Discussion

Mr. W. B. Horne (NASA, Hampton, Virginia)—Results in the two papers are in agreement with NASA research results. The papers treated the subjects of tread material, tire construction, road surface texture, and tread design very thoroughly. But one essential ingredient to the problem has been left out of the paper discussions, and that is, the effect of water depth. The importance of the water depth effect, and the need to inform both public and government authorities about the importance of removing worn tires from automobiles for the safety of all, is discussed and illustrated very fully by Leland. An example of what happens when the water depth is 0.4 in. is shown in Figure 1. It can be seen that the water penetrates the tire imprint much more rapidly than in shallow water. The effect of road surface texture on braking friction coefficient is illustrated by the data shown in Figure 2. A smooth tread aircraft tire was successfully braked on five different road surfaces ranging in texture from a large aggregate asphalt surface to wet ice. These surfaces are classified as damp in wetness. The surfaces at the time of testing were wet to the touch but did not have any puddles or standing water. Under this condition, damp smooth concrete (smooth as a table top) gave friction values as low as wet ice. This drastic friction loss decreased as the road surface texture increased. It will be noted that the smooth aggregate asphalt data did not fall off in speed as was shown by Maycock in his paper in Figure 15. In Figure 3 the water depth on the smooth concrete and large aggregate asphalt surface was increased from a damp condition to a flooded condition (0.1–0.2 in.). The character of the friction changes of these surfaces due to change in water depth is remarkable. For example, the smooth concrete increased slightly in value. This is an apparent increase, however, because the deeper water produces a fluid drag term which adds to the tire-surface braking force and gives a higher friction coefficient. This is an academic point, however, since the smooth concrete surface is producing viscous hydroplaning even at low speeds. On the other hand, the asphalt surface which alleviated the viscous hydroplaning effect under damp conditions does not prevent dynamic hydroplaning from occurring to the tire when this surface is flooded to a depth of 0.1 to 0.2 in. To summarize, any surface must be evaluated under a range of water depths before its wet friction qualities can be properly evaluated. Smooth tread tires or badly worn patterned tires have demonstrated poor friction capabilities on most wet or flooded surfaces. For this reason, both aircraft and automobile tires should be removed and replaced before wear produces a smooth tread condition.