L1 Save Energy

(Sand Rigs)

ES185L1 First Year Laboratory

Denys Ilyushenko
University of Warwick
School of Engineering

Abstract
The aim for this experiment was to analyse energy loses within a
conveyor belt system and to explore methods of improving its efficiency. The
secondary objective of this laboratory experiment was to develop an
understanding of measurement of torque, speed and power.
The laboratory involved regulating the speed of a conveyor belt and
applying various loads to it, in a form of sand bags, in order to observe the
time taken for the belt to move the load through a specified distance. During
the experiment measurements of current, power, angular speed and force on
the spring were taken.
From the analysis, a conclusion was made that the system should be
operated at mid to high speeds for heavier loads. The heavier the load,
however, the slower the speed should be.

Table of contents:
Introduction

Theory

Apparatus and Method

Observation and Results

Analysis of Results and Uncertainties

10

Discussion

12

Conclusion

13

Introduction:
The laboratory investigates the power losses in a conveyor system and
encourages students to suggest revised methods of operating the apparatus
more efficiently.
The purpose of this lab was to increase our understanding of energy loss
analysis and to portray the importance of efficiency in simple systems.
Students were shown in reality how much loss a system like conveyor belt can
make.
Background information can be found in the laboratory briefing sheet,
provided by the ESO, which provides a basic information on how the lab should
be run and the measurements necessary to take.
For the required calculations and analysis of data, basic knowledge of
electricity and mechanics is necessary. John OMalleys Basic Circuit Analysis
and J.F. Collingwoods Mechanics, Structures and Thermodynamics, Volume 2,
will be a good source of this knowledge.
Numerous readings were taken during the experiment with varying
speeds and loads. And corresponding calculations completed to reach a
conclusion.

Theory:
There are 2 types of energy losses in this system. Fixed loss occurs when
the machine is on but is not doing any useful work. These losses occur due to
various factors in the system such as friction in the gears and bearings, power
consumed to operate the instruments themselves and other.
Variable losses occur when the machine is doing useful work. These
usually vary with the load that is put onto the system as well as the speed at
which it operates.

First calculation necessary to do after a set of results is obtained is to

calculate the mechanical power delivered to the conveyor for each setting. For
this an equation can be used:
=

(1)

where P is the mechanical power supplied to the system, T is the torque in

Newton-metres and is shaft speed in rad/s.
Torque acting on the system can be found using the following equation:
= 0.13 ( 0 )

(2)

where T is the torque acting, 0.13 is the radius of the shaft, F is the force
measured with load applied and 0 is the force measured without any load
applied.
Speed has to be in rad/s, therefore a formula can be used to convert
r.p.m. to rad/s:
=

(3)

60

Where n is speed in rpm.

Therefore, the final formula for finding mechanical power input from the
motor is:
= [0.13 ( 0 )]

2
60

Apparatus and Method:

Apparatus:
A conveyor belt is set up on a
metal rack (1,9) which allows
the angle of the conveyor to be
changed. It is a 0.96m long and
lifts the load through a vertical
height of 0.25m. The belt is
operated by an electric motor
(7,8), which is a small DC
machine, it is attached to a
5

gearbox (5,8). The gearbox provides a speed reduction of 30:1. For the purpose
of this exercise, the gearbox has a 1:1 ratio. The motor is held in place by a
spring (also shown in 1) which measures the force required to hold the motor
in place. The motor is operated by a speed regulator (6,9), which is connected
to the a.c. mains through a transformer, there is also a safety interlock (4,9)
which can stop the apparatus in case of an emergency. The power used by the
apparatus is shown on the screen of a wattmeter (3,9), which also measures
voltage and current. The load to the system is applied by putting 2kg sand bags
(2) on the conveyor belt.

Method:
Safety Interlock was turned on (green button), this increased the reading
on the wattmeter due to the circuit inside the interlock using some power. The
on button on the speed controller was then pressed, which also increased the
reading even further. The controller was then increased to setting 2, which
made the motor drive the conveyor belt. Required measurements were made.
The speed was the increased incrementally to setting 4,6,8, and 10
measurements were taken for each setting.
The experiment was then repeated with one sand bag (2kg) of load
applied to the belt. The measurements were taken some time after the release
in order to allow the system to stabilise. The only measurement to be taken
throughout the experiment was the time taken for the load to reach the top.
This experiment was carried out at each speed setting and was repeated
again in order to minimise errors. This was also done to 2 bad and 3 bag loads.

Observations and Results:

Power taken by the safety interlock = 2.47 Watts
Power taken by the safety interlock and motor controller = 2.40 Watts
0 = 9N

When no load was applied to the system, the following results were obtained:
Speed
Setting

Current
(Amps)

Power
(watts)

Speed
(rpm)

Speed
(rad/s)

Force
(N)

Torque

Mech
Power

2.00

0.27

3.00

24.00

2.51

9.40

0.05

0.13

4.00

0.32

3.80

43.80

4.58

10.00

0.13

0.60

6.00

0.38

4.85

69.20

7.24

11.00

0.26

1.88

8.00

0.40

5.60

88.10

9.22

11.00

0.26

2.40

10.00

0.40

6.00

102.10

10.69

11.00

0.26

2.78

Table 1 table of results with no load applied

7.00

7.00

6.00

6.00

5.00

5.00

4.00

4.00

3.00

3.00

2.00

2.00

1.00

1.00

0.00
0.00

20.00

40.00

60.00

80.00

100.00

0.00
120.00

Mechanical Power (watts)

Electrical Input power (Watts)

Variation of Electrical and Mechanical Power with Speed (no

load)

Speed in rpm
Electric Power

Mechanical Power

Fig.1 Variation of Electrical and Mechanical Power with speed (no load)

With 1 sandbag load (2kg) applied, the following results were obtained:
Speed Setting

1 Bag

Take
1

2
Take
2

Average

Take
1

4
Take
2

I (Amps)
Power
(watts)

0.38

0.38

3.60

Speed (rpm)
Speed
(rad/s)

21.80

Force (N)
Torque
(Nm)
Mech
Power (W)
Time taken
(s)

14

Average

Take
1

6
Take
2

0.38

0.44

0.46

3.70

3.65

4.80

21.80

21.80

38.60

0.45

0.51

0.53

4.90

4.85

6.20

38.60

38.60

63.50

2.28

10.20

13

4.04
14

15

Average

Take
1

8
Take
2

0.52

0.51

0.51

6.40

6.30

7.10

63.50

63.50

83.20

6.65

15

15

15

15

Average

Take
1

10
Take
2

Average

0.51

0.54

0.55

0.55

7.10

7.10

8.10

8.30

8.20

83.60

83.40

96.80

97.10

96.95

8.73
15

15

15

10.15
15

15

15

0.59

0.78

0.78

0.78

0.78

1.33

3.15

5.18

6.81

7.91

10.00

10.10

5.70

5.60

5.65

3.60

3.50

3.55

2.60

2.60

2.60

2.30

2.50

Table 2 table of results with 2 kg load

9.00
8.00
7.00
6.00
5.00
4.00
3.00
2.00
1.00
0.00
0.00

20.00

40.00

60.00

80.00

100.00

10.00
9.00
8.00
7.00
6.00
5.00
4.00
3.00
2.00
1.00
0.00
120.00

Mechanical Power (Watts)

Electrical Input Power (Watts)

Variation of Electrical and Mechanical Powers with speed

(1 bag load)

Speed in rpm
Electrical Power

Mechanical Power

Fig.2 - Variation of Electrical and Mechanical Power with speed (2kg load)

15

2.40

With 2 sandbags (4kg) load applied, the following results were obtained:
Speed Setting

Take
1

2
Take
2

I (Amps)

0.41

0.43

Power (watts)

4.10

Speed (rpm)

17.70

2 Bags

Average

Take
1

4
Take
2

0.42

0.53

0.52

4.20

4.15

5.60

17.40

6
Take
2

0.53

0.63

0.61

5.40

5.50

7.30

17.55

35.30

35.20

35.25

70.10

1.84

Speed (rad/s)
17

Force (N)

11.50

3.69

17

Torque (Nm)
Mech Power
(W)
Time taken (s)

Average

Take
1

17

17

Average

Take
1

8
Take
2

Average

Take
1

10
Take
2

0.62

0.70

0.73

0.72

0.81

0.76

7.30

7.30

9.50

0.79

10.20

9.85

11.10

11.10

11.10

70.20

70.15

83.10

82.60

82.85

92.70

92.30

92.50

7.34

18

18

18

17

8.67
18

18

19

9.68
19

20

20

1.04

1.11

1.11

1.24

1.43

1.91

4.08

8.11

10.71

13.84

12.00

11.75

6.10

6.50

6.30

3.50

3.50

3.50

2.90

3.20

3.05

2.30

2.30

Table 3 - table of results with 4 kg load

Fig. 3 Variation of
Electrical
and
Mechanical
Power with
speed (4kg
load)

0.00

20.00

40.00

60.00

16.00
14.00
12.00
10.00
8.00
6.00
4.00
2.00
0.00
100.00

80.00

Mechanical Power (Watts)

Electrical Power (Watts)

Variation of Electrical and Mechanical Power with

Speed (2 bags load)
16.00
14.00
12.00
10.00
8.00
6.00
4.00
2.00
0.00

Speed in rpm

Electrical Power

Mechanical Power

With 3 sandbags (6kg) load applied, the following results were obtained:
Speed Setting

3
Bags
I (Amps)
Power
(watts)
Speed (rpm)
Speed
(rad/s)
Force (N)
Torque
(Nm)
Mech
Power (W)
Time taken
(s)

10

Take
1

Take
2

Averag
e

Take
1

Take
2

Averag
e

Take
1

Take
2

Averag
e

Take
1

Take
2

Averag
e

Take
1

Take
2

Averag
e

0.59

0.60

0.60

0.73

0.73

0.73

0.81

0.88

0.85

0.95

0.86

0.91

0.87

0.89

0.88

11.3
0
78.1
0

12.3
0
77.6
0

13.9
0
92.9
0

13.4
0
93.0
0

5.50

5.60

5.55

7.50

7.50

7.50

9.90

13.3
0

12.9
0

13.10

28.0
0

28.4
0

28.20

53.0
0

1.37
22

15.0
0

21

2.95
22

22

11.1
0
53.1
0

10.50
53.05

5.55

22

22

23

22

11.80
77.85

8.15
23

23

24

24

23

1.63

1.69

1.76

1.89

1.89

2.23

4.99

9.74

15.36

18.34

15.9
0

15.45

7.50

7.30

7.40

4.30

4.00

4.15

3.10

3.00

13.65
92.95

9.73
24

3.05

Average

2.40

2.70

24

2.55

Table 4 - table of results with 6 kg load

20

2.30

20.00
18.00
16.00
14.00
12.00
10.00
8.00
6.00
4.00
2.00
0.00
0.00

10.00

20.00

30.00

40.00

50.00

60.00

70.00

80.00

90.00

20.00
18.00
16.00
14.00
12.00
10.00
8.00
6.00
4.00
2.00
0.00
100.00

Mechanical Power (Watts)

Electrical Power (Watts)

Variation of Electrical and Mechanical Power with speed

(3 bags load)

Speed in rpm
Electrical Power

Mechanical Power

Fig. 4 - Variation of Electrical and Mechanical Power with speed (6kg load)

Analysis and Uncertainties:

From the experiment, it is clear that the safety interlock is consuming a
significant 2.47 watts. When the motor was switched off, the consumption fell.
I was not able to find any reason why that could be the case, therefore, I
assume, that the fall in power consumption from 2.47 to 2.40 is nothing else,
but an error. At the time of the experiment, it was not clear that the error was
made and therefore no action was taken to prevent it.
When no load was applied (Fig 1), the increase in speed and mechanical
power output means a certain increase in amount of energy consumed. The
lines are almost identical and parallel, suggesting an equal increase in the
values, perfect correlation.
However, different relationship is observed as the load is applied. Fig. 2
shows that the amount of mechanical power supplied increased at a much
greater rate than the power consumed.
This is also confirmed by Fig.3. When 4kg of load were applied, the
relationship changed a lot. Increasing the speed increased the electric power
input in the same way as before, however, amount of mechanical power
supplied to the belt increased dramatically. From the graph, it is clear that
10

after 70 rpm, the motor started giving comparatively more mechanical power
that it was using electrical power.
Fig. 4 portrays a similar, but more extreme relationship. The motor
started giving off more power at 50rpm.
This suggests that for light loads and slower speeds, the motor
consumes more power than it gives off, making it very inefficient. Lighter loads
should be raised at high speeds to improve efficiency.
When a load of 4 kilograms is applied, the load should be lifted at 70
rpm to break even with the consumption and lift. Faster speed would mean
faster lift, but at the same time, increased power consumption. Therefore the
optimal speed to lift 4 kg load is 70rpm.
Loads of 6kg have a similar principal as 4 kg loads, except of the fact that
the consumption breaks even at a lower speed, around 50rpm. Once again,
faster speed would mean that the work will be done quicker, but is not
necessary.
In all the graphs (figures 1,2,3 and 4), if the lines for an electrical input
power are extended backwards, it crosses the Y-axis. This suggests that even
when the motor is not operational there are still losses to the power. This is
due to the Safety interlock circuit consuming part of it to operate normally.

Uncertainties:
As with any experiment, several factors could have affected the result.
One of the biggest sources of errors is the precision of the instruments used.
And although all the care was taken to minimise the uncertainties, they were
still present.
The table below summarises some measurements and the according
uncertainties. When a range of value was present, the uncertainty was given as
half of the largest range.
Measurement
Current
Power
Speed
Force
Time

Instrument
Wattmeter
Wattmeter
Tachometer
Spring
Stopwatch

Uncertainty
0.05
0.05
0.02
1
1
11

The uncertainties in this experiment were fairly significant. This was

clearer during high speed experiments. Sometimes the load would be
propelled upwards faster than the stabilisation period of the tachometer. In
this case, the experiment was repeated several times and the average value
was taken.
When operating a stopwatch, it was very important to pay attention to
the load as precise timing was necessary. The person operating a stopwatch
was also closely monitoring the person who places load onto the conveyor.
This was done in order to start the stopwatch at exact moment the load is
applied at.
Spring has also had a stabilisation period. At first it would fluctuate due
to the load being applied unexpectedly. At slower experiments, the readings
were not taken until the whole system was stable. At faster experiments, the
experiment was repeated and an average value was taken.
Current and Power measurements were the easiest to take as they did
not fluctuate much. The instrument was quick and precise.

Discussion:
Practically, the experiment was a fair challenge to conduct. Coordination
and concentration were both needed to conduct this experiment correctly.
This has potentially increased the possibility of an error. Reduction to this error
was made by repeating the experiment number of times.
The speed dial was not a continuous dial (only certain positions were
possible, as the knob would click into place) reducing the chance of human
error. It was not possible to put the speed setting to, for example, 2.5.
On the other hand, the experiment required students to use a
tachometer. Majority of students were not familiar on how to use it and
therefore had to be trained. In addition to this, it required a good connection
between the rotating shaft and the instruments sensor. Any movements of
the hand while measuring the speed would of ruined the result. However, in
most cases, the operation of the instrument was good.

12

Regardless of the errors, the experiment provided enough data for the
correlations to be observed and conclusion to be drawn. Looking the figures 14, the points are close to the line of best fit, which suggests absence of
anomalous results.

Conclusion:
All the data was close to the line of best fit, with tiny deviations,
suggesting that the experiment went well. Main source of power loss is the
safety interlock, losing almost 2.4 watts of power. And the most efficient way
to operate the belt is at or beyond the point at which the lies cross.

13

Bibliography
John OMalley. Basic Circuit Analysis. Second Edition. 2014
J.F. Collingwood, D.G. Chetwynd and R.E. Critoph. Mechanics,
Structures and Thermodynamics. Volume 2. 2014

14