Correlation Between the Wear of Rubber Compounds in Laboratory and Dynamic Simulations Performed by the Finite Elements Method 2005-01-4089

The wear performance evaluation of tyre tread rubber compounds is an expensive and challenging task, which involves plenty of laboratory tests and time consuming outdoor tests. Due to the multitude of factors involved an absolute evaluation is out of the question. The severity of road tests is not well defined and the major factors that contribute to the variability should be taken into consideration: the pavement, the weather, the route topography, the driver and the vehicle (maintenance, speed, load and suspension). Through scientific and technical partnership between the Polytechnic School of the University of Sao Paulo and Pirelli Tyres it is undergoing wear study of a rubber wheel test and correlating to the wear observed on outdoor road tests. The behavior of this rubber wheel under dynamic conditions was simulated by the finite element method. The relationship between laboratory tests results and finite element models, of both rubber wheel and real tyres, is an important tool to develop new rubber compounds for the different operational conditions verified on the market.