Aircraft Tyre Tread Wear via Localized Rubber Compositions
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Solution Overview
Problem
Aircraft tires exhibit irregular wear patterns, particularly differential wear between the middle and lateral parts of the tread, leading to premature tire removal and economic disadvantages, due to varying stress conditions during takeoff, taxiing, and landing phases.
Innovation Solution
The tire design incorporates a tread with a middle part and lateral parts having distinct rubber compositions, where the middle part contains at least 50 phr of a diene elastomer with ethylene and diene units, and the lateral parts have a higher reinforcing filler rate, optimizing wear resistance for each phase of use.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a uniform rubber composition is used for the entire tread, then the manufacturing process is simple and cost-effective, but the tread exhibits non-uniform wear patterns with the middle part wearing faster than lateral parts
Solution Approach 1:
The tread is divided into three distinct zones (left lateral part, middle part, right lateral part) with different rubber compositions optimized for their specific functional requirements. The middle part uses a composition with higher natural rubber content (50-70 phr) for flexibility and shock absorption during landing, while lateral parts use compositions with higher reinforcing filler content (70-90 phr) for wear resistance during taxiing operations.
Solution Approach 2:
Different rubber compositions are used in different tread zones, each being a composite material tailored to specific performance requirements. The middle part composition comprises natural rubber, synthetic rubber, reinforcing fillers, and vulcanizing agents in specific proportions to achieve optimal elasticity and impact resistance. Lateral part compositions use higher ratios of reinforcing fillers including carbon black and silica to maximize abrasion resistance.
2Reliability
If reinforcing filler content is increased throughout the tread, then overall wear resistance improves, but the tire becomes less flexible and more prone to cracking under high stress
Solution Approach 1:
Reinforcing filler content is locally optimized based on functional requirements. Lateral parts, which experience primarily abrasive wear during taxiing, receive high filler content (70-90 phr) for maximum wear resistance. The middle part, which experiences dynamic loading and flexing during landing and takeoff, receives moderate filler content (30-50 phr) to maintain flexibility and prevent cracking while providing sufficient wear resistance.
Solution Approach 2:
The tread employs zone-specific composite material formulations. The middle part composite balances natural rubber elasticity with moderate filler reinforcement to achieve both flexibility and wear resistance. Lateral part composites use higher filler-to-rubber ratios to maximize abrasion resistance where flexibility requirements are lower.
Data Source
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AI summary
The present invention relates to an aircraft tyre (1) and, in particular, the tread (2) thereof. The tread (2), of axial width L, comprises: a middle portion (3) having an axial width LC that is at least equal to 50% and at most equal to 80% of the axial width L and a middle rubber composition; and two side portions (41, 42), each having an axial width (LS1, LS2) and a side rubber composition. According to the invention, the middle rubber composition comprises at least 50 phr of a middle-portion first diene elastomer, at most 70 phr of a middle-portion reinforcing filler, and a cross-linking system, and each side portion comprises at least 50 phr of a side-portion first diene elastomer, a concentration of side-portion reinforcing filler that is at least equal to the concentration of middle-portion reinforcing filler, and a cross-linking system. The first diene elastomer of the middle portion and the side portion respectively comprises ethylene units and diene units comprising a carbon-carbon double bond, said units being distributed statistically within the first diene elastomer, and said ethylene units representing at least 50 mol.-% of all of the monomer units of the first diene elastomer.