Elevator wire ropes are the most important load-carrying components in elevator systems. This remains even more evident in traction elevators. Because of their design, they are required to support the bulk of the gross weight of the car and its passengers. It makes their performance crucial for the safe and efficient operation of elevators in or around the building. In use, these ropes bend in one direction in turns around traction wheels, guide wheels, or anti-roping wheels. Also, they still maintain high specific pressure, especially within the rope grooves. This, in turn, requires strength, flexibility, quality, and wear resistance to be at an optimal level at the same time.
As a leading supplier of elevator wire ropes, Dazen can provide customized solutions for our customers. We have a wide range of high quality elevator wire ropes in a variety of strand configurations, cores, and twists to meet any traction elevator application that requires hoisting, speed regulating, or compensating ropes. Rigorously designed and tested, our ropes are engineered to endure the most challenging conditions, ensuring reliability across a multitude of applications and scenarios.
Elevator wire ropes are primarily classified based on their core material as either fiber cores or steel cores. Properly selecting the core material, structure such as strand count, and diameter to match the rope’s properties to the elevator’s specific requirements like car weight and usage conditions helps maximize service life. Here are the details of the different types of elevator wire rope cores.
Fiber Core Wire Rope includes natural options made from plant fibers like sisal, which are lower cost but also lower strength. Synthetic fiber cores made from materials like polypropylene or polyamide offer higher strength than natural fibers at a higher cost.
Features: Flexible, absorbs impacts
Suitable for: Elevator traction rope, elevator speed ≤2m/s, floor height ≤60m
Features: More durable than natural fibers, absorbs impacts well.
Suitable for: Elevator speed governor rope
Steel cores provide the greatest tensile strength and come in various types. Galvanized steel resists corrosion better than plain steel in demanding environments.
Features: High-strength core distributed evenly within the rope.
Pros: Very strong, takes high tensile loads well.
Features: Very strong and flexible core.
Pros: Durable, absorbs vibration well.
● Traction Elevators
In these systems, the wire rope spirals around a drive pulley that is associated with the motor. The elevation of the car is determined by the pulse and direction of the turn for the pulley, thus moving up and down.
● Load-Bearing
The wire rope is responsible for the support of the total weight of the elevator car and its occupants. To minimize risks this load is split between several ropes to guarantee safety.
● Counterweight Connection
It attaches to the counterweight that balances this system. This balance helps to optimize and save the amount of energy used in the operations of the elevator.
Do you know the specific structure of the wire rope? And if you pay attention to the model of the wire rope, you will find that wire rope manufacturers often use 8x19S+FC, 8x19W+IWRC to name their products. Do you know what this means?
Let’s explore this in detail below.
Elevator wire rope consists of three parts:
1) Strands
Elevator wire rope usually consists of 6, 8 or 9 strands twisted around the core in a spiral formation.
2) Strand Steel Wire
The steel wire comprising each strand is high-quality carbon steel or 60Si2Mn steel wire, sized between 0.3-1.3mm in diameter for safety reasons. This steel wire grade ensures the strength and durability needed to safely lift elevators repeatedly over the lifespan of the rope.
3) The Core
Elevator wire rope commonly uses a fiber core or synthetic materials like polypropylene. A fiber core provides adequate support for the wire strands under normal bending and tensile loads experienced in an elevator hoist system without adding excessive weight.
1) Nominal Diameter
The overall thickness of the wire rope. For example, “8” means the rope is 8 millimeters thick.
2) Number of outer strands
In common elevator wire ropes, each wire rope is composed of 8, 9 or 6 strands of the same structure.
3) Number of steel wire per outer strands
4) Outer Strand Structure
The three main strand structures used in elevator wire ropes are Seale, Warrington, and Filler.
Seale structure (1+9+9): is the most common, with the outer strand layer containing thicker wires able to withstand greater wear.
Warrington structure (1+6+6/6): provides flexibility and durability through strands of alternating large and small diameter wires. This alternation offers higher fatigue bending life compared to Seale.
Filler wire rope, such as 8x25Fi+FC (1+6+6F+12): provides maximum fatigue resistance but minimum wear resistance. The filler wires (F) introduce weaknesses where collective defects seriously reduce rope lifespan. Additionally, smaller diameter wires are more difficult to manufacture, limiting filler construction to thicker ropes.
5) Types of Wire Rope Cores
FC: Fiber core
NFC: Natural fiber core
SFC: Synthetic fiber core
CFC: Compound fiber core
IWRC: Steel core
PWRC: Wire rope core in paralleled roping
IWRC: Independent Wire Rope Core
6) Strength Grade
The strength of elevator wire rope is divided into single strength and double strength. The outer steel wire and inner steel wire of the outer strand of the single strength wire rope have the same tensile strength grade, for example 1570 mm2.
The outer wire and inner wire of the outer strand of the double strength wire rope have different tensile strength grades. For example, 1370/1770 mm2. This means the tensile strength of the outer wire is 1370 mm2, and the tensile strength of the inner wire is 1770 mm2.
7) The surface condition classifications
U – Bright wire
B – Galvanized wire
8) The direction and type of lay classifications
sZ – Right lay
zZ – Left lay
For esample, the traction wire rope used for a passenger elevator with a rated load of 1000 kg adopts:
16 8X19S – IWRC 1370/1770 U sZ
Where:
16 is the nominal diameter of the wire rope (mm).
8 is the number of strands.
19 is the number of steel wires in each strand.
S is the Seale.
IWRC is an Independent Wire Rope Core.
1370/1770 is the tensile strength of the wire rope (kgf/mm2).
U is smooth steel wire.
sZ indicates right-cross lay for both the strands and rope
What is the lifespan of an elevator wire rope?
The average lifespan of an elevator wire rope is 10-15 years under normal use conditions, though it can vary depending on factors like traffic, load limits, inspection, and maintenance schedules.
How often should elevator wire ropes be inspected?
ASME A17.1/CSA B44 safety code recommends monthly inspections of elevator wire ropes for any visible damage or deterioration. Quarterly/annual inspections should also include closer visual examination and non-destructive testing.
What are some signs that an elevator wire rope needs replacement?
Common signs include broken or worn wires, corrosion, flattened strands, bird caging, broken strands or wires, core protrusion, or internal failure. Excessive wear, rust, cracks, or breaks exceeding code specifications also require replacement.
Can elevator wire ropes be repaired?
Minor repairs involving the installation of clips or clamps are allowed by code. However, widespread wire breaks, internal damage, or deterioration exceeding code limits require complete replacement for safety.
What type of lubricant should be used for elevator wire ropes?
Elevator-grade wire rope lubricants specially formulated for vertical applications should be used. They penetrate strands, resist flinging off, and protect against corrosion inside the hoistway environment.
Is there a “break-in” period for new elevator wire ropes?
Yes. Newly installed or replaced wire ropes require a break-in period of 50-100 hours of normal operation. This is to allow internal components to settle. Inspections should be performed weekly during this period to check for needed adjustments.
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