Abrasiveness of iron ores: Analysis of service-worn conveyor belts and laboratory Dry Sand/Rubber Wheel tests

Belt conveyors are currently one of the most commonly used technologies for transporting iron ore. Of the components of the conveyor system, the belt is the most expensive and susceptible to damage. Failures due to wear of the rubber cover lead to downtime for corrective maintenance, greater operational risks and performance and economic losses. To improve the tribological performance of conveyor belts, it is necessary to know the main parameters that influence their wear. As wear behavior is not an intrinsic property of a material, the most reliable results are obtained when the wear mechanisms produced in laboratory tests are similar to those in service. In this work, two types were investigated of belt rubber, one new and one worn in service, and four types of iron ore in two class sizes. Loose abrasive wear tests were carried out using the Dry Sand/Rubber Wheel apparatus with belt rubber test pieces and iron ores as abrasives. This work characterized the wear mechanisms that occur in service and in laboratory tests. The predominant wear mechanism found was the formation of Schallamach waves. In the wear tests, Friable Hematite samples presented the highest abrasiveness. In addition, the chemical, mineralogical and morphological features of the iron ore samples were characterized. The high abrasiveness of Friable Hematite was possibly due to the mineral assembly. [Display omitted] •The main wear mechanism in service and in laboratory was the formation of Schallamach waves.•Positive correlation among distance between waves and abrasive size.•The environmental and operating conditions generated cracks on the worn belt surface.•An adapted methodology to assess the abrasiveness of iron ore in rubber was proposed.•The friable hematite samples had the highest abrasiveness among the analyzed ores.