Wire rope lubrication A10
THE ADVANTAGES OF LUBRICATION
Increased fatigue life
Correct lubricants will facilitate individual wire adjust-
ment to equalise stress distribution under bending
conditions. An improvement of up to 300% can be
expected from a correctly lubricated rope compared
with a similar unlubricated rope.
Figure 10.1 Percentage increases in fatigue life of
lubricated rope over unlubricated rope
Increased corrosion resistance
Copyright © 2000. Elsevier Science & Technology. All rights reserved.
Figure 10.2 Typical effect of severe internal
corrosion. Moisture has caused the breakdown of the
fibre core and then attacked the wires at the
strand/core interface
A10.1
NEALE, M. J., & NEALE, M. J. (2000). Lubrication and reliability handbook. Elsevier Science & Technology.
Created from polito-ebooks on 2022-05-29 12:44:30.
Figure 10.3 Typical severe corrosion pitting
associated with ‘wash off’ of lubricant by mine
water
Increased abrasion resistance
Figure 10.4 Typical abrasion condition which can
be limited by the correct service dressing
LUBRICATION DURING MANUFACTURE
The Main Core Fibre cores should be given a suitable
dressing during their manufacture. This is more effective
than subsequent immersion of the completed core in
heated grease.
Independent wire rope cores are lubricated in a
similar way to the strands.
The Strands The helical form taken by the individual
wires results in a series of spiral tubes in the finished
strand. These tubes must be filled with lubricant if the
product is to resist corrosive attack. The lubricant is
always applied at the spinning point during the stranding
operation.
The Rope A number of strands, from three to fifty, will
form the final rope construction, again resulting in voids
which must be filled with lubricant. The lubricant may be
applied during manufacture at the point where the
strands are closed to form the rope, or subsequently by
immersion through a bath if a heavy surface thickness is
required.
Dependent on the application the rope will perform, the
lubricant chosen for the stranding and closing process
will be either a petrolatum or bituminous based com-
pound. For certain applications the manufacturer may
use special techniques for applying the lubricant.
Irrespective of the lubrication carried out during rope
manufacture, increased rope performance is closely
associated with adequate and correct lubrication of the
rope in service.
 A10 Wire rope lubrication

LUBRICATION OF WIRE ROPES IN SERVICE

Copyright © 2000. Elsevier Science & Technology. All rights reserved.

APPLICATION TECHNIQUES
Ideally the lubricant should be applied close to the point
where the strands of the rope tend to open when passing
over a sheave or drum.
The lubricant may be applied manually or
mechanically.

Figure 10.5 Opening of rope section during

passage over sheave or drum. Arrows indicate the
access points for lubricant

A10.2

NEALE, M. J., & NEALE, M. J. (2000). Lubrication and reliability handbook. Elsevier Science & Technology.
Created from polito-ebooks on 2022-05-29 12:44:30.
 Wire rope lubrication A10

Manual – By can or by aerosol

Figure 10.8 Drip lubrication

Figure 10.6 Manual application by can

Mechanical – By bath or trough. By drip feed.

By mechanical spray

Figure 10.9 Sheave application by spray using

fixed nozzle
Copyright © 2000. Elsevier Science & Technology. All rights reserved.

Figure 10.10 Multisheave or drum application by

Figure 10.7 Mechanical application by trough spray

A10.3

NEALE, M. J., & NEALE, M. J. (2000). Lubrication and reliability handbook. Elsevier Science & Technology.
Created from polito-ebooks on 2022-05-29 12:44:30.