Damage and failure evaluation of diamond wire for multi-wire sawing of hard stone blocks through modelling and numerical simulation

Abstract

Diamond wires are high-speed, efficient and cost-effective stone cutting tools used both in quarries, to obtain large stone blocks, and in block-processing plants, to shape ornamental stones. Diamond wires are generally composed by a wire rope with evenly spaced diamond beads fixed by a polymer or rubber coating. A numerical model of the diamond wire was developed in Abaqus™ software aiming to study the damage and failure of the steel wire during the cutting process. The model is intended to support the development of this component with enhanced durability and damage resistance. Previously in this work, a detailed three-dimensional (3D) and numerical model of a 7x7 wire rope was created, followed by experimental validation. The diamond wire model was then based on the wire rope model, with the addition of the polymer coating and the diamond beads. The developed diamond wire model presents an error smaller than 6% relative to the experimental tensile test, corresponding to a valid representation of the component. This model has practical significance for the mechanical evaluation of the diamond wire, supporting further developments, with special focus on its design and manufacturing, to achieve longer service life.