Mechanical response of single and double-helix SMA wire ropes

Abstract

In this paper, based on three-dimensional phenomenological model and using a user-defined material subroutine mechanical behavior of shape memory alloy (SMA) wire ropes (or cables) and their components have been studied through implicit solution method in Abaqus software. Material parameters have been extracted using available experimental data and numerical simulations. Due to the convoluted geometry and interwire contact status within a cable, a finite element analysis is firstly performed for a 1 x 37 steel wire rope to validate modeling and mechanical interactions of a wire rope. Afterwards, superelastic and shape memory effect cables with different constructions (7 x 7 and 1 x 27) are studied and their mechanical behavior including normal stress, shear stress, strain, and temperature diagrams as well as the relationship between axial force and displacement for a full cable and each component are extracted. Furthermore, the SMA wire ropes have been optimized in terms of achieving maximum specific energy through experimental design method. Comparison of numerical results with experimental data indicates the acceptable accuracy of this study.