Never underestimate it!!

Sometime, two years ago, I've been in touch with these. I was astonished to see the types of these and the various terminologies used for these stuff. And what I'm talking about is Tires. I was amazed and astonished to so many types of tires. It is not really what we see out there. It is absolutely necessary to design them to perfection because they are transmitting the total power output of the engine to the roads. These are the ones that make you feel like floating on the road. But then it has now come a long way from the conventional tire developed by Robert Thomson and later introduced by John Boyd Dunlop, for his son's bicycle. Then the vulcanising of the tire was a serendipity which was introduced to the world by Charles Goodyear. I was browsing about how it is manufactured and what kind of research is being done in tires now(yes, research is done in tires as well).

What is done to get a tire?

The main ingredient of the tire is the rubber. Especially Natural rubber or synthetic rubber.

To produce the raw rubber used in tire manufacturing, the liquid latex is mixed with acids that cause the rubber to solidify. Excess water is squeezed out by presses and made into the form of sheets and is dried in smokehouses. Shaped into bales and sent to tire manufacturing factories. Synthetic rubber is produced from polymers of crude oil.

The other ingredients are carbon black, sulfur and other chemicals. Carbon black is produced by burning crude oil with low oxygen content. For racing cars, specific chemicals that produce more traction are used and for passenger cars high mileage tires are manufactured using certain chemicals. Certain chemicals in the tire protect it from the ultraviolet rays of the sunshine. The design includes three parts namely the tread, the beads and the body with the sidewalls. There are computer systems to simulate road conditions and for the test of the tread pattern under different conditions. The different types of chemical compounds of rubber, the whole of the tire design, and the stresses acting on the tire while running can be simulated through the use of the software.

In a modern passenger car tire, as many as twenty different types of rubber may be used in different parts of the tire.

What is the modern research going on in the field of tires?

In the National Meeting of the American Chemical Society(ACS), Dr. Joseph McAuliffe suggested "green tires" for the world. The tire uses a compound called isoprene which is normally got from petroleum products. But he suggested a compound called BioIsoprene which can be derived from food products like sugar, corn, switchgrass, corn cobs, etc. The reliance on petroleum feedstocks could get low and the tires can utilise the renewable feedstocks for the raw material required. Seven gallons of petroleum products are used up for the production of one billion tires produced each year.

Kaichang Li, a researcher of Oregon State University, Department of forestry with his student Wen Bei, found that wood products can be used in tires which can even improve the fuel economy of the vehicle. The surprising findings suggested the potential of a microcrystalline cellulose. The study suggests that the cellulose can be used in tires to reduce the power consumption of the manufacturing of the tire, reduce the costs, and buildup better heat resistance, better traction when compared with normal tires on wet pavements, and even high fuel efficiency. More research is being done on the durability with the use of tree materials, made with the partial replacement of silica. It can also create jobs for people by introducing a new manufacturing technique for tires.

I thought once the tires are worn out, they're useless. Ofcourse they are. But they become a nuisance over time. Nearly 280 million tires are discarded annually in the United States. Piles of worn-out tires can become eyesores and breeding grounds for mosquitoes. In landfills, intact tires can collect methane (produced by decomposing waste) and create potential fire hazards. Over time, these tires can work their way to the surface, where they can damage liner covers and cause increased leachate production that could contaminate groundwater.So Timothy Stark, a professor of civil engineering and environmental studies at the University of Illinois and Krishna Reddy professor from the same university, evaluated the use of shredded tires as a drainage material in waste-containment systems. Shredding tires into chips roughly 4 inches by 6 inches. offers a simple and cost-effective way of providing drainage for modern landfills, re mediating older landfills, and disposing of mountains of scrap tires.

Well, this maybe ok. But wait for something that's following. See this next generation of tires suggested by Michelin. This is pretty good. Airless, No valves, no compressors needed, no repair kits anymore. Check out the figure below and it will tell you all the story.

This may be the one!! Or may not!!

There maybe problems while going at higher speeds. It is under research and will be out sometime in the years to come. There are lot more happening in various parts of the world. A good composition that can resist a lot of wear and can give reliability, durability, cost effectiveness, an optimization between good traction and better mileage, something that is good for the environment while production as well is on the hunt. Until then the one below is what has been given to us by the tire manufacturing fraternity.

New one is on the way!!Until then use me!!

-SATZ