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International Journal of Pavement Engineering

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Simulation of tyrepavement interaction for predicting

contact stresses at static and various rolling conditions
a a b
Hao Wang , Imad L. Al-Qadi & Ilinca Stanciulescu
a
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Illinois at
UrbanaChampaign, Urbana, IL, USA
b
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA

Version of record first published: 11 Apr 2011.

To cite this article: Hao Wang, Imad L. Al-Qadi & Ilinca Stanciulescu (2012): Simulation of tyrepavement interaction for
predicting contact stresses at static and various rolling conditions, International Journal of Pavement Engineering, 13:4,
310-321

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 International Journal of Pavement Engineering
Vol. 13, No. 4, August 2012, 310321

Simulation of tyre pavement interaction for predicting contact stresses

at static and various rolling conditions
Hao Wanga*, Imad L. Al-Qadia and Ilinca Stanciulescub
a
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA;
b
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA
(Received 3 November 2010; final version received 19 February 2011)

This paper describes the development of a 3D tyre pavement interaction model to predict the tyre pavement contact stress
distributions for future use in the mechanistic analysis of pavement responses. The ribbed radial-ply tyre was modelled as a
composite structure (rubber and reinforcement), and the tyre material parameters were calibrated through load-deflection
curves. The steady-state tyre rolling process was simulated using an arbitrary Lagrangian Eulerian formulation. The model
Downloaded by [University of California, Berkeley] at 13:00 16 October 2012

results are consistent with previous measurements and validate the existence of non-uniform vertical contact stresses and
localised tangential contact stresses. The analysis results show that the non-uniformity of vertical contact stresses decreases
as the load increases, but increases as the inflation pressure increases. However, vehicle manoeuvring behaviour
significantly affects the tyre pavement contact stress distributions. For example, tyre braking/acceleration induces
significant longitudinal contact stresses, while tyre cornering causes the peak contact stresses shifting towards one side of the
contact patch. The model results provide valuable insights into understanding the realistic tyre pavement interaction for
analysing pavement responses at critical loading conditions.
Keywords: tyre pavement interaction; contact stress; static; free rolling; braking; cornering

Introduction Tyre pavement contact stresses can be measured

Tyres serve many important purposes for a travelling
vehicle including cushioning the vehicle against road
roughness, controlling stability, generating manoeuvring
forces and providing safety, among others. Tyre type and
configuration also affect pavement performance because
the tyre imprint area transmits contact stresses to the
pavement surface. Many studies have shown that the
assumptions of contact stress distributions between tyres
and pavement have significant effects on the prediction of
pavement responses and performance (De Beer et al. 2002;
Elseifi et al. 2005; Al-Qadi and Yoo 2007; Al-Qadi et al.
2008; Wang and Al-Qadi 2010).
Previous researches have already proved that vertical
contact stresses under a loaded tyre are non-uniform, and
tangential contact stresses are developed at the tyre
pavement interface (Tielking and Abraham 1994; De Beer
et al. 1997). However, the exact distributions of these
contact stresses are complex and depend on many factors,
such as tyre type (bias-ply or radial-ply, dual tyres or single
wide-base tyre), tyre structure (geometry, tread pattern,
rubber and reinforcement), pavement surface condition
(texture and roughness), loading condition (wheel load and
inflation pressure) and tyre rolling condition (free rolling,
acceleration, braking and cornering).
using various experimental devices, including pressure
cells, tri-axial pressure transducer, piezoelectric sensors,
pressure-sensitive films and ultrasonic waves (Tielking
and Abraham 1994; De Beer et al. 1997; Douglas et al.
2000; Pau et al. 2008). However, these measurement
methods are expensive and time consuming. In addition,
the accuracy of the measurement depends on the interface
friction between the tyre and measurement sensors, the
size and resolution of measurement sensors, the space
interval of measurement sensors in the contact area, the
loaded surface characteristics, the rolling speed and the
applied driving force. During experiments, it is generally
difficult to consider all the tyre loading and operating
variables because of the extensive large testing matrix and
the measurement difficulties associated with a rolling tyre.
Therefore, development of a theoretical approach to
simulate tyre pavement interaction would provide sig-
nificant benefits. The simulation would show the
comparative interface stress distributions under various
tyre loading and rolling conditions. These analyses would
provide valuable insights into the load distribution
mechanisms at the tyre pavement interface, especially
from a pavement design/analysis point of view. The
research presented in this paper describes the development

*Corresponding author. Email: hwang.cee@rutgers.edu

Present address: Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, 623 Bowser Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA.
ISSN 1029-8436 print/ISSN 1477-268X online
q 2012 Taylor & Francis
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10298436.2011.565767
http://www.tandfonline.com
 International Journal of Pavement Engineering
of the aforementioned type of model and details the
insights this theoretical approach can provide into tyre
pavement interaction.
Background on tyre models
The two main types of tyres are bias-ply and radial-ply
tyres. The radial-ply tyre has become more popular
because it causes less rolling resistance and heat
generation compared to the bias-ply tyre. The typical
structure of a radial-ply tyre is shown in Figure 1. The
radial-ply tyre has one or more layers of radial plies in the
rubber carcass with a crown angle of 908. The crown angle
is defined as the angle between the ply and the
circumferential line of the tyre. In addition, several layers
Downloaded by [University of California, Berkeley] at 13:00 16 October 2012
of belts are laid under the tread rubber at a low crown
angle. The radial ply and belt layers enhance the rigidity of
the tyre and stabilise it in the radial and lateral directions.
The tread layer of the tyre is usually patterned with
longitudinal or transverse grooves and serves as a wear-
resistance layer that provides sufficient frictional contact
with the pavement and minimises hydroplaning through
good drainage of water in wet conditions (Wong 1993).
The tyre industry developed many simplified physical
models to predict tyre performance. These include the
classical spring-damper model, the tyre ring model and the
membrane and shell model (Knothe et al. 2001). However,
these models are usually unsuitable for quantitative
prediction of tyre pavement contact stresses. General
purpose finite element (FE) software programs developed
in the mid-1990s, such as ABAQUS, ANSYS, ADINA,
provide more tools to simulate 3D tyre behaviour with
rolling contact. A survey of existing literature reveals many
published works on an FE modelling of a tyre by computer
simulation. The complexity of tyre models varies,
depending on the features built into the model, including
FE formulation (Lagrangian, Eulerian or arbitrary Lagran-
gian Eulerian, ALE), material models (linear elastic,
hyperelastic or viscoelastic), type of time domain
(transient or steady state) and type of analysis (isothermal,
Ribs Grooves
Sidewall
Steel belts
Beads Radial ply
Figure 1. Schematic illustration of a radial-ply tyre (from
Michelin Website dated on 27 July 2010).
311
non-isothermal or thermo-mechanical). Such tyre models
allow one to analyse the energy loss (rolling resistance),
tyre terrain interaction, steady-state or transient responses,
vibration and noise, and tyre failure and stability.
From a pavement perspective, the contact stresses
developed at the tyre pavement surface have been studied
because they determine the stresses caused in the
pavement structure. Tielking and Roberts (1987) devel-
oped an FE model of bias-ply tyre for analysing the effect
of inflation pressure and load on tyre pavement contact
stresses. The pavement was modelled as a rigid flat
surface, and the tyre was modelled as an assembly of
axisymmetric shell elements positioned along the carcass
mid-ply surface. Zhang (2001) built a truck tyre model
using ANSYS and analysed the inter-ply shear stresses
between the belt and carcass layers as a function of normal
loads and pressures. Shoop (2001) simulated the coupled
tyre terrain interaction and analysed the plastic defor-
mation of soft soil/snow using an ALE adaptive mesh
formulation. He suggested that the assumption of a rigid
tyre might be suitable for soft terrain analysis. Roque et al.
(2000) used a simple strip model to simulate the cross
section of a tyre and concluded that the measurement of
contact stresses using devices with rigid foundation was
suitable for the prediction of pavement responses. Meng
(2002) modelled a low-profile radial smooth tyre on rigid
pavement surface using ABAQUS and analysed the
vertical contact stress distributions under various tyre
loading conditions. Ghoreishy et al. (2007) developed a
3D FE model for a 155/65R13 steel-belted tyre and carried
out a series of parametric analyses. They found that the
belt angle was the most important constructional variable
for tyre behaviour, and the change of friction coefficient
had great influence on the pressure field and relative shear
between tyre treads and road.
Objective and scope
This paper presents the development of a 3D FE model of an
air-inflated ribbed tyre and the simulated interaction
between this tyre and a non-deformable pavement surface.
Initially, static vertical and transverse contact stresses at the
tyrepavement interface were analysed and compared with
the previously collected experimental measurements. Upon
the validation of the developed model, tyrepavement
contact stresses at various rolling conditions (free rolling,
braking/acceleration and cornering) were investigated.
These predicted contact stresses provide the realistic loading
input for the mechanistic analysis of pavement responses.
Simulation of tyre pavement interaction
Descriptions of tyre model
Theoretically, a tyre model should consider three main
characteristics: (1) the composite structure and the
 312
anisotropy due to the significant difference in stiffness
between rubber and reinforcement, (2) the relatively large
deformation due to flexibility of tyre carcass during contact
with pavement surface and (3) the near-incompressibility
and the non linearity of rubber material (Wong 1993).
The tyre models commonly used for tyre design purposes
must accurately predict the deformation of the whole tyre
and the interaction of internal components as well. This
study focuses on tyre deformation with respect to the
contact region and the resulted contact stress distributions
at the tyre pavement interface. This focus allows for the
development of relatively simple models to ensure high
computational efficiency.
The cross-sectional views of the modelled radial-ply
tyre having five longitudinal ribs are shown in Figure
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2(a),(b). The outer radius of the tyre is 506 mm, and the tyre
height is 220 mm. The wall-to-wall tyre width is 275 mm
and the contact width, including ribs and grooves, is
approximately 200 mm. The tyre thickness in the tread area
is 18 mm with 13-mm tread depth. The width of each rib is
around 30 mm with 10-mm grooves between adjacent ribs.
The tyre model comprises one radial ply, two steel belts and
a rubber carcass (sidewall and tread). The two steel belts are
oriented at 208 and 2 208 with respect to the hoop
(circumferential) direction, while the radial ply is
perpendicular to the circumferential direction of the tyre.
The two steel belts are located approximately 15 and 17 mm
away from the outer surface of the tread, respectively.
The rim was modelled as a rigid body and in contact with
(a)
Tread
Belt
Radial ply
Sidewall
Bead
(c)
Figure 2. Simulation of tyre pavement interaction: (a) cross section of tyre structure, (b) cross section of tyre mesh, (c) inflating tyre
with internal pressure, and (d) applying load on tyre and rolling.
H. Wang et al.
the bead at the end of sidewall. To optimise computation
speed and resolution, a finer mesh was chosen for around
the tread zone, and a coarse mesh was used in the sidewall.
The FE tyre model was built in two steps. First, a 2D
axisymmetric tyre model was built with four-node
axisymmetric continuum elements for rubber. These
bilinear elements allow for the consideration of twisting
the rubber-cord composite that generally takes place in
tyres during loading. The radial ply and layered steel belts
were modelled as surface membrane elements with
embedded rebar layers. These reinforced surface mem-
brane elements were embedded in host continuum
elements. Then, the 3D tyre model was generated by
revolving the 2D mesh around its symmetric axis using
symmetric result transfer and symmetric model generation
capability in ABAQUS (2007).
Modelling tyre pavement interaction
The tyre pavement interaction is essentially a rolling
contact problem. Several challenges exist when modelling
the tyre pavement interaction via a two-solid contact
mechanics approach, such as nonlinear material properties
of pavement layers, transient contact conditions, large tyre
deformation, intricate structure of the tyre and nonlinear
frictional interface (Laursen and Stanciulescu 2006). Due
to the complexity of the problem, it is difficult to solve the
tyre pavement contact problem via a two-solid contact
mechanics approach. In this study, the pavement was
(b)
(d)
 International Journal of Pavement Engineering
modelled as a non-deformable flat surface to achieve better
computation efficiency. This assumption is considered
reasonable because the tyre deformation is much greater
than the pavement deflection when wheel load is applied
on the tyre and transmitted to the pavement surface.
The tyre pavement interaction was simulated in three
progressive steps, as shown in Figure 2(c),(d). First, an
axisymmetric tyre model was loaded with uniform
inflation pressure at its inner surface. Second, a 3D tyre
model was generated and simulated in contact with
pavement under the applied vertical load. To consider the
large tyre deformation, large displacement formulation
and geometry nonlinearity in ABAQUS were used.
Finally, the tyre was rolled on the rigid flat surface at
various angular velocities and transport velocities. The tyre
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rolling process was modelled using the steady-state
transport analysis in ABAQUS. The steady-state transport
analysis utilises implicit dynamic analysis and considers
the tyre inertia and the frictional effects at the tyre
pavement interface (ABAQUS 2007).
In the steady-state transport analysis, the ALE
formulation was used rather than traditional Lagrange or
Eulerian formulations (Nackenhorst 2004). The ALE uses
a moving reference frame, in which rigid body rotation is
described in an Eulerian formulation and the deformation is
described in a Lagrange formulation. This kinematic
description converts the steady-state moving contact
problem into a pure spatially dependent simulation. Thus,
the mesh needs to be refined only in the contact region.
Hence, a mesh convergence analysis was performed with a
series of progressively finer FE meshes. The predicted
contact stress results were compared for each mesh until
changes in numerical results were , 5% (Figure 3).
The contact between the tyre and pavement surface
consists of two components: one that is normal to the
surfaces and the other that is tangential to the surfaces. The
treatment of the normal contact condition is to enforce
impenetrability in the normal direction using the penalty
method or Lagrange multipliers method. However, for the
tangential interaction between two contacting surfaces, the
typical Coulomb friction law is used (Wriggers 2002).
(a)
1000
Vertical contact stress (kPa)
900
800
700
600
500
0 20 40 60
Circular sectors in contact area
Figure 3. Mesh convergences of (a) vertical and (b) longitudinal contact stresses.
313
This model assumes that the resistance to movement is
proportional to the normal stress at an interface. In this
case, the interface may resist movement up to a certain
level; then the two contacting surfaces at the interface start
to slide relative to each another. If the relative motion
occurs, the frictional stress remains constant and the stress
magnitude is equal to the normal stress at the interface
multiplied by the friction coefficient.
Contact stress verification
The study focuses on the contact patch shape and stress
distribution at the tyre pavement interface rather than the
internal stresses in the tyre structure. Rubber is a near-
incompressible and hyperelastic material with viscoelas-
ticity. However, tyre manufacturers usually do not reveal
information on material properties and tyre structure.
Hence, the rubber was simulated as linear elastic material
with a Poissons ratio close to 0.5. Different parts of rubber
elements (sidewall, shoulder, belt rubber and tread) were
modelled having variable elastic stiffness. The steel
reinforcements (radial ply and belts) were modelled as a
linear elastic material.
Tyre load-deflection curves from experimental
measurements were used to calibrate the tyre model
parameters. The elastic properties of rubber and ply/belt
reinforcement were adjusted to obtain deflection values
close to experimental measurements provided by tyre
manufacturer. The initial elastic modulus of each
component was based on tyre models in the literature
(Zhang 2001; Ghoreishy et al. 2007). Sensitivity analysis
showed that tyre deflection is primarily affected by radial
ply, sidewall stiffness and the steel belt crown angles.
Good agreements were achieved between the predicted
and measured deflections under various loading and tyre
pressure levels as shown in Figure 4. The final selected
elastic material properties of each tyre component are
presented in Table 1.
To examine the accuracy of the developed model, the
predicted contact stresses at the tyre pavement interface
(b)
200
Longitudinal contact stress
150
(kPa)
100
50
0
80 0 20 40 60 80
Circular sectors in contact area
 314 H. Wang et al.

(a) (b)

30

25

Load on tire (kN)

20

15

10 Measurement at 828kPa
Calulation at 828kPa
5 Measurement at 414kPa
Calculation at 414kPa
0
0 20 40 60 80
Deflection (mm)
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Figure 4. Comparisons between measured and calculated tyre deflections.

were compared to the experimental measurements
provided by tyre manufacturer. Measurements were
collected as the tyre rolled over the instrumentation at a
close to static condition. Therefore, the static loading
condition of the tyre was simulated in the comparison. It is
noted that the friction between the tyre and instrumentation
depends on the geometry and interval of sensors used in the
measurement. A friction coefficient of 0.3 was selected
through a sensitivity analysis because it provides the best
match between the predicted and measured contact stresses.
The data from Figure 5 compare the transverse
distributions of contact stresses from model predictions
and experimental measurements (17.8 kN and 724 kPa)
provided by tyre manufacturer, for the vertical and transverse
contact stresses, respectively. In general, the predicted
contact stresses agree fairly well with those measured by
experiments. Although some variations were observed, the
tyre model captured the non-uniform distribution of vertical
contact stresses and the localised asymmetric distribution of
transverse contact stresses under each individual tyre rib.
Analysis of tyre pavement contact stresses
Static loading condition
A typical plot of the 3D contact stress field predicted from
the tyre pavement interaction model at static loading
condition (17.8 kN and 724 kPa) is showh in figure
Figure 6. In these plots, zero values were assigned to the
groove areas between adjacent ribs. As the tyre is pressed
against a flat surface, the tread rubber is compressed in the
flattened contact patch and the sidewall of the tyre is in
tension. The bending stress in the sidewall causes the non-
uniform distribution of vertical contact stresses in the
contact patch, particularly at the edge of the contact patch.
At the same time, the Poissons effect and the restricted
outward movement of each tyre rib lead to the
development of tangential stresses. The plots clearly
show that the vertical and transverse contact stresses have
a convex shape along the contact length, while the
longitudinal contact stresses have a reversed pattern with
backward stresses in the front half and forward stresses in
the rear half.
The data from Figure 7(a),(b) show the distributions of
vertical contact stresses under high load and high inflation
pressure, respectively. The results show that as the load
increases, the peak contact stress tends to shift towards
outer ribs and the convex shape of the vertical stress tends
to flatten in the middle section. This trend likely happens
because a heavier load causes greater bending deformation
of the sidewall, which mainly affects the contact stresses
under the outside ribs. As the inflation pressure increases,
the vertical contact stress increases the most in the
centre region of the tyre contact area and the stress

Table 1. Material property of each tyre component.

Tyre components Material Elastic modulus (MPa) Poissons ratio Density (kg/m3)
Tread Rubber 4 0.49 1100
Belt rubber Rubber 12 0.49 1100
Sidewall Rubber 0.5 0.49 1100
Shoulder rubber Rubber 8 0.49 1100
Radial ply Nylon 9000 0.3 1500
Belt Steel 170,000 0.3 5900
 International Journal of Pavement Engineering 315

(a) (b)
1500 Prediction
400

Vertical contact stress (kPa)

Measurement

Transverse contact stress

1000 200

(kPa)
0
500
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
Prediction
Measurement 200
0
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
Points at each rib 400
Points at each rib

Figure 5. Predicted and measured (a) vertical and (b) transverse contact stresses.
Downloaded by [University of California, Berkeley] at 13:00 16 October 2012

(a)
Max: 1234 kPa
Vertical contact stress (kPa)

1500

1000

500

300
0 200
)
200 100 (mm
150 100 50 0 0
t l e ngth
tac
Contact width (mm) Con

(b)
Max: 345 kPa
Transverse contact stress (kPa)

400

200

200
300
400 200
100 m)
200 150 100 0 th (m
50 0 leng
tact
Contact width (mm) Con

(c)
Longitudinal contact stress (kPa)

200 Max: 154 kPa

100

100
300
200 200
100 )
200 150 100 0 ( m
m
50 0 length
tact
Contact width (mm) Con

Figure 6. Predicted (a) vertical, (b) transverse and (c) longitudinal contact stresses at the static condition.
 316
(a)
1500
Vertical contact stress (kPa)
1000
500
0 200
200
(b)
Downloaded by [University of California, Berkeley] at 13:00 16 October 2012
1500
Vertical contact stress (kPa)
1000
500
0 100
200
Figure 7. Predicted vertical contact stresses under (a) high load and (b) high inflation pressure at the static condition.
non-uniformity along tyre contact width becomes more
significant. The changing trends of tyre contact stresses as
the load or pressure increases are consistent with the
observations from experimental measurements (De Beer
et al. 1997; Douglas et al. 2000; Wang and Al-Qadi 2009).
As expected, the contact length and area increases as
the load increases, but decreases as the inflation pressure
increases. The authors concluded that the increase in
contact length is more significant than the increase in
contact width due to the relatively high lateral tyre
stiffness. These observations indicate that, instead of the
conventional uniform contact stress assumption within
circular contact area, the realistic tyre pavement contact
stress distribution and contact area should be considered
when evaluating the pavement responses under truck
loading with heavy load or high tyre inflation pressure.
Free rolling and braking conditions
Tyrepavement contact stresses are affected by various tyre
rolling conditions such as acceleration, braking or free
rolling. To simulate various tyre rolling conditions, the
steady-state transport analysis requires the transport velocity
(n) and the angular velocity (v) to be specified separately.
At the free rolling condition, no additional driving/
braking torque is applied on the tyre, and the angular
H. Wang et al.
Max: 1239 kPa
400
150 100 ( m m)
50 0 0 gth
l e n
Contact width (mm) tact
Con
Max: 1565 kPa
300
200
m)
150 100 0 gth (m
50 0 ct len
Contact width (mm) nta
Co
velocity is equal to the transport velocity divided by the
free rolling radius. For a specific transport velocity, the
angular velocity at the free rolling condition can be found
through trials until the state that the longitudinal reaction
forces acting on the tyre from the pavement surface
becomes zero. Partial braking occurs when the angular
velocity of the tyre is less than the angular velocity at the
free rolling condition such that some of the contact points
between the tyre and the pavement are sliding. On the
other hand, partial acceleration occurs when the angular
velocity is greater than the angular velocity at the free
rolling condition. Full braking or acceleration occurs at a
very slow or fast angular velocity when all the contact
points between the tyre and the pavement are completely
sliding in the backward or forward directions.
The data from Figures 8 and 9 show the predicted 3D
contact stress fields at the tyre pavement interface, at the
free rolling condition (n 10 km/h, v 5.6 rad/s) and the
full braking condition (n 10 km/h, v 3 rad/s), respect-
ively. The applied tyre load is 17.8 kN and the tyre
inflation pressure is 724 kPa. The effect of weight
redistribution between the different truck axles due to
braking was not considered in the simulation at this point.
It is expected that a rolling tyre could induce local
stress fields that differ from those at a static loading
condition. Static and rolling tyres experience different
 International Journal of Pavement Engineering 317

(a)
Max: 1056 kPa

Vertical contact stress (kPa)

1500

1000

500
300
0 200
100 m)
200 150 100 50 0 0 eng th (m
t act l
Contact width (mm) Con

(b)
Max: 223 kPa
Transverse contact stress (kPa)

400
Downloaded by [University of California, Berkeley] at 13:00 16 October 2012

200

200
300
400 200
200 100 m)
150 100 50 0 ngt h (m
0
ta ct le
Contact width (mm) Con

(c)
Max: 65 kPa
Longitudinal contact stress (kPa)

200

100

100

300
200 200
100 m)
200 150 100 50 0 0 e n g th (m
l
tact
Contact width (mm) Con

Figure 8. Predicted (a) vertical, (b) transverse and (c) longitudinal contact stresses at the free rolling condition.

loading histories for a given contact point at the tyre
pavement interface. Compared to static condition, both
free rolling and braking conditions result in 10 20% less
vertical contact stress except at the outermost edge of the
contact area. Centrifugal forces of a rolling tyre could
result in tyre diameter increase, which is restricted by
pavement surface. This could cause a vertical axle lift
and decrease tyre pavement contact stresses. This
variation in contact stresses due to changes from static to
rolling conditions is consistent with reported measure-
ments (Pottinger 1992). In addition, the transverse contact
stresses at the free rolling condition were found to be lower
than those at static condition; the lowest transverse contact
stresses were found at the braking condition.
When a tyre is in free rolling condition, the resulting
longitudinal contact stresses (frictional forces) at the tyre
pavement interface are negligible due to low-rolling
resistance of the tyre as shown in Figure 8(c). However,
the frictional forces become significant when tyre braking
or acceleration occur with sliding contact at the tyre
pavement interface. Tyre braking induces one-directional
longitudinal contact stresses as shown in Figure 9(c) , and
these stresses are much greater than the longitudinal
contact stress at static condition. The longitudinal contact
stresses on a pavement surface during braking and
acceleration have similar magnitudes but opposite
directions with forward stresses at braking and backward
stresses at acceleration. These longitudinal contact stresses
 318 H. Wang et al.

(a)

Max: 1053 kPa

Vertical contact stress (kPa)

1500

1000

500

300
0 200
200 100 m)
150 100 50 0 0 ng th (m
tact le
Contact width (mm) Con

(b)
Transverse contact stress (kPa)

100 Max: 14 kPa

Downloaded by [University of California, Berkeley] at 13:00 16 October 2012

50

50

100 300
200 200
150 100 100 )
50 0 mm
0
ct le ngth (
Contact width (mm) Conta

(c)
Longitudinal contact stress (kPa)

Max: 316 kPa

400

300

200

100
300
0 200
100 )
200 150 (mm
100 50 0 0
t length
Contact width (mm) Co ntac

Figure 9. Predicted (a) vertical, (b) transverse and (c) longitudinal contact stresses at the full braking condition.

400
Longitudinal contact stress (kPa)

may lead to severe pavement deterioration, such as 300

shoving/corrugation and slippage cracking, at pavement Exit (slide region)
intersections or the pavement sections with great 200 Entrance (stick region)
longitudinal slopes.
The level of braking/acceleration can be defined using
100
the slip ratio, as shown in Equation (1) (Henry 2000). The
longitudinal contact stress distributions along tyre contact
0
length due to tyre braking at different slip ratios are shown 150 100 50 0 50 100 150
in Figure 10. It shows that the longitudinal contact stress Longitudinal contact length (mm)
increases as the slip ratio increases until the peak friction
Slip ratio = 1.8% Slip ratio = 3.6%
force is achieved at the full braking condition. For partial
Slip raito = 5.4% Full braking
braking, the contact patch can be divided into two regions: a
forward stick region in the entrance part and an aft slide Figure 10. Longitudinal contact stress distributions at different
region in the exit part. In the slide region, the longitudinal slip ratios.
 International Journal of Pavement Engineering 319

contact stresses on pavement surface are approximately Cornering condition

equal to the vertical contact stresses multiplied by the As the tyre is cornering, the friction between the tyre and
friction coefficient. It indicates that as the tyre is sliding at road surface restricts the lateral movement of the tyre and
high slip ratios, the longitudinal contact stresses can be
results in lateral deformation of the tyre tread elements
estimated from the vertical contact stresses and the
within the contact patch while the wheel is steering away
pavement surface friction coefficient.
from the straight-ahead direction. Therefore, a slip angle is
induced between a rolling tyres actual direction of motion
n 2 vR and the pointing direction. The slip angle is a measurement
Slip ratio ; 1
n of the extent the tyres contact patch has twisted (steered) in
relation to the wheel (Wong 1993).
where n is the vehicle velocity, v is the angular velocity and The predicted 3D contact stress fields at the tyre
R is the rolling radius at free rolling condition. pavement interface for cornering condition (n 10 km/h,

(a)
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1500 Max: 1157 kPa

Vertical Contact Stress (kPa)

1000

500

300
0 200 )
100 (mm
200 150 gth
100
50 0 0 tac t len
Contact width (mm) Con

(b)

Max: 277 kPa

400
Transverse contact stress (kPa)

200

200
300
400 200
m)
200 100 th (m
150 100 leng
50 0 0 tact
Contact width (mm) Con

(c)
Longitudinal contact stress (kPa)

200 Max: 73 kPa

100

100
300
200 200 m)
200 100 th (m
150 leng
100 50 0 tact
0 Con
Contact width (mm)

Figure 11. Predicted (a) vertical, (b) transverse and (c) longitudinal tyre pavement contact stresses at the cornering condition.
 320 H. Wang et al.

(a) (b)

Maximum transverse contact stress (kPa)

2500 800

Maximum vertical contact stres (kPa) 2000

600

1500
400
1000

200
500

0 0
0 2 4 6 8 10 0 2 4 6 8 10
Slip angle () Slip angle ()
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Figure 12. Predicted (a) vertical and (b) transverse contact stresses with different slip angles at the cornering condition.

free rolling, slip angle 18) are shown in Figure 11(a) distribution at the tyre pavement interface and to predict
(c). The applied tyre load is 17.8 kN and the tyre inflation 3D contact stress distributions at various loading and
pressure is 724 kPa. The results show that tyre cornering rolling conditions. The analysis resulted in the following
causes concentration of contact stresses shifting towards conclusions, which are important factors to consider in
the right side of the contact patch, which lies on the inner pavement design and analysis:
side of the right turn. This indicates that the right tyre
shoulder is more strongly compressed to the road surface (1) Measured and predicted vertical contact stresses and
than the left one during cornering. Hence, the contact localised tangential contact stresses at the tyre
stress distribution is no longer symmetric with respect to pavement interface are non-uniform. The non-
the centre plane, and the contact patch at the right side is uniformity of vertical contact stresses decreases as
longer than the one at the left side. Similar to the free the load increases, but increases as the inflation
rolling condition, the longitudinal contact stresses at the pressure increases.
tyre cornering condition are negligible. However, tyre (2) Compared to static condition, free rolling and braking
cornering causes greater vertical and transverse contact conditions cause slightly lower vertical contact
stresses compared to the free rolling condition; the peak stresses. The transverse contact stresses at free
contact stresses are concentrated locally at the edge of tyre rolling condition are lower than those at static
ribs. Localised contact stress concentration at tyre condition. Braking causes the least transverse contact
cornering could be affected by the tread pattern of the stresses.
tyre (such as tread depth, tread profile, arrangement of ribs (3) Longitudinal contact stresses increase as a tyre
and grooves). motion changes from free rolling to braking. When a
The variation of maximum contact stresses with the tyre slides at full braking, significant one-directional
slip angle at the cornering condition for the vertical and longitudinal contact stresses are induced on the
transverse contact stresses, respectively, are shown in pavement surface compared to the reversed distri-
Figure 12(a),(b). As the slip angle increases, the maximum bution of longitudinal contact stresses at static
contact stresses increase until the slip angle reaches 58 and condition.
then become relatively constant. It was found that the (4) For cornering condition, both vertical and transverse
localised stress concentration became more significant as contact stresses could become greater than those at
the slip angle increased. The relatively high vertical and the free rolling condition. The peak contact stresses
transverse contact stresses at tyre cornering could explain at the cornering condition shift towards one side of
the accelerated pavement deterioration at the curved road the contact patch and increase as the slip angle
sections, where frequent vehicle manoeuvring behaviour increases.
occurs. It is clear from the analysis results that the tyre
pavement contact stress distributions are significantly
affected by tyre loading and rolling conditions. The
Conclusions predicted contact stress distributions presented in this
The developed tyre pavement interaction model shows paper will be used in future research to analyse pavement
the potential to evaluate the mechanism of load responses and damage at critical loading conditions.
 International Journal of Pavement Engineering
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