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Case Study

Apollo Tyres Analyzes Hydroplaning Risk of Passenger Car Tires

"Ansys Fluent software helped in analyzing the hydroplaning risk of passenger car tyres by calculating the lift force on the tyres."

— Sowntharya L, Scientist, Tyre Simulation / Apollo Tyres

Introduction

Hydroplaning occurs when a layer of water builds up between the tires and the road surface, which leads to loss of contact that prevents the vehicle from responding to control inputs, such as steering, braking or accelerating. The tread design and dimensions play an important role in expulsion of water, thus reducing the risk of hydroplaning. Predicting the speed of onset of hydroplaning and the lift force experienced by the tire aids in optimizing the tread pattern.

Challenges

Hydroplaning in tires is a safety criterion. Hence, there is a need to minimize the loss of contact by modifying the groove design while keeping the development cost low. Experimental testing is highly expensive and limited, which affects the validation of the simulation results. Also, hydroplaning and tire noise are conflicting phenomena, and they should be optimized with proper balance.

Engineering Solution

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis using Ansys Fluent simulated the water flow through the car tires. The developed simulation methodology predicted the lift force and hydroplaning speed.

Benefits

The developed methodology helps in:

  • Selecting the best tire pattern to minimize hydroplaning.
  • Optimizing water flow channel in tires to delay the onset of hydroplaning.
  • Increasing the wet grip potential of tires.