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Past experimental studies show that tire–pavement friction values are related to conditions surrounding the tire such as pavement temperature, ambient temperature, contained air temperature, and surface characteristics of the pavement. For measurements taken in different temperature conditions, road agencies generally apply correction factors. These correction factors are based primarily on experience and previous field test measurements that have very limited transferability under different conditions. This paper studies frictional behavior of test tires under different surrounding temperature conditions using finite element analysis. The scope of this research is to analyze the effect of pavement temperature, ambient temperature, and contained air temperature on frictional measurements. Finite element analysis of fully and partially skidding tires over different asphalt pavement surfaces, namely, porous asphalt, ultrathin surface, and stone mastic asphalt, is considered. Observation showed that a higher pavement temperature, ambient temperature, and contained air temperature resulted in a lower hysteretic friction for a given pavement surface and a given tire slip ratio. In contrast, a lower tire slip ratio and a pavement with higher macrotexture resulted in higher friction. This study highlights that a critical combination of these factors will decrease friction significantly.

Grooving of tire tread is necessary to provide sufficient skid resistance for wet-weather driving and to reduce the risk of hydroplaning. Many different groove patterns of tire tread are found in the market. However, their relative effectiveness in reducing hydroplaning risk is generally not known to motorists and highway engineers. The effects of changes in the groove depth of a tire tread's groove pattern also deserve further investigation. This paper presents an analytical study that aims to characterize quantitatively the influence of different tire-tread patterns and groove depths on the hydroplaning behavior of passenger cars. The analysis is performed by means of a computer simulation model with a three-dimensional finite element approach. The following six forms of tire-tread groove patterns are considered: ( a) longitudinal groove pattern, (b) transverse groove pattern, ( c) V-groove pattern with 20° V-cut, (d) V-groove pattern with 40° V-cut, ( e) combined groove pattern consisting of longitudinal grooves and edge horizontal grooves, and ( f) combined groove pattern consisting of longitudinal grooves and 20° V-cut grooves. The analysis shows that a parameter computed as the groove volume per tread area of the tire is a useful performance indicator to assess the effectiveness of various tire-tread groove patterns in reducing vehicle hydroplaning risk. The significance of V-shape grooves is discussed. For vehicular operations involving both forward and lateral movements, the analysis indicates that a combined pattern would provide a good compromise in lowering hydroplaning risk sufficiently in different modes of vehicle movements.

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Tire–road interaction addresses safety with respect to braking friction and energy efficiency in the context of rolling resistance. These phenomena are coherent, but their engineering solutions can be contradictory. For example, highly skid-resistant surfaces may not be ideal for fuel economy, but surfaces with low rolling resistance may be prone to skidding. Several experimental and numerical studies have investigated the individual phenomena, but insufficient attention has been paid to studying them coherently. The present study computed braking friction and rolling resistance for various operating parameters and their coherent response for each parameter with the use of a thermomechanical contact algorithm. Micromechanical finite element simulations of a rolling or braking pneumatic tire against selected asphalt concrete surfaces were performed for various operating conditions, such as tire load, inflation pressure, speed, and ambient air and pavement temperatures. The coefficients of braking friction and rolling resistance were found to decrease with the inflation pressure and the temperature and to increase with the wheel load. The braking friction coefficient was found to decrease with the speed, in contrast to the rolling resistance coefficient, which increases with the same parameter. A full-skidding tire registered lower braking friction than a 20% slipping tire. Also, an asphalt surface with higher macrotexture offered higher braking friction and higher rolling resistance, and vice versa.

Good pavement macrotexture has a direct influence on vehicle safety during wet weather conditions by improving vehicle traction and braking ability. Apart from the macrotexture, several other factors, such as environmental, tire, and pavement-related characteristics, affect the wet friction. Most experimental studies had a limited scope of reusability as soon as there was a change in any of the other factors. In recent years, the development of powerful finite element tools has made it possible to simulate complex wet tire–pavement interaction as close as possible to the actual field conditions. However, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, none of the past analytical and numerical studies were able to include the actual pavement surface texture in their analysis. This paper describes an approach to study the effect of actual surface morphologies of asphalt pavements on the wet friction coefficient by using the finite element method. Asphalt surface morphologies representative of open-graded mix to close-graded mix were used in the finite element analysis. The finite element model was duly calibrated with the field investigations conducted with state-of-the-art field equipment. The extreme loss of wet friction, which ultimately led to the risk of hydroplaning, was also studied. The analyses were performed for two water film thicknesses, two tread patterns, and two tire slip ratios. The results from the current study can be used as safety indicators of in-service asphalt pavements under wet and flooded conditions.

ZOAB (Zeer Open Asphalt Beton) is the most widely used asphalt mixture in the Netherlands. As a type of open asphalt mixture, it is known to suffer from raveling distress. In order to analyze the propensity of raveling, micromechanical models are considered effective. However, most of the research work about micromechanical models has focused on dense asphalt mixture and the application of these models on ZOAB mixes has not been paid adequate attention. Therefore, in this research study, the performance of various micromechanical models for predicting mechanical properties of ZOAB was evaluated. The predicted results were compared with the measured values from a dynamic uniaxial compression test. The analysis results showed that none of the applied micromechanical models could obtain acceptable predicted results of the dynamic Young's modulus and phase angle of ZOAB. On one hand, the Dilute model, the Mori-Tanaka model, the generalized self-consistent model and the Lielens' model provided lower values of dynamic Young's modulus and higher values of phase angle, whereas, for the self-consistent model, the predicted results of dynamic Young's modulus were higher, and the values of phase angle were lower. On the other hand, the shapes of the predicted master curves of both dynamic modulus and phase angle of ZOAB could not match well with the experimental results. The further research on the differential scheme method showed that at lower frequencies the predicted mechanical properties of ZOAB mixes by the applied micromechanical models could not be improved even by following this scheme.

Field experience shows that most road accidents that occur during turning maneuvers are caused by the loss of vehicle control. The loss of vehicle control is often related to a lack of sufficient friction between the tire and the pavement surface. In experiments and analytical studies, the overall antiskidding performance of a pneumatic tire has been observed to be affected by operating conditions, road texture, and surrounding temperatures. Interactions of these parameters create a complex relationship between their combined effect and the tire's ability to combat skidding. One way to analyze the cornering maneuvers of a vehicle is by means of a validated finite element tool that can carry both the tire and the pavement properties. Few computational studies have been conducted to study the cornering performance of a rolling pneumatic tire, and none of these studies included the role of pavement surface morphologies in their analysis. In this study, a thermomechanical framework was used to analyze the influence of temperature on cornering friction. The cornering friction coefficient was found to decrease with an increase in the loads and the speeds. The cornering friction coefficient was found to increase with an increase in inflation pressure, sideslip angle, and pavement surface texture depth. The proposed study contributes to an understanding of the cornering performance of passenger car tires.