Analysis of mechanical properties of stainless steel small diameter cold drawn wires

Wire suppliers commonly only commit to the chemical composition and minimum mechanical resistance of their wires in their material certificates. Unfortunately, the cold drawing process induces residual stresses that potentially have a strong impact on the overall behavior of the wire. An explanation of the difference between the industrial 'tensile modulus' and 'flexural modulus' whereas the material has a unique 'Young Modulus' is proposed by mean of FEA and experimental tests. Moreover, in order to better estimate the complex material state of small wires (with a diameter smaller than one millimeter) a novel experimental approach has been developed to estimate the residual stress.