Chapter 3

Structural cable designs and concepts

T.W. Klein
WireCo WorldGroup, Kansas City, MO, USA

ABSTRACT: The paper discusses new and enhanced structural cable designs for use as
tension members on bridges and static applications. These developments include new wire
coating processes for increased corrosion resistance and the use of synthetic materials for
amplified strength and durability. Discussions regarding the use of synthetic materials in
structural elements have significantly increased recently leading to several hybrid cable con-
cepts that provide greater resistance to fatigue and strength without the vulnerability to cor-
rosion. The reader will also be informed about existing technologies currently being used to
enhance steel cable properties. The use of shaped wires formed from high carbon steel pro-
vide high strength cables with locked outer layers for increased protection from the elements.
The paper will discuss the advancements in these fields along with proven manufacturing
practices shown to develop high performance cables for use in new and existing structures.

1 INTRODUCTION

Steel wire is the strongest most cost effective and versatile product used in the cable industry
today. The main draw back of the product is the susceptibility to corrode as time passes if not
adequately protected. The most effective method to overcome this problem is to galvanize the
wire forming a zinc layer between the environment and the steel. The use of zinc coated high
carbon steel wire in the fabrication of structural cables for the bridge industry has been prac-
ticed for many years. The goal of this paper is to educate the bridge industry about advance-
ments in cable technology and help them to take full advantage these items.

1.1 Wire production

The building block of structural cables is the galvanized wire. The current specifications for
these items mandate the physical requirements for the wires. The requirements include the
mechanical properties, stress under load, elongation, tensile strength, ductility, zinc coat-
ing weight, coat adherence, and wire surface finish. Typically to improve on one property
another must be sacrificed.
The process of producing galvanized wires has seen several improvements and refinements
in the past ten years leading to increased strengths and improvements in quality. Some of the
processes once thought to be necessary have been removed or replaced to reduce cost and
stream line the manufacturing. The manufacturing begins with the rod production. Carbon is
the major steel element in the rod used for wire production. Higher carbon elements directly
correlate to higher tensile strengths as well as the resistance to abrasion. The negative side of
this relates to the elongation and ductility of the wire. The rod production begins with con-
tinuous cast blooms rolled to diameter and control cooled to provide a clean homogenous
pearlitic grain structure suitable for direct drawing. The controlled cooling eliminates the need
to patent the rod prior to drawing the wire. The drawing of the wire is the process to reduce
the diameter of the rod by passing through a number of successive dies. This process includes
simple round wires as well as complex shaped wires. The drawing process aligns the grain

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 32 Cable-supported bridges

structures into a fibrous geometry substantially increasing the tensile strength of the wire. To
ensure ductility does not become a factor clean steel without inclusions is required. Since the
drawing process is a cold working process the amount of reduction that can be performed is
limited by the steel. Tensile strength increases dramatically with the amount of reduction but
the ductility of the wire also becomes very poor. With the quality of the steel available some
rod maybe reduced up to 95% of its original area. However in some cases the wire must be
patented between cycles. During patenting the steel grain structure becomes more uniform
and ductile making the wire suited for further drawing. Several advancements in the patenting
of wire have been introduced and incorporated in to the process. The use of lead to quench
the steel is no longer a viable solution in the United States due to stringent EPA regulations.
Out these regulations have come new methods using salt, sand, and steam as viable quenching
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methods. These methods provide superior refinement of the wire grain structures without the
harmful environmental effects that are associated with the use of lead.

1.2 Corrosion protection of wire

Corrosion is an electromechanical process that takes place when there is a different electri-
cal potential between two points connected by an electrolyte. The most effective method to
overcome this destructive process is to galvanize the steel wires forming a zinc layer that is
alloyed with the steel surface. The galvanizing process protects the steel by removing it from
the external agents while the zinc becomes the sacrificial agent.
The majority of the wire supplied for use in structural cables is galvanized by the hot dip
method. This process requires the wire to be submerged in molten zinc providing a very uni-
form coating with an aesthetically pleasing appearance. This method deposits large amounts
of zinc onto the surface of the wire. The main drawback to this type of coating method is
strength loss due to the annealing of the wire while submerged in the molten zinc. Approxi-
mately 10% of the wire strength will be lost during the hot-dipped coating process. The other
means of zinc coating the wires is electroplating the zinc to the surface of the steel. This
method has the ability to provide a much heavier and clean surface that is acceptable for use
in static and dynamic applications.
The most rapidly growing hot dip coating process for structural steel wire is made with
the Galfan® process (Goodwin, F., Wright, R., 1983. The Process Metallurgy of Zinc-Coated
Steel Wire and Galfan® Bath Management). This process requires a Zn-5% Al coating be
applied to the surface of the wire by the hot-dip method. Basic Galfan® coated carbon steel
wire is addressed in ASTM A856 and EN 10244. The coating is a eutectic Zn-Al mischmetal
resulting in a more uniform crystalline microstructure with improved mechanical character-
istics. Ageing tests have shown this process to provide improved corrosion resistance in com-
parison to conventional galvanized coating. Combining the passive corrosion inhibition of
aluminum oxidation with the active and passive effects of zinc results in approximately two
times the amount of corrosion protection compared to standard zinc coated wire. The coat-
ing also provides an anodic feature that heals over the exposed steel when the wire is abraded
or scratched exposing the base steel. This process was developed in the mid 1980’s with the
majority of the production and use taking place in Europe.

2 STRUCTURAL CABLE CONSTRUCTIONS

2.1 Structural strand construction

Zinc Coated Structural Strand produced per ASTM A586 (ASTM A586-04a. 2004. Zinc
Coated Parallel and Helical Steel Wire Structural Strand) is used in many different struc-
tural applications. This specification also covers Zinc Wires for Spun-In-Place Strand. The
process of manufacturing structural strand consists of laying consecutive layers of round
wires around a center, changing the direction of the wire lay of each layer. The opposing lay

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 Structural cable designs and concepts 33

direction increases tensile strength and Modulus of Elasticity while providing a balanced
strand. Figure 1 shows a cross section of a typical design. The wires used in each layer may
or may not be preformed. The preforming of wires consists of mechanically forming the wire
ensuring a tight layer around the core or base layer. Some strand constructions will have
multiple wires laid to form a unitized center, sometimes referred to as the Parallel Contact
Core, to increase the static fatigue of the cable. Tension-tension fatigue testing has shown
this construction reduces internal nicking and bending stresses which occur in conventional
cross lay designs. This testing has shown cracks in the wire initiated at the cross-wire contact
point of inner wires, eventually leading to tear in shear. Increasing the number of wires in the
strand layer requires smaller diameter wires however this is been proven to increase the axial
fatigue life of structural strand. The increased fatigue life is related to less contact area and
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increased ductility of the strand. However it has also been shown that wire grade and mean
loading have little or no effect on the fatigue life of the strand. Structural strand is designed
to be used in straight tension only. Deflections in structural strand could reduce the strength
and severely reduce the fatigue strength of the strand if not tensioned properly.

2.2 Structural wire rope construction

Zinc Coated Steel Structural Wire Rope produced per ASTM A603 (ASTM A603-98. 2003.
Zinc Coated Steel Structural Wire Rope) is regularly used where there are requirements for
the structural element to be bent or deflected around supporting members. Traditional sus-
pension bridges are the best example for the use of this product. The construction of the
product allows deflection of the product without a significant loss in the tensile strength
properties. Due to the mechanical requirements of the specification structural wire rope is
required to be constructed differently from standard six or eight stranded running ropes. The
individual outer strand lay and rope lays are lengthened to provide increased strength and
Modulus of Elasticity. Since the wire rope is utilized in static tension there are construction
options available to enhance the strength or flexibility. A single strand core or independent
wire rope core can be provided without a reduction in the mechanical properties of the rope.
The strand core provides a simpler rope construction which on average will have an increased
Modulus of Elasticity due to fewer elements. The use of structural rope has been prominent
in the bridge industry for more than 100 years. The historical data available for fatigue and
life prediction is very well documented in the domestic market.

Figure 1. Traditional spiral strand.

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 34 Cable-supported bridges

2.3 Locked coil cable construction

Locked Coil Cables are becoming more prevalent in structures throughout the world (EN
12385 Part 10. 2008. Spiral Ropes for Structural Applications). This is product is commonly
referred to as Locked Cable due to the locking action of the outer wire layers. Very similar to
structural strand the process of manufacturing consists of laying consecutive layers of wires
around a center, changing the direction of the lay of each layer. The differentiating factor being
the interlocking z-shaped wires stranded on the outer layers. The interlocking wires provide a
barrier for corrosive media penetration and a dense metallic area. The increased metallic area
results in higher breaking forces compared to Spiral Strand or Wire Rope as well as a substan-
tial increase in axial stiffness. The axial stiffness is approximately 30% more than traditional spi-
ral strands with a small added benefit of improved lateral stiffness. Good clamping abilities are
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available due to the smooth outer surface. Figure 2 shows how the interlocking wires connect
forming a solid layer. The connection of the wires in the layer is also critical for wire retention
in the event of wire fracture. Figure 3 shows the formation of the wires into a layer.

Figure 2. Interlocking wires.

Figure 3. Outer layer of interlocking wire.

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 Structural cable designs and concepts 35

3 HYBRID CONSTRUCTIONS

3.1 Hybrid design concept

Hybrid constructions incorporate high strength synthetic fibers in the inner core of structural
cable with multiple layers of shaped or round wires on the outer layers for increased strength
and fatigue life. One of the main goals in the design of the Hybrid construction is to take
full advantage of the performance characteristics of the fiber element. The introduction of
a fiber member in the core area adds superior fatigue characteristics of the material as well
as the high strength. Balancing the load sharing between the fiber and the steel elements
requires the lay of the outer steel strands to be matched perfectly with the fiber braids. These
constructions also reduce the weight per foot of the cables significantly. Although this may
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not be an important characteristic in all structures the significant weight reductions for long
spans can become a critical factor.
Figure 4 and 5 show the conceptual idea of structural Hybrid cables. Matching synthetic
materials with steel outer wires combines both the positive and negative attributes of both
materials.

Figure 4. Hybrid strand with round wires on the outer layers.

Figure 5. Hybrid strand with round and shaped wires on the outer layer.

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 36 Cable-supported bridges

Table 1. Weight per length reductions and strengths for wire rope
construction.

Min break
Description Diameter Lbs./Ft force (KN)

6 × 25FW XIP Steel 38 mm 4.16 1014.20

Flex-X Compacted 38 mm 5.01 1112.06
6 × 31 DGXIP PC 38 mm 3.64 956.37
8 Strand Hybrid 38 mm 3.66 1262.41
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3.2 Tensile strength and elongation properties of hybrid wire rope

Table 1 below lists the typical stranded wire rope constructions and Minimum Breaking
Force (MBF) requirements as specified in the wire rope user’s manual (WRTB. 2005. Wire
Rope Users Manual 3rd Edition). The traditional wire rope construction is listed in Table 1 to
provide a bench mark for the Hybrid constructions. The Hybrid construction provides a 24%
increase in strength from the base 6 × 25FW construction with a 12% reduction in the weight
per foot. The core strength member provides a tremendous increase in strength due to the
load sharing capabilities of the core member. This ultimately leads to a substantially smaller
diameter wire rope with increased tensile strengths and comparable weight per lengths.
The measured Modulus of Elasticity of the Hybrid wire rope construction is approxi-
mately 103,421 MPa. This is comparable to the traditional Polypropylene and Polyester fiber
cores. The Hybrid cable construction provides a smooth load curve with continued elonga-
tion during the loading.

3.3 Fatige performance

The added benefit of the Hybrid construction is the fatigue performance of synthetic material
over that of traditional steel cable. This is applicable to both running ropes and static appli-
cations. The selection of the synthetic material and the construction of the braid affect the
mechanical properties. For structural applications high strength with high modulus material
are required to be combined with dimensional stability and resistance to chemical elements.

4 INSPECTION AND MAINTENANCE

4.1 Inspection
The inspection of structural cables in service is critical in evaluating the serviceability and life
of the wire rope. Visual inspections are the easiest to perform but depending on the condition
of the cable this may not be feasible. The cleaning of the ropes to provide a visible surface
may require expensive and time consuming processes. The disposal of this material may also
require the handling of hazardous waste and in the case of most bridges this operation must
be performed over a waterway. Therefore it is recommended to have the cables inspected with
non-destructive means to evaluate the condition prior to the removal of any coatings.
Many types of non-destructive testing methods for the inspection of wire rope have been
experimented with over the years to include acoustic emissions and radiography. The use of
electromagnetic inspection is the only proven practical way to efficiently inspect wire rope
however this requires either the tool or the cable to be moving. The mining industry has used
electromagnetic inspection on wire rope since the early 1950’s. In many countries, including
the United States and Canada, the use of electromagnetic inspection is mandated for the
inspection for running wire ropes. In addition, the visual method of inspection must be used
as an important aid to electromagnetic testing.

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 Structural cable designs and concepts 37

All inspections and maintenance cycles are intended to keep the cables and their components
functioning as intended. The results of any inspection should be written and filed with the
structure maintenance manual.

5 CONCLUSIONS

This paper is by no means a complete analysis of new structural cable constructions or

designs. This paper was written to educate the bridge engineering community on the develop-
ments in the field of structural cables. The current ASTM specification covering these types
of cables allows the manufacturer the latitude to produce cables without restrictive manufac-
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turing parameters. Innovative materials are now available to increase the corrosion resistance
of the cable. Some of the materials are applied during the manufacturing of the strand to
individually coat wires and some are applied to the cable once it is installed and tensioned
onsite. The fatigue tests presented in this paper show that standard preventative maintenance
on bridge cables can significantly extend the life of cable. Variations in the construction of
the cable have also been shown to increase the life cycle of the cable.

REFERENCES

ASTM A586-04a. 2004. Zinc Coated Parallel and Helical Steel Wire Structural Strand.
ASTM A603-98. 2003. Zinc Coated Steel Structural Wire Rope.
EN 12385 Part 10. 2008. Spiral Ropes for Structural Applications.
Goodwin, F., Wright, R. 1983. The Process Metallurgy of Zinc-Coated Steel Wire and Galfan® Bath
Management.
WRTB. 2005. Wire Rope Users Manual 3rd Edition.

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