Common Causes for Wire Ropes to Break

Breaks in Tension

One end of the broken wire is coned, while the other is cupped. This sort of break is characterized by the broken ends being necked down. The rope has been overloaded where tension breaches have been discovered, either for its original strength (new rope) or for its continuing strength (used rope). The rapid application of a load to a slack rope frequently causes tension breaches, resulting in enormous impact stresses.

Breaks Due to Abrasion

Broken wire ends are worn to a knife-edge thinness. Abrasive wear is obvious at points where the rope encounters an abrasive medium, such as sheaves and drum grooves, or other objects with which the rope comes into contact. Unwanted abrasive wear can be caused by incorrectly grooved sheaves and drums, an inappropriate fleet angle, or other abrasive circumstances that are confined.

Breaks from Fatigue

The granular structure of wire breaks is commonly transverse or square. Depending on the type of operation, these breaks frequently produce a broken or jagged fracture. The rope has been bent repeatedly around a limited radius, causing fatigue breaks. Fatigue can also be caused by whipping, vibration, slapping, and torsional stresses. Abrasion and nicking accelerate fatigue breakdowns.

Breaks in Corrosion

Wire breaks are easily identified by the pitted surface of the wire. They usually show signs of stress, abrasion, and/or fatigue. Corrosion is frequently a sign of poor lubrication. Corrosion is one of the most serious causes of rope deterioration since the degree of the damage to the interior of the rope is difficult to evaluate.

Shear or Cut

Wire will be pinched and cut at broken ends, or traces of a shear-like cut will be seen. This condition indicates that the installation has been subjected to mechanical abuse from outside sources, or that something abnormal on the installation has occurred, such as a broken flange.

Checklist for Troubleshooting

Abrasion

• Sheaves or rollers that have been frozen
• Grooves that are too tight
• Unnecessarily large fleet angle
• Rope that is too big or too small
• Drum or corrugated sheave
• Overspin sheave
• Jumping the sheave with a rope
• Spooling issues
• Sheaves that are misaligned
• Contaminants on the property

Protrusion/slippage of the core

• Loading shocks
• Seizing strategies that are ineffective
• Techniques of installation that are inadequate

Corrosion

• There is a lack of lubrication.
• Damage to the environment, such as exposure to acidic fumes
• Inadequate storage

Crushing

• Techniques of installation that are inadequate
• Cross winding
• Spooling issues
• Wire rope structure that is incorrect
• Inadequate break-in method
• Unnecessarily large fleet angle
• Rope length that is excessive

Reduction in diameter

• There is a lack of lubrication (fiber core)
• Abrasion that is excessive
• Internal and/or exterior corrosion Failure of the inner wire or the core

Fatigue

• Sheaves that aren’t round
• Grooves that are too tight
• Sheaves that are misaligned
• Sheaves that are too little
• Bearings that have been worn out
• Vibration
• Slapping
• Whipping
• Bends in the opposite direction

Stranding at a high level

• Seizing strategies that are ineffective
• Grooves that are too tight
• Sheaves that are too little
• Techniques of installation that are inadequate

Overcoming the sheave

• Spooling issues
• Rope length that is excessive
• Flange that has been broken

Kinking

• Unreeling operations that aren’t up to par
• Techniques of installation that are inadequate
• Sheaves that are too little

Tightening/lengthening of the layer

• Techniques of installation that are inadequate
• Unreeling operations that aren’t up to par
• Corrosion
• Failure at the core

Wires that have been looped

• Techniques of installation that are inadequate
• Sheaves that are too little

Rope that is out of balance

• Sheaves that are too big

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