Cable structures

Chapter 11
Introduction
 Cable means any structural element whose diameter is very
small in relation to its length. Cables make use of the tensile
strength of steel and can support incredible forces for their
size. However, they have no strength in compression and are
used almost exclusively in suspension structures.
 A cable structure can be defined as a structure in which a cable
or cable system is used as a structural element to withstand the
initial load. They are some of the most beautiful and recognized
structures in engineering.
 The ability to design large spans with little self-weight and
high load capacities and explore new architectural
expressions made cable structures very popular.
Introduction

Typical modern cable structures with steel cables: (1) suspension bridge, Highway Bridge
Khor al Batah, Oman; (2) cable-stayed bridge, Evripos Bridge, Greece; (3) cable truss roof, Annex Lutherhaus Roof,
Germany; (4) cable suspension roof, Glass Canopy of Station Plaza Heilbronn, Germany; (5) cable net facade, Façade
Airport Málaga, Spain; (6) saddle-shaped cable net, Canopy in Autostadt Wolfsburg, Germany; (7) cable net tower,
Dry Cooling Tower in Schmehausen near Hamm, Germany; (8) arch tower cable supported roof, Moses Mabhida
Stadium, South Africa; and (9) spoked wheel cable roof, Bay Arena Leverkusen, Germany
Cable Characteristics
 The structural behavior of the cable is unique and
unconventional compared to common structures. Unlike the
common design, where the strength of a member is derived
from its section and material properties, the cable has an
additional variable that influences its capacity: its geometry.
 Because a cable has negligible bending strength, its
deformation from loads follow its funicular curve. The cable
always adopt its shape so that it is in pure tension under the
action of the applied load.
 The above implies that when the load configuration changes,
the shape of the cable must change. In addition, the strain of
the cable, as well as movements at its support, influence its
shape and thus its load carrying capacity significantly.
Cable Characteristics
Funicular Curve: The funicular curve is the shape that produces
only axial forces in the member for a given load configuration. The
curve resembles the outline of the moment diagram from the a
vertical load placed on an imaginary simply supported beam.
Types of cable structure
 Cable-Stayed Structures
 Suspended cables and systems
• Singly-Curved Structures
• Double-Curvature Structures
Cable-Stayed Structures
 Cable-stayed structures consist of towers or masts from which
cables extend to support horizontally spanning members.
 The cables must have not only sufficient capacity to carry a
dead load of a structure but also enough reserve capacity to
carry the live load as well.
 The supported structural surface must be sufficiently stiff to
transfer or resist the lateral and torsional stresses induced by
wind, unbalanced live loads, and the normal force created by
the upward pull of the stays.
 The cable stays are usually attached symmetrically to a single
tower or mast with an equal number of stays on both sides so
that the horizontal force component of the inclined cables will
cancel each other out and minimize the moment at the top of
the tower or mast.
Cable-Stayed Structures
 There are two primary cable configurations: radial or fan
patterns and parallel or harp systems. Radial systems attach the
upper ends of the cable stays to a single point at the top of the
tower, while parallel systems secure the upper ends of the cable
to the mast at different heights. The radial system is usually
preferred because the single point of attachment minimizes the
bending moment in the tower.

Harp system of parallel

cable stays
Cable-Stayed Structures

• Large gravity loads and

possible overturning
moments require a
substantial foundation.

This cable-stayed structure supports a very large roof area with a

minimal amount of supporting structure at the ground level.
However, large uplifting wind forces may require a restraint
system along the overhanging roof edge.
Cable-Stayed Structures

Load Paths
Cable-Stayed Structures - Examples
Darling
Harbor
Exhibition
Centre
100-meter
span
Cable-Stayed Structures - Examples
Juventus Stadium
Cable-Stayed Structures - Examples
Cable-Stayed Structures
Benefits and Penalties
 Can Meet a Wide Range of Functional Demands
 Can Provide Column Free Space Increasing
 Internal Flexibility
 Can Be Easily Extended
 Can Lead to Reduced Structural Weight
 Can Lead to Higher Design Costs
 Increased Thermal Movement
 Erection Requires Special Consideration
 Increased Costs for Corrosion Protection
Suspended Cable – Single Curvature
 A structure that is supported by a long suspension cable to
suspend and takes the load with other support reactions. The
system components usually include guy cables and masts.
 The masts can be inclined to reduce bending moment, therefore
increasing structural efficiency.
Suspended Cable – Single Curvature
Load Paths
Suspended Cable – Single Curvature
 Due to wind gusts and turbulence, single-cable structures must
be carefully designed for uplift. Flutter or vibration presents
serious concerns in relatively light tensile structures.
1. A single curvature cables are susceptible to uplift forces and
vibration.
2. Reverse curvature and/ or prestressing can bring these forces to
zero.
1 2
Suspended Cable – Double Curvature
 Double-cable structures have upper and lower sets of cables of
different curvatures, pre-tensioned by ties or compression struts
to make the system more rigid and resistant to flutter.
Cable Suspended Systems
 Simply suspended cables
The cladding of roofs which are rectangular or trapezoidal in plan
can be supported by a series of simply suspended cables hanging in
vertical planes. In roofs which are circular or elliptical in plan the
cables are suspended radially and attached at the perimeter of the
roof to a compression ring and at the center to a tension ring.
Cable Suspended Systems
 Pretensioned cable beam structures
Lighter and stiffer systems
than simple cables can be
achieved if a second set of
cables with reverse
curvature is connected to
the suspension cables. The
resulting systems or cable
beams will be pretty stiff if
tensioned to a level that
ensures that both cables
remain in tension under
any combination of applied
loading.
Cable Suspended Systems

Radial convex cable beam structure with inner

tension rings and an outer compression ring
Cable Suspended Systems
 Pretensioned cable net structures
The suspension and pretension cables all lie in one surface and form
a large net. As with cable beams, for a net to be stiff the cables
must be in tension and it follows that the geometry of a net must be
such that all the surface is anticlastic or saddle-shaped.
Cable Suspended Systems
The geometries of cable nets are functions of their points of support
and the tensions in the cables. They may be designed to resemble
tent-like structures with masts and edge cables as shown in 1, or
with stiff boundary members such as beams, arches and space rings
as in 2.

1 2
General structural characteristics
 Cable roofs are classified as nonlinear structures. Their stiffness
tends to increase with an increase in displacement as long as all
the cables remain in tension.
 The stiffness of cable structures is mainly a function of the
curvature of the cables; the cross-sectional areas of the cables;
the level of pretension and the stiffness of the boundary and
support structure.
 As a general rule, cable sags between 4% and 6% of the span
will give satisfactory structural behavior, provided the factor of
safety for the cables is not less than two and the level of
pretension is such that no cable goes slack under any
combination of loading.
 In general, increasing pretension appears to have a greater
stiffening effect on net structures than on beam and grid
structures.
General structural characteristics
 Pretensioned cable structures are not, unlike many other types
of structure, subject to instability problems. Experience has also
shown that they are dynamically stable provided the degree of
curvature and level of pretension are sufficiently high.
 The effect of any fire, with consequent increase in temperature,
is to reduce the tension in the cables and hence also the forces
in the boundary structure.
 Cable roof structures are inherently economical structures
because the main load-carrying members which support the
roof loading are subjected to tensile forces only
Cables
 Spiral strands (up): single-strand ropes
which are composed of layers of round
wires built up around a central king wire
until the required strength is achieved.
 Locked coil type (down) which employs
one or more layers of interlocking wires
on the outside of the rope to produce a
smooth external finish.
 Both these types of rope are capable of
operating satisfactorily in structures,
and the choice between the two is
largely a matter of the personal
preference of the designer.
 Cables mostly are made of high strength
steel > 500 N/mm2
Cable Anchors
Types of tension anchors
Examples of different anchors are
shown in the figure.
(a) Gravity anchor; (b) plate
anchor; (c) mushroom anchor; (d)
retaining wall anchor; (e) tension
piles; (f) ground anchor
Cable Anchors

Cable and Anchor