Ecology: GRISLEY COMPONENTS Air Supported Conveyors are the Minimal Impact Conveying Standard

Serious environmental concerns are playing a central role in today's bulk solids handling industries. The ecological, safety and health hazards of product dust are now well-documented, and, recognizing this fact, OSHA, the EPA, MSHA and other governmental agencies vigorously regulate these industries. This is especially the case with hazardous materials, such a chemicals, cement and lime, gypsum, coal and coke, mineral ore, heavy metals, silica, and waste products. Not surprisingly, many industry leaders are taking a hard look at their methods of conveying, since conventional mechanical conveyors are dust-generating machines.

Fortunately, the GRISLEY COMPONENTS concept of mechanical conveying presents an environmentally-sound alternative conveying method precisely because it eliminates the source of conveyor dust generation: mechanical friction. GRISLEY COMPONENTS Air Supported Conveyors, which use a thin cushion of air to provide stable and smooth belt support, have rendered the technology of idler conveying obsolete. Through GRISLEY COMPONENTS' ability to take the industry beyond roller conveying, it has introduced a number of unique environmental safety innovations that simply are not possible with conventional conveying methods.

This page describes the unique environmental benefits of GRISLEY COMPONENTS Air Supported Conveying. The GRISLEY COMPONENTS principle of air-supported conveying includes dust prevention as an inherent feature of its architecture; thus the only means of achieving environmentally-sound conveying is to move beyond roller-based technology to cleaner, safer, low-impact GRISLEY COMPONENTS Air Supported Conveyors.

Conventional belt conveying generates dust-related problems by the nature of its design.

No matter how well designed, conventional mechanical conveyors, especially roller-based conveyors, pose a serious environmental hazard. That hazard comes directly from the friction-intensive principles of their operation, principles that are both obsolete and ineffective.

Mechanical friction is the problem: Conventional troughing conveyors, which are the most common mode of handling bulk solids, rely upon mechanical friction to carry and track the belt. The friction between the rollers and the belt agitates the material it is carrying, which produces substantial product degradation and dust. In an effort to control this problem, mining and chemical handling industries spend millions of dollars annually on dust-control equipment or continue to look for ways to perfect troughing conveying.

Belt sag magnifies the problem: Troughing conveyors, due to the combined forces of gravity and product bulk, cause their belts to sag between rollers, which causes the belt to move like a roller coaster. It does not matter that the troughing rollers themselves are in top condition, since the roller-caoster effect of the belt motion itself is inherently destablizing. The problem gets progressively worse as the speed increases, which effectively turns the conveyor into a product pulverizer. Even under optimal operating conditions idler conveyors cause significant product degradation and dust by the very basis of their operation.

Roller assemblies are a significant problem: The extraordinary precautions the industry takes to protect roller bearing assemblies from the destructive effects of fugitive product dust should be interpreted as evidence of a fundamental flaw in their operating principle. Mining and mineral companies alone spend millions of dollars annually to repair and replace damaged rollers, whose bearings are damaged from dust penetration. To address this problem, many conveyor manufacturers have gone great lengths to build better rollers and protected bearing assemblies. But they are spending their time perfecting an inherently flawed technology. The most practical solution is to eliminate the need for roller-based conveying, not to make it better.

At GRISLEY COMPONENTS INC, we have solved the environmental problems of conventional mechanical conveying by taking its practical operation beyond the necessity of mechanical friction. GRISLEY COMPONENTS' air-supported conveying offers a simple solution to the problem of conveyor dust control.

GRISLEY COMPONENTS' reliable and cost-effective air-supported conveyors are the environmentally-sound alternative.

Using a stable cushion of air, which is generated consistently throughout the conveyor plenum, the GRISLEY COMPONENTS Air Supported Conveyor ensures smooth, vibration-free belt motion. The diagram below illustrates the simplicity of this operating principle. Compare this principle of operation to that of the roller conveyor illustrated above:

Eliminating the source of belt vibration and its subsequent environmental hazards, the GRISLEY COMPONENTS Air Supported Conveyor solves the central problem of conventional mechanical conveying.

Dust-free belt motion: Dispensing with troughing rollers, the GRISLEY COMPONENTS Air Supported Conveyor enjoys a smooth operation unique to belt conveying. Its precisely-calibrated airflow eliminates bumps and roller friction from the conveying process, thereby eliminating the source of dust. So effective is this method of dust prevention that the GRISLEY COMPONENTS conveyor can be enclosed fully and safely with airtight and weather-resistant covers. Together with its safe dust-tight enclosure, the GRISLEY COMPONENTS conveyor's smooth belt motion sets a new standard in dust control.

No more roller-coaster conveying: GRISLEY COMPONENTS' precisely-controlled airflow eliminates completely the belt sag inherent in conventional troughing conveyors. Rather, the GRISLEY COMPONENTS conveyor maintains a consistent level of support throughout every square inch of the belt's movement. In fact, its smooth belt motion keeps the product stationary for the duration of its conveyance. The belt glides through the plenum instead of undulating over rollers, which eliminates the source of product degradation.

No more troughing rollers to repair and replace: An additional benefit to GRISLEY COMPONENTS Air Supported Conveying is that its elimination of troughing rollers eradicates the primary source of conveyor malfunction. Since its belt is free of roller support, the GRISLEY COMPONENTS conveyor is itself dramatically less susceptible to the hazards of dust inherent in conventional conveyors. Without troughing rollers, our conveyor limits maintenance to the head and tail sections, thereby vastly simplifying its operation. Less susceptible to dust, the GRISLEY COMPONENTS conveyor is also dramatically less vulnerable to the surrounding environment. While other conveyor manufacturers are rushing to build better rollers, doesn't it make more sense simply to eliminate their necessity?

Lower Power Consumption: GRISLEY COMPONENTS conveyors use a low-horsepower centrifugal fan to support the belt. A single fan supports up to 600 feet of conveyor. With air support, the GRISLEY COMPONENTS conveyor requires substantially less horsepower to operate saving up to 35% on horizontal applications. No longer required to drag the belt over a series of troughing rollers, the GRISLEY COMPONENTS conveyor's drive mechanism requires less energy to run effectively.

Quieter Operation: Due to the fact of its enclosure, the lower intensity of its drive and blower mechanisms, and its preventing of load agitation, the GRISLEY COMPONENTS Air Supported Conveyor is much quieter in its normal operation. This benefit makes a positive contribution to workplace safety, since mechanical noise increases the likelihood of accidents and long-term employee hearing loss (both of which are major sources of Workmen's Compensation claims).

GRISLEY COMPONENTS Sets New Standards for Environmentally-Sound Mechanical Conveying

Imagine a method of conveying material over great distances at higher speeds without destroying valuable product or creating hazardous dust, a method that uses less energy and requires minimal maintenance. When it comes to realizing the potential of ecologically safer conveying whether it is in mining and mineral-handling applications, powdered chemical handling, lime, gypsum, cement, silica, powdered metals or other applications these are the criteria against which conveying technology should be assessed. To stay competitive, these industries are taking a hard look at the impact of conveyors on their surrounding environments and, ultimately, their bottom lines.

Recognizing the necessity for ecologically-sound, more efficient and reliable methods of conveying, most manufacturers have attempted to perfect the conventional conveyor. They have added complicated and expensive dust-control equipment. Many have enclosed troughing conveyors, which are often called "enclosed belt conveyors" or "covered belt conveyors." Some have built better chain or drag conveyors, using stronger materials. Others have sought to build better troughing rollers. But all of these solutions are only half solutions, since they seek to improve upon a conveyor concept that is fundamentally flawed. No matter how well-designed or well-built these improvements may be, they are attempting to minimize the very thing that makes these conveyors work in the first place: mechanical friction.

Now there is a better solution, better because it changes the fundamental concept of mechanical conveying. GRISLEY COMPONENTS has effectively taken belt conveying beyond the necessity of costly, friction-based troughing rollers to smoother, more reliable, more cost-effective air-supported conveying. Engineered with exacting precision, and constructed using superior methods and the best materials, GRISLEY COMPONENTS Air Supported Conveyors have earned their reputation for being the true leader in reliable, ecologically-sound conveying. For small and large-scale applications alike, GRISLEY COMPONENTS conveyors have consistently high performance. Compared with conventional belt conveying, GRISLEY COMPONENTS Air Supported Conveyors save millions of dollars each year in:

• preventing product degradation
• reducing the risk of work-related illnesses and injuries
• minimizing or eliminating cleanup of conveyor-generated pollution
• minimizing maintenance and virtually eliminating the need for overhauls
• cutting energy consumption significantly

For these reasons, GRISLEY COMPONENTS Air Supported Conveyors provide specific benefits to agricultural, mining, energy-production and mineral-handling applications the applications most closely watched by regulators. GRISLEY COMPONENTS conveyors carry loads up to 200 pounds per square foot at any distance, which is more than sufficient capacity for heavy-use applications. With their safer, more environmentally-sound operation, GRISLEY COMPONENTS Air Supported Conveyors can significantly reduce the environmental impact of heavy-duty, long-distance conveying.