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Issue 04 | 2010
TRANSFER OF TECHNOLOGY
Determining guidelines for sizing and dimensioning
of highly inclined screw conveyors
Introduction
The advantages of screw conveyors, like the simple and
robust design, the low costs for setup and maintenance,
the low susceptibility to interference and particularly the
dustproof design, all these often lead to application of
screw conveyors for continuous transport of bulk materials.
Conventional screw conveyors are suitable for transport
of dusty, granular and slightly moist bulk materials. The
application of screw conveyors in bulk materials handling
is shown in picture 1. The demands on screw conveyors
with regard to reliability, performance and economy, as
well as energy efficiency and conservation of environment
have considerably risen in the past years.
by Prof. Dr.-Ing. Dipl.-Wi.-Ing. W.A. Günthner, Dipl.-Ing. S. Rakitsch
fml - Institute for Materials Handling Material Flow Logistics
University of Technology Munich | Germany
The increased demand on continuous conveyors for bulk materials are also considered in the application of
screw conveyors. In order to take stock of this aspect, the Institute for Materials Handling Material Flow Logistics
(fml) is currently implementing a project, funded by the German Research Society (DFG), examining conveyance
of bulk materials in inclined screw conveyors. The goal of the project is to develop an easily applicable and
secure method of sizing and dimensioning of highly inclined screw conveyors for bulk materials, taking into
consideration parameters of construction, operation and bulk materials.
Like all other continuous conveyors for bulk materials,
screw conveyors need to be reliably designed, to
avoid down times or over-dimensioning. Following the
researches done in the past years by the Institute for
Materials Handling Material Flow Logistics on methods of
dimensioning and sizing for horizontal to slightly inclined
and vertical screw conveyors, respectively, with this
project the Institut is aiming at closing the gap for highly
inclined screw conveyors.
Screw conveyors mainly consist of a conveyor trough or
tube and the screw, consisting of a screw shaft and spiral.
Under certain conditions during horizontal and slightly
inclined conveyance, the movement of the bulk material can
be seen as purely translational. In higher inclined ranges,
this translational movement is superposed by a rotational
portion, up to the extreme case of vertical conveyance, in
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