J. Construct. Steel Res. Vol. 39, No. 1, pp.

3-29, 1996
Copyright 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd
Printed in Great Britain. All rights reserved
PII: S0143-947X(96)00027-2 0143-974X/96 $15.00 + 0.00
ELSEVIER

Developments in steel cables

J. M. Walton

Cart Hill, Doncaster, South Yorkshire DN4 8DG, UK

ABSTRACT

This paper traces the development of steel cables over recent years, and
describes how the Wire Rope industry has responded to the needs of the
Construction industry. There is now a wider choice of products available
than ever before, both in terms of size and (axial) stiffness, and this has led to
corresponding developments in the requisite end fittings. New and improved
methods of cable corrosion protection have also gained widespread accept-
ance. The purpose of this paper is to alert designers to the major advances
that have been made in the design and manufacture of steel structural ten-
dons. R~ference is made to the requirements of both on- and off-shore appli-
cations, and to the increasing demands of ever larger structures. Experience
on the largest structural projects has shown that in addition to optimising
the usual cable performance parameters, careful consideration must be given
to logistical factors. It is important that all these options are not only under-
stood bn:t are evaluated at a sufficiently early stage of the structural design
process to be effective. Copyright 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd.

1 INTRODUCTION

Over the last decade there has been a rapid growth in the diversity of steel
cable products being offered to the market to meet the requirements of 'Ten-
sion Structures'. This development has encompassed both the traditional types
of cable: spJLral strands, stranded ropes and locked-coil ropes, as well as introd-
ucing more radical design solutions which include: parallel wire bundles
(PWB); parallel wire strands (PWS); parallel strand bundles (PSB); parallel
strand cable, s. Together they have resulted in a considerable expansion of the
performance envelope available from flexible steel tendons, as outlined below.
Historica][ly, small differences in cable construction often owed more to an
inclination on the part of the rope manufacturer to differentiate his products,
than any serious consideration of design optimisation. However, the recent
4 J.M. Walton

changes have been largely market led, or at least in response to a perceived

market need, and represent a real attempt to tailor the cable design solution
to the application. Much of the stimulation for these changes has come from
the development of innovatory structures, in particular cable-stayed bridges
and offshore oil platforms which posed new problems for the rope-maker. Not
least of these was the demand for cable sizes not previously envisaged, both
in terms of length and diameter, as larger and larger structures were conceived.
Allied to these cable developments, there has been a fundamental review
of the corrosion protection measures that should be adopted to ensure the
longevity of performance that is demanded for such major capital projects.
These needed to take account of not only the increasingly hostile environments
that were being ventured into, but also in many cases the alarmingly high cost
and difficulty of cable replacement. Fortunately major material improvements
were available to meet this challenge and there is now a high level of confi-
dence that protection can be guaranteed for an almost indefinite period of time.
Similar advances have necessarily occurred in the design and manufacture
of end fittings, which frequently represent the most critical aspect of a tension
structure involving wire rope tendons. New materials and procedures have
been introduced to enhance product performance and integrity, consistent with
the cable developments and protective measures referred to above.
Evidence is presented here to show that the industry has made great efforts
to generate timely and efficient solutions to the structural designer's require-
ments. Consequently, steel cables now offer a versatile and highly cost-effec-
tive solution to almost all elongate tension member problems. An implicit
feature of all these steel cables is the high level of reliability and quality
assurance that is fundamental to the design and manufacturing procedures.

2 TRADITIONAL PRODUCTS

2.1 Spiral strands

The spiral strand, comprising a number of concentric layers of round wires,

has for many years been the most common form of tension member for struc-
tural applications. Typically these strands are constructed from 5 mm diameter
galvanised wire, spun together at a characteristic lay factor of 12-13. Before
the 1970s it was unusual to see strands containing much more than 100 wires,
which infers a strand diameter of around 55 mm and a breaking strength of
some 2.5 MN.
The 1980s saw the development of spiral strands of up to 127 m m diameter
with breaking strengths well in excess of 12.5 MN. This involved spinning
together many more wires than hitherto (-300), although to optimise the strand
 Developments in steel cables 5

design, the diameter of the individual wires was also increased substantially,
to 6.5 mm. Despite this and the move to an equal-lay centre, a total of eight
separate stranding operations are involved in producing a strand of this size,
as illustrated on the cross-section given in Fig. 1.
An associated design revision of considerable significance was a move to
shorter lays (9-10 lay factor) for these much larger strands as it became appar-
ent that strand coherence and integrity would otherwise suffer, especially for
the outer cover of (54) wires.
The guiding principle for this design change was the relative curvature of
the wire helix, and a set of design rules were established empirically linking
the number of wires in a layer to a recommended lay angle, based on a limiting
bend ratio. This technology has since been successfully extended to spiral
strands of up to 164 mm, as used for example on the Queen Elizabeth II cable-
stayed bridge over the River Thames at Dartford. Here on the largest cables
an outer cover of 72 wires was used with a total of 13 spinning operations
involving almost 500 wires. The breaking strength of these largest ever pro-
duction cables was in excess of 22.5 MN.
Meanwhile back in the research laboratory, experimental lengths of spiral
strand have been produced in sizes up to 240 nun diameter, using 7 mm diam-
eter outer wires, and the breaking strength efficiency of such products has
been demonstrated within the limit of the available testing capability (30 MN);
a breaking load of 27.4 MN being achieved from a 185 mm diameter test
piece in resin cone terminations. ~ Despite the very high level of confidence

CONSTRUCTION
54 x ~ Round VI~
48 x 6.611m Round II1~
42 x ~ Round VI~
SIT x 6.~Omm Round VIr~
31 x 6.Sam Raund VIr~

i
25 x ~ Round WI~
19 x ~ B ~ m Round iJl~
14 x 6.~ Round I/IrB
7 x 3.~ Round Vires
7 x 5.111m Round Vk-w
7 x S.2Olm Round Vlrml
! x 7.~ Round Wires

Fig. 1. 127 mm diameter spiral strand.

6 J.M. Walton

that this has generated in the technical feasibility of manufacturing spiral

strands in yet larger diameters, there are doubts about whether this will be
the most practical and/or cost effective solution when other factors such as
machine capacity and logistical factors are taken into account.
In addition to the experimental developments referred to above, consider-
able progress has also been made on the theoretical front, aimed at giving
wire rope designers and users a better understanding of the likely effects of
extrapolating their practical experience of small strands up to the much larger
products. Raoof, in particular, has successfully developed mathematical tech-
niques which have enabled him to carry out parametric studies and to theoreti-
cally predict various strand characteristics with considerable accuracy. Refer-
ence 2 is one of the latest in an extensive series of related publications on
this subject.

2.2 Stranded ropes

Although there is a long tradition of using simple wire rope constructions for
bridge hangers and mast stay cables, these applications have not seen the same
escalation in demand for larger and more sophisticated tendons as referred
to earlier.
One reason for this is that the stretch characteristics of large stranded ropes
are not so attractive as those offered by the spiral strand. Offshore however,
particularly in applications where stretch is non-critical, as for example in
catenary mooring systems, the demand for large mooring lines has broken
new ground in terms of both product size and rope construction. Six-strand
ropes of up to 193 mm diameter have been supplied, although currently rope
diameters <100 m m are more typical.
The design approach in the larger sizes has been to move from the usual
single stranding operation, to multi-operation stranding once the practical limit
of wire size has been reached. This trend is reflected in table 1 of ISO 8369-
1986, which projects ropes of up to 205 mm diameter. The introduction of
more complex strand constructions has been shown to result in a significant
fall-off in the tensile efficiency of the rope, as evidenced by the empirical
breaking load factors given in clause 5.7 of ISO 8369-1986.
There is strong evidence to suggest that this pattern of behaviour may well
be correlated with the inter-wire contact stresses, which tend to increase more
or less in proportion to the number of outer wires in each strand and are
demonstrably very much higher than would be encountered in a spiral strand.
Whilst much work has been done to try to mitigate the effects of these stresses
on rope efficiency by careful attention to design criteria, it remains a critical
aspect of the breaking load performance, closely linked to considerations of
wire ductility. Efforts have therefore been made to manufacture wires which
 Developments in steel cables 7

are better able to withstand localised contact stresses through wire process
development (see also Section 6.1), which have resulted in a much more con-
sistent leve,1 of performance. Nevertheless, it does appear that there is a funda-
mental constraint here that will inhibit the achievement of very high unit
breaking strengths from stranded ropes.
Other considerations that may influence the specification of stranded ropes
are: (a) the ability of rope constructions to accept more severe bending than
spiral strands where coiling is a prerequisite, and (b) the inherent retention of
broken outer wires since they are entrapped by adjacent strands, but also (c)
that they a~re more difficult to protect against corrosion due to the more open
form of construction and the greater ease of penetration of corrosive media.

2.3 Lockefl coil ropes

Much of the design technology pertaining to spiral strands is also common

to locked coil ropes since they share the same form of construction (in concen-
tric helical layers). However, the use of shaped (interlocking) wires instead
of round wires enables substantially higher fill factors to be achieved with a
proportion~tl increase in mass for a given cable diameter. This denseness of
fill is well illustrated in the cross-section view of a sample of 127 mm diameter
locked coil rope shown in Fig. 2. In this example a fill factor of 0.97 was
achieved, compared with a figure of 0.78 which is typical of the equivalent
spiral strand (illustrated earlier), that is an increase of 24%. After bedding the

CONSTRUCTION
54 x 7.88.m Ful t Look I/Ires
48 x 7 . 8 1 ~ Fut t Lock Wires
4B x 7.118m Fut t Look Wires
41 x 7.Hmm Fu|| Look Wires
4e x 6.BSmm Fut t L t ~ k Vires
40 x 5 . 8 ~ m Fut t Look Wire/
33 x S.6emm Fu(l Look Wires:
~: x 4@'. FuLL Lc~'k Wire.
x 36Bmm Ful t Lock Wires
t4 x 4 5 @ 1 Round t/Ires
? x 285mm Round Wires
7 x 3.78== Round Wires
? x 3.gemm Round Wires
I x 545mm Round tllres

Fig. 2. 127 mm diameter locked coil.

8 J.M. Walton

two products to their working load condition, the corresponding increase in

axial stiffness (EA) was found to be 30%, indicating a small additional benefit
from the improved lateral stiffness of the locked coil rope.
From a rope breaking load viewpoint it is also possible to point to a poten-
tial advantage from the use of shaped wire, in proportion to the increase in
cross-sectional area, but this is only valid if wires of the same tensile grade
are being compared. In practice it is usually possible to compensate for this
difference by drawing the round wires to a higher ultimate tensile strength
(UTS) than would be achieved in shaped wires. In the limit therefore the
locked coil rope will have a similar breaking load to a spiral strand of equal
diameter, despite its higher steel content.
The justification for using locked coil ropes in spite of this weight (and
cost) penalty, comes from the potential secondary benefits associated with the
use of shaped wire which include:
- - i m p r o v e d corrosion protection;
- - m o r e solid aesthetic appearance;
--ability to withstand higher gripping stresses;
- - b e t t e r wear resistance;
- - o u t e r wire retention (in the event of a fracture).
For these and other reasons the locked coil rope has not been left behind
in the development of very large sizes, and cables of up to 167 mm have been
manufactured in commercial quantities, for example on the Dao Khanong
cable-stayed bridge in Bangkok. 3 Here breaking strengths in excess of 30 MN
were achieved. Again there was no evidence of a fall-off in breaking strength
efficiency with rope size, generating confidence in the further extrapolation
of this type of cable design, subject of course to the necessary manufacturing
and handling capabilities.
A disadvantage of all these helically stranded forms of cable is that the
wires are disposed at a significant angle to the axis of loading with a conse-
quential reduction in tensile efficiency and axial stiffness as compared with
a simple bundle of straight parallel wires. For many applications these draw-
backs are more than offset by the improved flexibility and structural integrity
that the helical lay affords, but for structural applications where axial perform-
ance is of paramount importance, the alternative 'parallel' products described
below are attracting growing interest, especially for cable-stayed bridges.

3 PARALLEL PRODUCTS
3.1 Parallel bundles
This section refers to tension members in which the individual elements (wires
or strands) are laid straight and parallel to one another, usually within a jacket
 Developments in steel cables 9

which both protects the elements and provides the necessary integrity for
handling purposes. Alternatively, if a number of the bundles are to be sub-
sequently amalgamated together into a larger cable, then discrete wrappings
may be used to bind the elements together temporarily during the transpor-
tation and assembly operations.

Parallel wire bundles (PWB)

These are the simplest form of tension member available and provided that
the elements are correctly positioned and tensioned it can offer a very efficient
and cost-effective solution. Galvanised wires of 5-7 mm diameter and 1770-
1570 MPa (respectively) are commonly used. These wire sizes and tensile
grades repn~sent a very practical compromise between the conflicting interests
of the wire drawing process and the cable designer, and there is little scope
for radical improvement. Slightly higher tensile grades could be achieved but
not without some loss in wire ductility.
Another area of development is to manufacture galvanised wires with an
elevated proof stress or elastic limit that is equivalent to the low-relaxation
properties being achieved in bright pre-stressing wire. This not only improves
the creep pe,rformance of parallel wire bundles in service, but is also consistent
with the associated requirement for high degrees of wire straightness in the
original supply form, for ease of control and assembly.
For all practical purposes the breaking strength and axial stiffness of the
bundle can be taken as being equal to the aggregate properties of the ingoing
wires, that is 100% conversion efficiency. Also the conversion costs are poten-
tially lower than for any of the laid-up products, since the expenses of
operating large rotating machinery are avoided. However, this type of product
is not designed to accept in-service bending and the lack of structural integrity
may pose difficulties, depending on the criticality of the application. Despite
these reservations the parallel bundle is finding increased application in
bridge structures.
In the pa,;t these products have generally been 'spun' or assembled together
on-site, but more recently techniques have been developed for the fabrication
and handling of factory-made units. This enables the wires to be measured to
length and terminated under controlled conditions. Subsequent coiling and
handling operations will inevitably introduce the risk of distortion of the
bundle as tile wires move to accommodate the bending strain, but this effect
can be mitigated by putting a controlled amount of twist into the bundle as
it is wound on to a reel (and removing it during the uncoiling operation). This
is one of the considerations that tend to limit the size of bundle that can be
contemplated as a prefabricated unit, although assemblies of up to 500 wires
are now accepted as being feasible. Other major factors are the total unit
weight and the influence that this has on the supply logistics.
10 J. M. Walton

The factory operation also allows the bundles to be sheathed and blocked,
preferably with a non-rigid semisolid material that is impervious to moisture.
This represents a major step forward in terms of both ease of introduction
and weight saving, when compared with the traditional practice of using a
cement grout, which could only be pumped in after the stays had been erected
and tensioned, as well as other performance-related benefits (see also Table 1).

Parallel strand bundles (PSB)

The move to parallel bundles of strands is a logical progression from the PWB
with several obvious benefits:
(a) the strands can be considerably larger than the single (7 mm) wires,
without being any more rigid in the flexural sense, and are typically
in the range 12-16 mm;
(b) fewer units are therefore required to achieve a given cable size and
strength, which makes for ease of assembly;
(c) higher tensile strengths are available through the use of smaller compo-
nent wires, with a resulting increase in the strength:weight ratio of
the bundle;
(d) the strands are readily available in a straight condition and with low-
relaxation properties, from the Prestressed Concrete Industry supplier.
Typically ungalvanised seven-wire prestressing strands are used in
either 1670, 1770 or 1860 grade wire, in accordance with B.S. 5896,
EN 138 or ASTM A-416.
Strand bundles are usually assembled on-site with a minimum of environ-
mental protection or handling equipment. The generally preferred method to

TABLE 1
Typical Tension Member Properties (based on products of 127 mm nominal diameter)

Parallel Spiral Locked coil BRISTA Y

wire strand strand rope

Outer layer 48 x 7.0 mm 54 6.6 mm 54 x 7.0 mm 18 15.2 mm

Round Round Full lock Strands
wires wires wires
Construction 1 x 265 1 x 290 1 x 410 55 x 7 (6/1)
Breaking load (MN) 16.0 13.2 13.9 16.5
Steel weight (kg/m) 80 79 98 72
Strength to weight ratio (km) 20.4 17.5 14.5 23.4
Axial stiffness (EA) (MN) 2000 1300 1810 1770
Stiffness to weight ratio 25.0 16.5 18.5 24.6
Torsional stability Poor Excellent Excellent Good
 Developments in steel cables 11

date has been to winch the strands up individually into a pre-erected tubular
outer stay casing, and then to separately tension each one to the structure, a
practice wlhich ensures uniform load sharing between strands. The resulting
cable there,fore has no inherent structural integrity as each of the strands is
anchored independently. However, the use of a rigid filler such as a cement
grout will provide a potential load transfer mechanism between strands
because of the ribbed helical surface of the component strands.
There is no obvious limit to the size of cable that could be produced in
this way, although the problems of in-situ grouting may be expected to
increase with diameter. The prefabricated route may avoid these problems and
offer greater security of strand positioning and initial alignment, but not with-
out subsequent handling and logistical difficulties, which perhaps serves to
explain wily there has been little commercial interest to date in factory-
made units.
The key development that is needed for stay cable purposes is a switch to
galvanised strands for their corrosion protection advantage, whereas histori-
cally prestressing strand has mostly been preferred in the bright condition.
For factory-made cables, galvanising is viewed as a desirable additional fea-
ture, but if site-fabrication is being contemplated then galvanising may be
considered essential to avoid deterioration during assembly.
From a property point of view it is again expected that the cable will
develop the full aggregate strength (and stiffness) of the constituent strands,
although on the largest cables this may be impossible to demonstrate, if only
because the cost of full-scale testing would be prohibitively expensive (see
also Table 1 for illustrative data).

3.2 ParalM wire strands (PWS) (Fig. 3)

This term is used to describe a tension member comprising an assembly of

wires that are spun together at a long helical lay in a single operation. The
effect of this equal-lay approach is that any two adjacent wires, although
curved unlike the wires in the PWB, always remain equidistant from one
another and in continuous contact. The idea of spinning a large number of
identical wJires together in a single operation at a very long lay seems to date
back to the mid-1970s when the concept was applied to the stays for the
Centrepoint Tower in Sydney, Australia. Since then the concept has been
adopted on a number of cable-stayed bridges around the world.
The length of lay is selected to provide a measure of strand coherence, and
allow it to be bent and coiled without distortion of the cross-sectional shape.
Given wire with an adequate degree of straightness, this requirement can be
satisfied with lay factors of around 50-70, which is far removed from the
12 J. M. Walton

Fig. 3. 127 mm parallel wire strand (PWS).

traditional strand design practices referred to earlier. The prime consequences

of this change are that:
(a) all the wires are in line contact with one another with very low con-
tact stresses;
(b) the lateral compliance of the PWS cable (when loaded axially)
approaches that of a solid bar and does not therefore augment the cable
elongation behaviour;
(c) the bending stresses induced during stranding are relatively insignifi-
cant;
(d) the aggregate properties of the ingoing wire are substantially repro-
duced in the finished cable.
The resulting stay therefore has performance characteristics which are vir-
tually indistinguishable from the PWB but with the additional benefit of flexi-
bility. PWS products containing as many as 500 wires are now being pro-
duced, which enables breaking loads of up to 30 MN to be offered (based on
7 m m diameter wires in 1570 grade galvanised material). It can also be shown
that there is some potential for load transfer between adjacent wires by virtue
 Developments in steel cables 13

of the capstan effect, but this will be at a substantially lower level than in a
conventional strand because of the reduced contact stresses. This feature and
the general handling characteristics, could be enhanced by moving to shorter
lays, but not without introducing design complications and prejudicing the
conversion efficiency.

3.3 Paralleel strand cables (Fig. 4)

This latesl: development in stay cable technology was first introduced by

Shinko in 1985 on the Tsukuhara Bridge in Japan, and comprises an assembly
of strands, as above, but spun together at a long helical lay, as in the case of
the PWS. All the strands are laid up together in one operation at the same
helical pitch, so that each strand remains in contact with and equidistant from
adjacent strands throughout the length. The resulting cable combines all the
best features of both the PWS and the PSB, with the additional benefit of
torsional stability. This is achieved by arranging the lay directions of the

Fig. 4. 160 mm parallel strand cable.

14 J. M. Walton

(wires in the) strands to be opposite to the lay direction of the (strands in the)
cable, so that their respective torsional moments counterbalance one another.
Further enhancement may be gained by using compacted (or DYFORM )
strands. This makes for a more compact cable cross-section and not only
reduces the cable diameter for a given strength requirement, but also greatly
improves the contact conditions between the strands, as illustrated in Fig. 5.
This BRISTAY product seems to offer the ultimate solution to most struc-
tural tendon requirements, offering the following unique combination of attri-
butes:

--excellent flexibility and coherence from the helical lay-up;

--high axial stiffness--comparable with a parallel strand bundle;
- - f a c t o r y made cables for faster installation and tensioning;
- - b l o c k e d and sheathed under controlled conditions;
- - e a s i l y coiled and handled in long continuous lengths;
- - i n h e r e n t torsional stability from 'ordinary lay' construction;
--outstanding strength:size and strength:weight ratios;

Fig. 5. 127 mm BRISTAY cable.

 Developments in steel cables 15

- - constructed from readily available components in either bright or galvan-

ished finish and offering low-relaxation properties.

The presl:ressing strands are manufactured in a range of standard diameters

and breakinLg loads, as detailed in B.S. 5896. For the drawn (or DYFORM )
product range (in ungalvanised material), the three most popular sizes are
given in Table 2. In galvanised finish the tensile strength will be slightly lower.
A matrix of cable sizes can then be constructed using various numbers of
these strands, arranged in a hexagonal or quasi-hexagonal form, as set out for
example in Table 3. This provides a good selection of cable sizes (from 38 to
254 mm) arid hence a range of strengths to suit a wide variety of applications.

4 CORROSION PROTECTION

4.1 Galvanic protection

The use of galvanised coatings on wires has become standard practice for
structural cables where there is a long life expectancy. Both electrolytic and
hot-dip galvanising techniques have been used, although for large diameter
wires final hot-dip galvanising has become the preferred method. For large
diameter wires a minimum zinc coat weight of around 300 g/m 2 would typi-
cally be specified, in accordance for example with Class A of B.S. 443, which
equates to a radial thickness of some 40 microns; although a lighter coating
of say 25 microns would be accepted for drawn galvanised wires. The spectre
of hydrogen embrittlement of galvanised steel has been raised on several
occasions bat is not recognised as a real problem with wire ropes and cables,
at least within the range of current manufacturing experience. More discussion
of this issue is contained in Ref. 4.
The rate of depletion of such coatings in service will obviously depend on
the severity of the exposure conditions. In a marine environment, for example,

TABLE 2
DYFORM Strand Properties

Strand Steel area Mass (kg/m) Breaking

diameter (mm2) load (KN)
(mm)

12.7 112 0.89 209

15.2 165 1.30 300
18.0 223 1.75 380
16 J. M. Walton

TABLE 3
BRISTAY Cable Properties

Ref No. Nominal No. of unit Steel area Steel weight Breaking
cable strands ( cm 2) (kg/m ) strength
diameter (MN)
(mm)

12.7 mm diameter strands

7A 38 7 7.84 6.23 1.46
19A 64 19 21.3 16.9 3.97
31A 80 31 34.7 27.6 6.48
55A 104 55 61.6 49.0 11.5
85A 129 85 95.2 75.7 17.8
15.2 mm diameter strands
7B 45 7 11.6 9.07 2.10
19B 76 19 31.4 24.6 5.70
31B 96 31 51.2 40.3 9.30
55B 125 55 90.8 71.5 16.5
85B 155 85 140 111 25.5
121B 185 121 200 157 36.3
163B 215 163 269 212 48.9
18.0 mm diameter strands
7c 54 7 15.6 12.3 2.66
19c 90 19 42.4 33.3 7.22
31C 113 31 69.1 54.3 11.8
55c 148 55 123 96.3 20.9
85c 183 85 190 149 32.3
121c 219 121 270 212 46.0
163c 254 163 363 285 61.9

the corrosion rate is heavily dependent upon the water flow velocity, as this
has a controlling influence on the dissolution of corrosion products.
Samples o f unsheathed galvanised 127 m m diameter spiral strand were
recovered from the North Sea after 13 years of constant immersion in a tidal
flow. Superficial examination revealed no traces of zinc and significant rusting
o f the exposed outer wire crowns, but when the strand was stripped down,
all the internal wire surfaces were found to be in excellent condition with the
zinc coating still very much in evidence. Despite the visual indications, the
loss in strength of the corroded outer wires was only about 50 MPa, which
represents a strength reduction of less than 1% for the strand as a whole.
Identical samples of strand that had been fitted with an extruded plastics jacket
containing small windows to simulate sheathing damage, were similarly
exposed. However, examination of the outer wire surfaces through the win-
dows showed that the zinc coating was still intact despite the penetration of
 Developments in steel cables 17

the jacket. This demonstrates that even an imperfect jacket is beneficial, and
that quite a limited shrouding effect can significantly retard the rate of cor-
rosion.
The level of corrosion resistance can also be considerably enhanced by
cathodic protection (CP) means. One approach that has been successfully
employed is to incorporate continuous anodic elements, such as zinc or alu-
minium alloys, into an exposed position in the cable, where they can sacri-
ficially protect the outer wire surfaces and substantially delay the onset of
corrosion to the steel substrate. The alternative impressed current systems are
only effective when the cable is fully immersed and covered with an insulating
jacket. In this situation the CP will only operate when the sheathing is dam-
aged, and consequently the current flow is likely to be too low for voltage
drop to become a problem, even over relatively long lengths of tether. The
corollary to this is that if the connecting termination or structure has no protec-
tion system, then there is a risk of the galvanic coating on the cable being
depleted more rapidly as it attempts to protect the structure.
An improved form of galvanic protection known as GALFAN has been
finding commercial application in wire ropes. The coating, which is applied
by the hot-dip method, comprises a zinc-aluminium alloy (with 5% wt. A1)
instead of pure zinc. This alloy has been shown to have a substantially greater
passive resi,;tance to corrosion in simulated industrial and marine environ-
ments, so that it is depleted less rapidly. 5 This is proving particularly attractive
for stay cables which have no other form of protection such as mast stays, as
a longer life can be expected to first corrosion of the substrate. However, once
corrosion of the steel has initiated and the coating is required to protect in
the active mode, there may be no further advantage, as the electrochemical
capacity of GALFAN is not dissimilar to that of pure zinc.

4.2 Blocking and coatings

The primary purpose of a blocking material is to provide an inert, stable

and impervious barrier to moisture or other corrosive media. The principal
requirements of the material are therefore that it should be hydrophobic, have
good adherence and be physically resistant to wash-out. Semi-solid com-
pounds based on petrolatum or synthetic waxes offer an attractive solution
because they are easily applied in a liquid state, adhere readily and resist
displacement when cool, but remain capable of plastic flow for an indefinite
period, should inter-wire movement demand it. They are therefore the pre-
ferred choice for applications in which cable flexing may occur.
The wax-based compounds are also well suited to the plastic sheathed cable,
where they remain totally compliant and in the event of sheathing damage
they can very effectively prevent the migration of moisture along the cable.
18 J. M. Walton

It should be noted here that for deep-sea mooring cables, the blocking material
has an important secondary role in transmitting the hydrostatic pressure
throughout the cross-section. If the cable is not fully blocked with a substan-
tially incompressible fluid, then at depth the hydrostatic pressure will exert
undesirable compressive forces on the cable with deleterious effects on the
cable stiffness and fatigue performance, as predicted by Raoof, 2"6 as well as
introducing a potentially harmful pressure differential across the sheathing.
The solid paint-type coatings such as the traditional red lead or the more
recent aluminium-based BRIDON METALCOAT compound, offer a much
greater resistance to displacement and are therefore more appropriate for
unsheathed cables. Their limitation is that once set, they have no ability to
flow and should not therefore be used for applications where significant flexing
is likely.
This disadvantage is usually overcome by installing and tensioning the
cables before the final dressing of the coating material is applied. For similar
reasons the use of solid blocking materials inside sheathed cables has little to
commend it from a corrosion viewpoint, as their long-term integrity is more
difficult to ensure and the additional stiffness serves no useful purpose.

4.3 Plastics sheathing

The most effective method of corrosion prevention is to exclude the corrosive

media completely. An external jacket of plastics material can offer an imper-
meable barrier that will withstand most environments for an indefinite period.
It has therefore become the preferred solution where extended service lives
are sought in aggressive environments, for example in the offshore mooring
situation where service lives in excess of 30 years are being demanded.
The preferred sheathing material to date has been medium to high density
polyethylene, which has been used extensively for power cables, pressure pip-
ing and sub-sea telephone cable sheathing, where there is good long-term
service experience. The mechanical properties of this polymer are excellent
and moisture permeability is negligible (even under conditions of high hydro-
static pressure providing that the blocking is effective). Resistance to U.V.
degradation can be easily ensured where necessary by using pigmentation
additives.
One of the major concerns with plastic sheathed cables has been their ability
to withstand handling operations without material damage. A secondary objec-
tion was that in the event of the jacket being penetrated, then corrosion might
proceed more rapidly than if the cable had been unsheathed. Recent experience
of handling large cables such as the 150 mm tethers for the Norsk Hydro Troll
Platform, has failed to substantiate either of these fears, and has been entirely
 Developments in steel cables 19

successful so long as sensible precautions were taken to protect the jacket

during handling operations.
The specification of the sheathing thickness is an important consideration
and a wall thickness of 11 mm would not be considered excessive for a
150 mm strand. This amount of plastic cannot be justified on corrosion protec-
tion grounds alone, but is designed more to offer a margin of safety from a
mechanical handling viewpoint, by allowing surface contact forces to be
spread over a greater footprint to reduce the contact stresses.
Experience of sheathed stays on bridges is more limited, particularly for
the traditional rope products, where paint-type coating systems have been and
still are very prevalent. However, the perspective could change quite rapidly,
as jacketed aon-conventional stays become widely accepted. There are already
signs of some plastic sheathed conventional products being specified, as for
example on the Bosporous II Bridge hangers, and this trend may be expected
to continue,, at least in the smaller stay sizes where extrusion facilities are
readily available. For the very large cables then plastic sheathing, at least by
the extrusion route, will be less cost effective, and the existing wrapping and
on-site painting solutions may continue to be favoured.

5 CABLE END FITTINGS

5.1 General concepts

A critical feature of any tension member is the means of attachment to the

structure or anchorage. Most factory-made stays are supplied cut to length
and with the end fittings already attached. The stay manufacturer therefore
designs, fits and warrants the cable end attachments. To be totally effective,
the end fittings must:
(a) withstand the full breaking force of the stay without significant yield-
ing;
(b) be completely reliable under all service conditions (loading and
environmental) for the full life of the stay;
(c) endure dynamic load cycling without risk of fatigue failure of the fit-
ting, and without inducing fatigue failure of the stay (local to the
termination).
The detailed design of the fittings can vary widely, depending on the appli-
cation dema:ads and the type of stay being considered. Generally however, for
structural cables the termination is likely to comprise some form of conical
socket into which the ends of the stay are splayed and cast. As tension is
applied to the stay the cone is drawn into the socket and wedging forces are
20 J. M. Walton

developed which grip the wires. The attraction of this mechanism is that it is
self-regulating, the gripping forces increasing in proportion to the applied axial
load, with an additional initial bond coming from the shrinkage of the casting
medium on to the wires.
In simple terms then, providing that the cone angle, the cone length and
the other relevant factors are correctly chosen, the terminations should be safe
and reliable over the entire load spectrum. A key parameter here is the number
of wires in the stay, since this controls the relative surface area that is available
for gripping purposes. Gripping problems are likely to be most acute when
the stay comprises few wires, as recognised in DIN.3092 (for N < 50). The
corollary to this is that cables having a large number of wires will be relatively
easy to terminate, and therefore upward extrapolation to the larger sizes should
not present any fundamental difficulties. For example 'cone length = 5 cable
diameter' is a well established rule of thumb which is widely adopted for
socket design purposes. The weakness of this approach if taken in isolation
is that it takes no account of the number of wires involved (and hence the
relative wire sizes). It may therefore prove to be conservative and result in
an over-designed socket in the larger cable sizes, but conversely may be inad-
equate for the simple cable constructions.
Efforts have been made to develop a more sophisticated analysis of socket
gripping mechanisms, with valuable results. For example Gabriel & Heimes 7
of Stuttgart University refer to their study of zinc alloy cast cones using a
Finite Element model, which emphasises inter alia the importance of the fric-
tional bond, and in particular draws attention to a wire surface roughness
effect which may well have wire size implications. This reference serves to
demonstrate the complexity of the socketing problem from an analytical point
of view unless gross simplifying assumptions are made.
Ideally, the designer would have a simulation model incorporating all the
relevant factors, but modelling techniques which can simultaneously accom-
modate: (a) frictional sliding, (b) plastic yielding, and (c) residual stresses
(from the solidification, cooling or curing process), within a complex three-
dimensional composite matrix, are not yet well developed. For the present,
therefore, terminations tend to be based on proven design parameters, and
to err on the side of caution when extrapolating above the normal range of
product size.
For the multi-strand type of stay cables referred to earlier (PSB and
BRISTAY) the usual brushing and casting method can be used very effectively
because of the large wire surface area available. However, alternative solutions
incorporating proprietary wedge-type strand grips 8 can also be considered
where appropriate.
 Developments in steel cables 21

5.2 Parallel products

Stays of non-conventional design (i.e. bundles of straight wires or very long

lay strands), present special problems from a termination viewpoint for the
following reasons:
(a) they have an exceptionally high breaking strength for a given cable
size because of their high conversion efficiency and fill factor;
(b) larger wires tend to be used with a consequent reduction in the surface
area available for gripping purposes, per unit load;
(c) the high fill factor also makes full penetration of the capping medium
into the brush more difficult to achieve;
(d) there is little or no load transfer capability between adjacent wires in
the stay.
Special safeguards have therefore been introduced to ensure that each and
every wire is adequately gripped. These include:

when specifying the socket length, attention is paid not only to the cable
diame,ter but also to the diameter of the constituent wires (e.g. DIN.3092
recommends that the cone length should be not less than 70 times
wire diameter);
the conical bore of the socket must be smooth and free from any signifi-
cant impediment to the wedging action;
--when the end of the cable is splayed out into a conical brush, a spacer
plate is introduced to separate the wires and provide a totally controlled
brush formation;
- - the wire surfaces in the area of the brush must be scrupulously cleaned
to ensure good bond strength;
- - w h e r e v e r possible the cone should be withdrawn from the socket after
casting and inspected to verify the quality of fill.

One embellishment that has been extensively adopted for PWB and more
recently for PWS, is button-heading of the wire ends, as propounded, for
example, by BBRV in their HiAm anchorage system. Details of this and other
similar systems have already been widely published, e.g. Ref. 8, and are not
repeated here. This technique may be used to advantage with tendons which
have no StlaJctural integrity and especially those comprising small numbers of
wires, but is arguably less effective on larger stays, where button-heading
becomes redundant if used in conjunction with a conical socket. Also this
method is not applicable to traditional products due to the difficulty of access
to the wire ends, and in any event is unnecessary because of the high level
of inter-wire friction and load sharing in the cable.
22 ]. M. Walton

5.3 Resin vs zinc

The use of both resin and zinc-based capping systems has continued with
neither showing a decisive lead, and for most applications either material could
provide a viable termination solution. Nevertheless, there are a number of
distinguishing features which may lead to one system being favoured over the
other, for some situations. These are discussed below.
Zinc is the traditional casting material and given the experience of more
than 100 years successful use in structural applications, there is a high level
of confidence in its long-term performance. It has the benefit of being simple
to use without any significant control or shelf-life problems. It offers an
inherent cathodic protection capability in the critical area at the neck of the
socket. However, it is sometimes criticised, e.g. Ref. 8, for impairing the
fatigue performance of the stay in this same region, because of thermal effects
on the wire properties during casting. Whilst this may be a valid argument
for some sensitive wire products, it should not be held to apply to the vast
majority of structural stay products which are specified in final galvanised
finish, since this material has already been exposed to the same thermal treat-
ment (i.e. heating to 450C), during the galvanising process.
More importantly, it has been found that in heavily stressed terminations
which are subjected to sustained loading, the traditional pure zinc cones are
prone to long-term creep effects. Although the rate of creep is not normally
sufficient to give cause for concern, there is nevertheless growing support for
a move to more creep-resistant materials. Zinc alloys containing copper and/or
aluminium are therefore being widely specified in preference to pure zinc.
These can be cast with the same facility as pure zinc and at more or less the
same pouring temperature, whilst offering a dramatic improvement in yield
strength. 7
Resin filled sockets have been in use now for about 30 years, and although
the experience on major structural projects is rather more recent, there have
been no identified concerns regarding its long-term stability under normal
environmental conditions, and there is no reason to expect that it will not
perform satisfactorily for much longer periods. Long-term accelerated testing
carried out in the laboratory has shown that resin terminations have a very
much better creep resistance than the creep-resistant zinc alloys.
There are several proprietary resin materials available to suit the socketing
application. Most are based on a two-pack filled polyester resin system,
although epoxy resin is also used by some manufacturers. Obviously care
must be taken to ensure that the resin has cured properly. This is assured with
some resin systems by observing a colour change during hardening. Where a
quantitative check is required, hardness measurements can be carded out on
 Developments in steel cables 23

either sample tablets or on the cone itself, after the recommended curing
regime.
It has be,en noted that resin cones (against steel sockets) have a substantially
greater coefficient of friction than zinc against steel (namely 0.40 and 0.25,
respectively). This is particularly relevant to the cone wedging action referred
to earlier, since the increased frictional resistance between the resin cone and
the steel socket will effectively reduce the radial stresses that are generated
in the termination. When taken in isolation this does not necessarily impair
the efficiency of resin-filled sockets as there is a corresponding enhancement
at the resin to wire interface. However, some difficulties have been experi-
enced when resin has been used in conjunction with locking grooves, which
have for many years been a feature of general purpose sockets especially in
the U S A , 9 and other impedimenta that have combined to prevent the cone
pulling in effectively under load. The resulting view is that where resin is
used, then greater care must be taken in specifying the socket bore profile
and condition.

5.4 Bend restrictors

For applications where there is a significant risk of cable bending at the ter-
mination, .devices have been fitted to the neck of the socket to control the
local deflection. The design of these restrictors recognises that very high bend-
ing stresses can be induced in the section of cable immediately adjacent to
the termination, but these can be mitigated by providing transitional support
over quite a short axial length. This situation is more likely to arise in offshore
moorings lhan on bridge cables because of the different levels of structural
excursion and mean tension that are commonly found. However, bridge cable
excitation from vibrational sources alone may warrant a socket bend restrictor,
as in the case of the replacement hangers on the Sevem Bridge l where rubber-
lined coll~trs were introduced at the socket neck.
For offs]~ore platform tethers the support collar concept has been extended
into a tape,red 'boot' of elastomeric material to allow a gradual change of
stiffness as illustrated for example in Fig. 6, with the objective of controlling
the strand deflection to a minimum radius of bend. In this instance the steel
cable was sheathed with a plastics jacket for corrosion protection purposes,
and the boot served the dual purpose of providing both additional flexural
support and a means of sealing the jacket to the termination, to prevent the
ingress of corrosive media.
The difficulty here from the design point of view is that the inherent cable
stiffness is highly dependent upon the axial load level. At zero tension the
flexural behaviour is essentially elastic and can be predicted from the cable
design data. As axial tension is applied the bending resistance increases rapidly
24 J. M. Walton

,_-S

/
Fig. 6. Cross-sectionof socket boot.

as frictional effects intervene, approaching at the limit the stiffness of a solid

bar. Even at typical working tension levels, the non-linear (hysteretic) effects
predominate and the elastic stiffness becomes largely insignificant. Some stud-
ies of these effects in large spiral strands have been carried out by Raoof, ~1
and a means of predicting the upper (no-slip) and lower (full-slip) bounds of
strand bending stiffness are offered, having regard to the radius of curvature
incurred. Significantly, it is shown that these limits to the bending resistance
may be two orders of magnitude apart.

6 OTHER DEVELOPMENTS

6.1 Wire materials

No discussion of steel cable developments would be complete without some

mention of the advances that have been made in the wire materials technology
over recent years. Although it is not possible to deal comprehensively with
this subject here, reference should be made to key developments in process
technology which have allowed significant wire property improvements to be
secured with associated cable performance benefits. Not surprisingly with such
a mature product, there are few major step changes that one can point to, but
 Developments in steel cables 25

rather a r~Lnge of minor improvements over a broad front as part of a gradual

and continuing evolutionary process.
The driving force for this continuing development comes from the market
place, either in the shape of demand for new and better rope products, or the
need for improved process efficiency to maintain a competitive edge. In either
case an in-depth knowledge of the basic process technology and a clear under-
standing of the effect of process variables on product performance is funda-
mental to the achievement of progress. One of the process variables that has
been attracting growing attention over years has been the temperature induced
during wire drawing, which has been shown to have a powerful influence on
the ultimate wire ductility due to the potential for strain ageing. 12 Considerable
effort has therefore gone into the design of wire drawing machinery and
operating procedures, with a view to limiting both the maximum wire tempera-
ture level that the wire sees and the exposure duration. Since the heat gener-
ation is primarily a strain energy effect, the problem can be particularly acute
in the larger wire sizes where the surface area per unit mass is low, and hence
the rate of cooling is inherently slower.
To facilitate the achievement of high tensile strengths in the larger wire
sizes, mic,roalloyed steels have been introduced, using small additions of
chrome, silicon or vanadium. This has allowed higher rod strengths to be
attained, 13 with a consequent reduction in the amount of cold work required
during wire drawing.
When compared with the dramatic advances that are being made in the field
of composite materials, and especially with carbon fibres, the improvements in
steel wire technology appear almost inconsequential but it is important here
to distinguish between the ingoing material properties and the relevant per-
formance levels that can be achieved in the finished cable. It is here that the
unique combination of strength and toughness offered by steel comes to the
fore. Specifically, the plastic strain capability of steel gives it a major perform-
ance advantage over alternative materials such as aramid and carbon fibres
in terms of tensile strength conversion efficiency. Data on these advanced
fibre/composite materials in cable form have been published ~4 revealing that
steel offers a potential advantage of up to 50% in conversion efficiency,
although this gap may narrow as the composite cable technology is further
developed.
By way of further explanation, it may be shown that at very high stress
levels, a hard drawn steel wire behaves essentially as an ideal elasto-plastic
material with a plastic modulus that is less than 0.2% of the elastic modulus,
and a strain to failure of around 100% (Fig. 7). Whilst this feature may not
seem pa~:icularly important at typical working stress levels (e.g. 500-
700 MPa),. the contrast is very marked once the load equalisation mechanisms
operating within a steel cable have been studied. ~5 The plastic flow character-
26 ]. M. Walton

2500

_ J - - t l l
j 4 1 - -
j . . . . - J -

2000

~- 1500
~E

~1000

500

I I I I I I I I
10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 9O

Axial Strain, %

Fig. 7. True stress-strain graph for 4.5 mm 1770 gal wire.

istics of steel confer a remarkable ability to diffuse the effect of local stress
concentrations in a way that ensures a consistently high level of tensile
efficiency and reliability. When viewed in this light the advanced composite
materials, with their almost totally elastic behaviour to failure, appear com-
paratively brittle.
Despite this outstanding advantage of the traditional steel wire material,
there will of course be situations where the weight savings associated with
advanced composite materials more than outweigh any toughness consider-
ations. For example, in structures where very long lengths of cable are
involved, the load due to self-weight alone may mitigate against a steel tendon,
and dictate that composites are the preferred solution.

6.2 Cable testing

Destruction testing facilities for tension members are now available with
capacities of up to 30 MN, both in the UK and in continental Europe. Details
of these and other large machines are given in Table 4. This represents a major
investment by European countries in cable proving facilities, which have con-
tributed materially to the recent development activity on large structural ten-
dons. The NEL facilities in particular, in addition to the normal commercial
testing work, have provided the basis for a series of Joint Industry Studies 16
 Developments in steel cables 27

TABLE 4
Large Tensile Testing Machines

Test house Location~address Max. load Sample

capacity length (m)
(MN)

DMT, Deutsche Montan Technologie, 20 5-7

Bochum 4630 Bochum 1, Germany
DNV, Veritas Technological Laboratores, 25 4-12
Bergen N-5013 Bergen, Norway
EMPA, Swiss Federal Laboratories, for Materials 30 5.5-6
Dubendorf Testing& Research, CH-8600, Dubendorf,
Switzerland
NEL, National EngineeringLaboratory, East 30 up to 20
Glasgow Kilbridge, Glasgow, UK

on 'the Prediction of Wire Rope Endurance for Mooring Offshore Structures',

supported by sponsorship from the major international oil companies. Most
of the testing work has been carried out on terminated samples of full-size
cables, thu,; validating both the tension member and the associated end fittings.
However, :if substantially larger tendons are to be developed in the future,
then full-scale testing may prove impractical.
For the parallel products it may be argued that testing of the complete cable
assembly is an unnecessary luxury, since the aggregate strength of the units
is known and the spinning losses are predictably small. With conventional
strands and ropes the outcome is less certain as product size and complexity
are increased, but there is little remaining scope for upward extrapolation
because of production plant limitations.

6.3 Logistics

Regardless of the feasibility of a particular tendon solution from a pure design

viewpoint, there will inevitably be restrictions imposed by the manufacturing
facilities and by the downstream handling and transportation operations. With
conventional rotating machinery for cable lay-up, the operating envelope is
usually expressed in terms of product size, construction and weight. Unit
weights in excess of 100 tonnes are now quite commonplace, depending on
the type of cable being considered, although on-site handling facilities may
dictate a lower limit.
The recent developments in non-conventional designs of tendon have led
to the introduction of alternative, track-based, methods of cable spinning
which offer greater freedom in terms of the range of product sizes and con-
28 J. M. Walton

structions that they can accommodate, but within a fixed length limitation.
Transportation considerations may also impose constraints on the size of pack-
age that can be contemplated, and this has implications for both the size and
length of cable. For example, the traditional 'rule of thumb' for spiral strands
is that the bending diameter should be not less than 25 strand diameter, so
that a 160 mm strand requires a 4 m diameter drum barrel etc. Other products
may require an even larger bending ratio, depending on the constructional
details and their sensitivity to bending. Fortunately sheathed cables can with-
stand more severe bending without detriment, as the jacket inhibits wire dis-
placement.

6.4 Future trends

More sophisticated design and modelling techniques are expected to contribute

to refinement of product specifications, affecting both tendons and termin-
ations, through design optimisation and improvements in efficiency. This
should lead to a growing level of confidence in their performance. Advantage
will also be taken of developments in new materials once their reliability has
been proven, and as they become available in commercial quantities. Changes
here are likely to be slow and evolutionary, reflecting the scale of leading
edge structures and the traditional conservatism of the construction industry.
Recognising the production, testing and logistical constraints referred to
earlier, it is projected that the growth in size of conventional tension member
products will level off at or around the 30 MN strength level, but this will
not necessarily impede the development of non-conventional products with
considerably greater breaking strengths. Facilities already exist for the manu-
facture of such products in short lengths, and plant design concepts are avail-
able for producing long continuous lengths. These would need to be located
to minimise the transportation obstacles, and would necessarily involve major
capital investment. However, the plant could be very much cheaper than extra-
polating the conventional closer to much larger sizes, and can be contemplated
if there is sufficient demand to warrant it. Clearly then, further progress in this
direction will depend on the size of project or market that is being considered.

REFERENCES

1. Magazine article, High Strength Spiral Strand Breaks Record. Wire Industry,
1986, p. 686.
2. Raoof, M., Design recommendations for steel cables. Struct. Engng Rev., 4 (1992)
223-233.
3. Westerhoff, D., Freeman, R. A. & Kuwabara, K., Dao Khanong cable stayed
 Developments in steel cables 29

bridge, manufacture and erection of large diameter full locked coil bridge ropes,
Int. Corf Cable-stayed Bridges, Bangkok, 1987.
4. Magazine article, Of the Galvanisation used for the Protection of Bridge Stay
Cables, Freyssinet Magazine, September 1990.
5. Apel, G., Nunninghoff, R. & Sczepanski, K., Galfan--a new corrosion protection
for wire rope. WIRE, 40 (1990) 641-646.
6. Raoof, M., Cable fatigue prediction in offshore applications. Proc. lOth Int. Conf.
Offshore Mechanics and Arctic Engineering. Stavanger, Norway, 1991,
pp. 403--411.
7. Gabriel, K. & Heimes, F., The Mechanics of Socketing--The Zinc Alloy Cones
as a Special Compound Structure. University of Stuttgart, Germany.
8. Walther, R., Houriet, B., Isler, W. & Moia, P., Cable Stayed Bridges. Thomas
Telford, London, 1988, pp. 79-92.
9. United States Federal Specification, Sockets. Wire Rope. Reference RR-S-
550D, 1989.
10. Flint, A. R. & Smith, B. W., Strengthening and refurbishment of Severn Crossing
Part 5: other background R&D. Proc. Inst. Civil Engrs Structs & Blgs. 1992,
Vol. 94, pp. 51-60.
11. Raoof, IVl. & Huang, Y. P., Bending stiffness and hysteresis of sheathed spiral
strands. Proc. of 2nd Int. Offshore and Polar Engineering Conf., San Francisco,
June 19!)2.
12. Stephen:son, A., Timiney, P. & Walton, J. M., Strain ageing in high tensile carbon
steel wire for roping purposes. Metals Society Conf. on Developments in the
Drawing of Metals, London, 1983.
13. Cordon, B. W., Timiney, P., Mottishaw, T. D. & Smith, G. D. W., Developments
of microalloyed pearlitic steels for wire drawing applications. Metals Society
Conf. on Developments in the Drawing of Metals, London, 1983.
14. Walton, J. M. & Yeung, C. T. Y., Flexible tension members from composite
materials. Proc. of the Sixth Int. OMAE Syrup., American Society of Mechanical
Enginee:rs, 1987, Vol. 3.
15. Walton, J. M., Contact Stresses in Wire Ropes, M. Phil. Thesis, Department of
MechanJLcal Engineering, University of Leeds, 1987.
16. Chaplin, C. R. & Potts, A. E., Wire Rope Offshore. Health and Safety Executive,
Offshore Technology Report OTH 91341, 1991.