Size Effects of High Strength Steel Wires

This study examines the effects of size on the strength of materials, especially on high strength pearlitic steel wires. These wires play a central role in many long span suspension bridges and their design, construction, and maintenance are important for global public safety. In particular, two relationships have been considered to represent strength variation with respect to length parameters: (i) the strength versus inverse square-root and (ii) inverse length equations. In this study, existing data for the strength of high strength pearlitic steel wires is evaluated for the coefficient of determination (R-2 values). It is concluded that the data fits into two equations equally well. Thus, the choice between two groups of theories that predict respective relationships must rely on the merit of theoretical developments and assumptions made.