profile on the belt but aggravates flow ve-
locity contours developed in the bin and
forces the development of a profiled shear
plane below the favourable transition in
the hopper construction.
Fig. 3 similarly shows a gate restricting
the shear plane to a level below the in-
clined transition of the hopper walls, al-
though this does allow an even depth of
bed to be extracted from the hopper. By
contrast, the outlet in Fig. 4 implies ex-
traction by a bed of uniform depth, but
the only concession to incremental ex-
traction is the additional material escap-
ing from the hopper side by repose flow.
Detail design matters hugely and is not
a task for amateurs. Many project engi-
neers consider detail design is the respon-
sibility of draughtsmen, who pay close at-
tention to engineering aspects but are not
specialists in powder technology.
Subject to the proviso that wall friction
has been mobilised, the approach below
may be used to assess starting and re-
starting forces. The force required to ex-
tract product through a flowing bed is
lower than the force needed to initiate
discharge because mass dilated by a flow-
ing condition is easier to shear; the higher
the rate of flow, the lower the transverse
shear strength.
It may be difficult to assess the shear
strength of a bulk material in dynamic
flow condition because of its sensitivity to
flow rate, but any feeder capable of initiat-
ing flow can sustain discharge continu-
ously.
Rise at hopper exit to lower inclined
edges of hopper walls = R
Width of hopper outlet at start = W
Width of hopper outlet at exit Wexit

Fig. 4: Belt feeder with parallel outlet
Average width of hopper outlet wav
The overpressure from the stressed arch Op
Hence Drag-out force Fdo
(The value of (∫p - ∫f) at the hopper outlet
is taken for a factor of safety).
Where ∫p = principle stress in arch
∫f = failure stress of the bulk mate-
rial
Pr = principle stress ratio
L = length of hopper outlet
Considering the conveying load of ma-
terial under the stressed arch, for practical
purposes a catenary arch can be consid-
ered as a parabola, which has the general
form of
or, in this case, the maximum height of
arch, H
The slope at any point
Hence
where α = angle of hopper wall from ver-
tical
f = angle of wall friction
w = half the width of the hopper
outlet, W.
Note that the minimum hopper outlet
width, W, is generally greater than
1.1 . ‘critical span’ for flow reliability.
Area, A, under a parabola = 2/3 . W . H,
where H = height of centre of stressed
Conveying & Transportation
arch. So area A under stressed arch at hop-
per outlet
Hence weight of unsupported load un-
der stressed arch
Where ξ = bulk density
Load acting from material in clearance
space
Repose from side skirts
Hence the total conveying load on feeder =
To minimise the feeder load, the width
of the exit from the hopper should be
based on the critical arching span of the
bulk material, with a suitable safety factor
and allowance for the increased span in-
corporated over the hopper outlet length
to secure progressive extraction.
Reason why outlets are larger than criti-
cal span should be critically examined.
ƒƒ Predictive theories are undoubtedly
conservative.
ƒƒ To accommodate exceptional condi-
tions that may arise rarely, if ever.
ƒƒ To provide margin to guarantee flow.
ƒƒ To guarantee the flow rate required.
ƒƒ To secure progressive extraction from
slot outlets.
ƒƒ Accommodate possible change or un-
certainty of product condition.
ƒƒ Provide extra storage capacity.
ƒƒ Save storage headroom.
ƒƒ Poor design confidence.
The feeder must accommodate both
initial start-up and running loads. The
forces required to initiate discharge can be
many times that to sustain running, but
they only occur for a short time, are usu-
ally infrequent and, most importantly. It is
therefore good practice to take steps to
mitigate these. By contrast, running loads
continue through the total operating life
of the equipment and determine the es-
sential energy consumption. This paper
therefore concentrates on the dynamic
condition of operation and means to re-
duce starting loads. Excess feeder loads
increases both capital and operating
bulk solids handling · No. 4 · 2015
costs. (Construction, maintenance and
power).
The shear stress generated by a feeder
extracting material from the hopper
outlet is dependent on the normal pres-
sure acting, but is also sensitive to
whether the failure plane has been previ-
ously sheared. This feature greatly em-
phasises the benefits of initiating dis-
charge under conditions of light normal
stress at an early stage of initial filling of
the hopper. Very limited belt travel is
needed to develop a shear plane. In most
cases this can be accomplished before
extracted material reaches the end drum
of an empty belt.
The maximum transfer capacity that
can be handled with a flat belt is a triangu-
lar cross section with a slope at the angle
of repose, θ, of the material, so the width
and height of the sides of the exit and the
product repose angle determines the belt
width required. For a firm, granular prod-
uct that is likely to be free flowing, the
hopper outlet width should be small in
relation to the height, to secure the largest
slope possible for the shear plane to ex-
pand along the hopper length.
The hopper outlet width is likely to be
dictated by the span necessary to avoid
the formation of a structural arch of large
granular materials, whereas a wide span
needed for a cohesive product may have
lower heights because the expansion
along the shear plane is less for fine prod-
ucts and a shallower shear plane may be
utilised.
An interface construction on these lines
is shown above with the shape of the exit
from the hopper aligning with the stressed
arch and repose conditions on the bulk
material. There will be a slight collapse of
the arch shape at exit as the inclination at
the base of the stressed arch will almost
certainly be steeper than the repose con-
dition of the bulk.
Recommended features to minimise
belt feeder loads.
ƒƒ Ensure that the minimum width of the
hopper outlet exceeds the critical arch-
ing dimension for the ‘worst’ conditions
that must be accommodated, but not
by a wide margin. (A vibrator may over-
come “Worst’ flow conditions).
ƒƒ Ensure the hopper outlet length is at
least three times its width, to secure the
full flow benefits of a slot outlet, but
not much longer, to maximise the incli-
nation of the shear plane.
ƒƒ End the inclined hopper walls with an
increasing clearance to the belt along
the line of travel to create a stressed
arch that can diverge in failure as mate-
rial moves along the belt.
17
 Conveying & Transportation
Fig. 5: Optimised belt feeder interface
ƒƒ Make the exit opening match the
stressed arch (in the shape of a parabo-
la, with the ends at the bottom of the
hopper ‘V’ walls inclined at (α + f) to
the vertical).
ƒƒ Allow material to discharge by repose
flow from the inclined side clearance to a very poor solution. Project engineers tend
encourage slip on the hopper walls.
ƒƒ Base the overpressure on the ‘easiest’
flow material and stresses acting on the pays attention to engineering aspects, but is
widest part of the hopper outlet.
ƒƒ On initial fill, run the feeder for about half
the length of the outlet when the level of
material covers the outlet to a depth of
about three times its width, to develop a
shear plane in lightly stressed conditions.
ƒƒ Leave a ‘heel’ of material in the hopper,
to allow re-start under developed stress
conditions. (If not practical, consider re-
tractable rods that are inserted in emp-
ty conditions and retracted for restart
with belt running).
This review highlights the great benefits
of generating ‘live flow’ over the total hop-
per outlet area, paying attention to design
detail for the feeder interface, making spe-
18
cial design arrangements for initiating the
discharge of either hard, granular bulk ma-
terials to avoid unacceptable load condi-
tions or cohesive material that would oth-
erwise demand an unacceptably wide span
when handling such products. Brute force is
to consider detail equipment design to be
the responsibility of the draughtsman, who
not a specialist in powder technology. The
interface between hoppers and feeders
merits close attention as it is a major factor
in capital and running costs. n
References
[1] Roberts, Alan: Design and applica-
tion of feeders for the controlled
loading of bulk solids onto conveyor
belts; University of Newcastle.
[2] Moore, Brian: Flow properties and
design procedures for coal storage
bins; Thesis, University of Wollon-
gong 1998.
[3] Ooi.J.Y., J.M. Rotter: Arching propen-
sity in coal bunkers with non-sym-
bulk solids handling · No. 4 · 2015
metric geometries; BCURA Project
B54. 2005.
[4] Holmes, Corin, et al.: Start-up and
Running Loads Exerted by Bulk Solid
Materials on Extractive Belt Feeders:
Experimental findings compared
with available models; 10th ICBMH.
Brisbane. 2009
[5] Allen, Leo: Belt feeder head load in-
vestigation; CEEP Seminar, 2013
[6] Jie, Guo: Investigation of arching be-
haviour under surcharge pressure in
mass flow bins and stress states at
hopper/feeder interface; Thesis, Uni-
versity of Wollongong 2014.
[7] Ariza-Zafra, Karol: Improving per-
formance of discharge equipment for
coals with poor handling characteris-
tics; Thesis, The Wolfson Centre 2015.
[8] Bates, Lyn: The blockage of a hopper
outlet or other flow channel by
lumps; Ajax publication.
[9] McGee, Eddie and Lyn Bates: Design
Considerations for Loads on Feeders;
Bulk Solids Europe 2012 Berlin, Ger-
many, October 11-12, 2012