Wire rope fatigue and size effect

The execution of fatigue tests on wire ropes is hindered by the high costs of the tests especially for large diameter ropes and if bending over pulleys is required. The small number of dedicated machines is a problem too. However, as in other research fields, it could be possible to get reliable test results at a fraction of the cost of a full scale test by working on scaled down specimens. To explore the feasibility and reliability of this procedure available Iiterature an the theme is reviewed and some results from an OIPEEC ""ad hoc"" research are reported.