David A. Kolman, editor, Fleet Maintenance

Kolman’s Komments: What a drag.

Jan. 25, 2016
Tires and rolling resistance

The rolling resistance of a tire is the physical drag a tire exhibits while in motion. This drag is measured as a force.

In the average truck tire, for every 1 percent improvement in rolling resistance or reduction in force, a one-third percent improvement is realized in fuel economy, says David Smothers, field engineer for Double Coin Tires, a company that produces tires for a wide variety of commercial applications, including trucking, construction, mining, ports and agriculture.

“It should be no surprise that when it comes to improving the tire for better fuel economy, tire engineers focus heavily on the tread area which contributes 50 percent to 60 percent of the rolling resistance on the average truck tire,” he says. “But engineers must make sure they manage improvements in rolling resistance without affecting the other performance characteristics of the tread area, including wear rates and irregular wear fighting capabilities.

Smothers notes that tire tread design would be much simpler if engineers weren’t concerned with things such as aquaplaning or, say, traction on the drive axle. “When you think about it, for rolling resistance concerns, just a basic round tread would give the best fuel economy, but I sure wouldn’t want to be navigating rain-slickened curves with that type of tread.”

While it is a tough balancing act, many of the leading commercial truck tire brands have made tremendous strides in recent years in lowering rolling resistance while maintaining long tread wear and dependable traction.

“The quest for lowering the rolling resistance in tires is ever evolving,” observes Smothers.

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