Tests and Examination of Drive Sheave in Mine Skip Hoist

Abstract

Abstract This article describes a certain stage of work aimed at strength analysis of the structure of drive sheaves in mine shaft hoists. The work was initiated in connection with the emergence of cracks in those sheaves as a result of operation, and is an attempt to develop a new improved design of the drive sheave. The first stage involved several series of strain gauge measurements of stress in the drive sheaves of machines exposed to their rated load. Measurement technology and results are described in detail in (Rokita & Wójcik, 2013). The results of those measurements were the basis for FEM stress analysis and discussion of the changes in the structure of those sheaves. This article focuses on a description of the developed computational models for the currently used sheaves, and presents the results of strength calculations. As a result of those actions, a new drive sheave design was developed, for which a computational model was also prepared and FEM calculations were performed. Comparison of the results of calculations for both sheave models is, therefore, also an assessment of the impact of the proposed changes to the design of the drive sheave on its strength and durability. It was decided to adopt the results of strength analysis of the sheave assembly currently in service as the baseline for this assessment. This required not only the performance of a strength analysis on the basis of a specially developed drive sheave calculation model, but also identification and assessment of the allowable stress values for the analysed structure.