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Effectiveness of Tire-Tread Patterns in Reducing the Risk of Hydroplaning

Article  in  Transportation Research Record Journal of the Transportation Research Board · December 2009
DOI: 10.3141/2094-10

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Effectiveness of Tire-Tread Patterns
in Reducing the Risk of Hydroplaning
T. F. Fwa, Santosh S. Kumar, Kumar Anupam, and G. P. Ong

Grooving of tire tread is necessary to provide sufficient skid resistance and highway engineers. The effects of changes in the geometric
for wet-weather driving and to reduce the risk of hydroplaning. Many dimensions (such as groove depth) of a tire-tread groove pattern also
different groove patterns of tire tread are found in the market. However, deserve further investigation. It is the aim of this paper to present
their relative effectiveness in reducing hydroplaning risk is generally an analytical study to characterize quantitatively the influence of
not known to motorists and highway engineers. The effects of changes different tire-tread patterns and their groove dimensions on the
in the groove depth of a tire tread’s groove pattern also deserve further hydroplaning behavior of passenger cars.
investigation. This paper presents an analytical study that aims to char- Much experimental work has been conducted by FAA and
acterize quantitatively the influence of different tire-tread patterns and FHWA to study the hydroplaning behaviors of rib tires (i.e., tires
groove depths on the hydroplaning behavior of passenger cars. The with longitudinal grooves) (3–5). Independently, in the United
analysis is performed by means of a computer simulation model with a Kingdom, Staughton and Williams have measured hydroplaning
three-dimensional finite element approach. The following six forms speed in various water depths on a smooth concrete surface to find
of tire-tread groove patterns are considered: (a) longitudinal groove the effects of water depth on the hydroplaning risks of tires with
pattern, (b) transverse groove pattern, (c) V-groove pattern with 20 V-cut, transverse grooves (6). However, because of the differences in test
(d) V-groove pattern with 40 V-cut, (e) combined groove pattern consist- conditions and tire characteristics, the results for different tread
ing of longitudinal grooves and edge horizontal grooves, and ( f ) combined patterns could not be compared directly. Gilbert has conducted
groove pattern consisting of longitudinal grooves and 20 V-cut grooves. experimental study on small-scale models of circumferential tread
The analysis shows that a parameter computed as the groove volume per tire, but the measured data could not be easily scaled up to study the
tread area of the tire is a useful performance indicator to assess the hydroplaning behaviors of actual tires (7 ). These earlier studies do
effectiveness of various tire-tread groove patterns in reducing vehicle not provide a complete picture of the effects of different tread pat-
hydroplaning risk. The significance of V-shape grooves is discussed. For terns on vehicle hydroplaning. It is proposed in this study to employ
vehicular operations involving both forward and lateral movements, the a theoretical approach on the basis of numerical simulation modeling
analysis indicates that a combined pattern would provide a good com- to systematically analyze the effects of different tire-tread patterns on
promise in lowering hydroplaning risk sufficiently in different modes of vehicle hydroplaning.
vehicle movements. The analysis is performed by means of a computer simulation model
using a three-dimensional finite element approach. Three basic
patterns of tire tread and their combinations are considered in this
Vehicle hydroplaning is a major safety concern in wet-weather
study. The three basic tire-tread patterns are the longitudinal groove
driving. Hydroplaning occurs when the traveling speed of a vehicle
pattern, the transverse groove pattern, and the V-groove pattern. The
becomes so high that the hydrodynamic pressure of the water between
hydroplaning behaviors of tires with these tread patterns and their
its tires and the pavement surface rises and matches the tire inflation
combinations are analyzed, and an attempt is made to identify a per-
pressure. When this condition prevails, the tires become supported
formance indicator to assess the relative effectiveness of different
on the water film, and the driver loses braking and steering control
tire-tread patterns in reducing vehicle hydroplaning risk.
of the vehicle (1, 2).
Grooving of tire tread provides additional channels for discharg-
ing water away from the area of tire–pavement contact and helps to
SCOPE OF STUDY
retard the development of hydrodynamic pressure, thereby delaying
the occurrence of hydroplaning. Many different groove patterns of tire Objective of Study
tread are found in the market. However, their relative effectiveness
in reducing hydroplaning risk is generally not known to motorists One of the major findings of past experimental studies was the
beneficial effect of tire-tread grooving in reducing vehicle hydro-
planing risk (1–7). Unfortunately, full-scale experimental studies are
T. F. Fwa, S. S. Kumar, and K. Anupam, Department of Civil Engineering, National
time-consuming, human-power-intensive, and costly. The objective
University of Singapore, 10 Kent Ridge Crescent, Singapore 119260. G. P. Ong,
School of Civil Engineering, Purdue University, Civil Engineering Building, 550 Stadium of this study is to perform a wider-coverage analysis by means of a
Mall Drive, West Lafayette, IN, 47907-2051. Corresponding author: T. F. Fwa, theoretically derived analytical approach—as opposed to the past
cvefwatf@nus.edu.sg. experimental studies just described—to identify how various tire-tread
patterns affect the hydroplaning risk of passenger cars. Hydro-
Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board,
No. 2094, Transportation Research Board of the National Academies, Washington,
planing risk is evaluated by determining the hydroplaning speed. A
D.C., 2009, pp. 91–102. lower hydroplaning risk is associated with a tire that has a higher
DOI: 10.3141/2094-10 hydroplaning speed.

91
92 Transportation Research Record 2094

Tires with combinations of longitudinal grooves, transverse Figure 1 shows schematically the six tire-tread designs considered.
grooves, and V-shape grooves are commonly used in practice. To The first four groove patterns would provide a basis for comparing
systematically analyze the effects of tire-tread designs, the following the relative effectiveness of the basic tire-tread designs, while the
six forms of tire-tread patterns are considered: last two groove patterns would provide some information on the
benefits of combining different groove patterns.
1. Longitudinal groove pattern,
2. Transverse groove pattern,
3. V-groove pattern with 20° V-cut, Study Parameters
4. V-groove pattern with 40° V-cut,
5. Combined groove pattern consisting of longitudinal grooves To offer a common basis for the analysis of different tire-tread
and edge horizontal grooves, and designs, the ASTM E 501 standard G78-15 tire, with a cross-sectional
6. Combined groove pattern consisting of longitudinal grooves radius of 393.7 mm and a tread width of 148.6 mm, is adopted for this
and V grooves of 20°. study. The structural properties and geometric dimensions of the tire

Tread width Tread width

148.6 mm 148.6 mm

Cross-sectional radius
393.7 mm

Rib width 16.8 mm

Groove width 5.08 mm

(a) (b)

Cross-sectional radius
393.7 mm

Rib width 16.8 mm

Groove width 5.08 mm

(c) (d)

Cross-sectional radius
393.7 mm

Rib width 16.8 mm

Groove width 5.08 mm

(e) (f)

FIGURE 1 Tire-tread groove patterns analyzed: (a) longitudinal groove

pattern tire, (b) transverse groove pattern tire, (c) V-20 groove pattern
tire, (d ) V-40 groove pattern tire, (e) longitudinal and edge transverse
tread pattern, and (f ) longitudinal and V-20 cut groove pattern.
Fwa, Kumar, Anupam, and Ong 93

TABLE 1 Summary of Study Parameters Adopted because it represents the worst case for skid resistance and hydro-
for Hydroplaning Analysis planing analysis (1–4, 8, 9). The hydroplaning simulation model used
for the analysis is adapted from the three-dimensional finite element
Parameter Details
model developed earlier by Ong et al. (9). It is an analytical model
Passenger car tire ASTM E 501 standard G78-15 tire, with based on computational fluid dynamics theory to simulate the fluid
393.7-mm cross-sectional radius, and flow, and it takes into account the effects of turbulence and free
148.6-mm tread width. surface fluid flow. The interaction between the fluid and tire, as well
Tire inflation pressure 186.2 kPa as the interaction between the fluid and the pavement surface, is
Wheel load 2.41 kN considered in the analysis. In simulating the moving wheel, a frame
Pavement surface Smooth plane surface of reference is adopted to model the layer of water and the pavement
Tire tread groove width 5.08 mm for all tire tread groove patterns surface as moving at a speed toward the wheel. The model has been
Tire-tread rib width 16.8 mm for all tire tread groove patterns
validated against the NASA hydroplaning equation for the case of
smooth tires and also the measured hydroplaning speeds of rib tires
Tire-tread depth Values considered (mm): 0.5, 1.0, 2.0, 3.0,
(i.e., groove depth) 5.0, 7.0, and 9.8. (i.e., tires with longitudinal grooves) (3–5, 8).
Water film thickness Values considered (mm): 1.0, 3.0, 5.0, 7.0 and
The software FLUENT is employed for the analysis (10). The
10.0 properties of water and air at 20°C are used in this study. The density,
dynamic viscosity, and kinematic viscosity of water at 20°C are
998.2 kg/m3, 1.002 × 10−3 Ns/m3, and 1.004 × 10−6 m2/s, respectively
remain unchanged when each of the six tire-tread groove patterns is (11). The density, dynamic viscosity, and kinematic viscosity of
considered. To facilitate the comparison of the six tire-tread groove air at the standard atmospheric pressure and 20°C are 1.204 kg/m3,
patterns, the same uniform groove and rib dimensions are used for all 1.82 × 10−5 Ns/m3, and 1.51 × 10−5 m2/s, respectively (12). Hydro-
tire-tread designs considered. The width of each plain rib is 16.8 mm, planing is assumed to occur when the average ground hydrodynamic
with the ribs separated by straight grooves of 5.08 mm in width, and pressure is equal to the tire pressure of the wheel; that is, when the
these dimensions are maintained unchanged for all cases. A tire hydrodynamic lift force is equal to the wheel load (8, 9, 13).
inflation pressure of 27 psi (186.2 kPa) and a wheel load of 2.41 kN
are adopted for the present study. A smooth plane pavement surface
is considered for all the analysis presented. This presents the worst Finite Element Mesh Design
case and is a conservative estimate of the hydroplaning speed for
in-service pavements (1– 4, 8). In the finite element mesh design, six-node wedge elements and
As depicted in Figure 1a, the longitudinal groove pattern features eight-node hexahedral elements were used to represent each finite
six uniformly spaced circumferential grooves. For the transverse volume in the simulation. Special attention was paid to the design of
groove pattern, each groove is perpendicular to the tread-radius arc, element size and mesh for the rib and groove and for the water layer
as shown in Figure 1b. For the cases of V-20° and V-40° cut tread between the tire and pavement surface. Convergence analysis was
grooving, each groove is inclined at an angle of 20° and 40°, respec- carried out with different numbers of eight-node hexahedral elements
tively, to the central symmetry line, as shown in Figures 1c and 1d. The in the ribs, grooves, and in the smallest water channel in the model
combined groove pattern shown in Figure 1e is the case of longitudi- (i.e., the hydroplaning region). A key indicator of convergence for
nal grooves combined with edge transverse grooves. Figure 1f presents mesh design is the total uplift force, which is a direct function of the
the case of combined longitudinal and V-20° groove patterns. average hydrodynamic pressure. Different combinations of mesh
Besides the factors mentioned in the preceding paragraphs, it is elements in the ribs, grooves, and the smallest water channel have been
known from past studies that the hydroplaning behaviors of tires are tested to arrive at an optimal design to reach numerical convergence
also affected by the groove depth of tire tread and by the thickness with an accuracy of within 0.5% for the uplift force.
of water film present on the pavement surface. To establish the trend Figure 2 presents a typical finite element mesh design for the case
of variation of hydroplaning speed with tire-tread groove depth, the of a longitudinal groove pattern. The convergence analysis showed
following six groove depths were considered for each of the six tire- that 10 mesh elements in the rib cross-section and 30 mesh elements
tread designs: 0.5, 1.0, 2.0, 3.0, 5.0, 7.0, and 9.8 mm. The 9.8-mm in the cross-section of the thinnest water film were required to reach
groove depth is the maximum depth specified by the ASTM Standard the necessary numerical convergence for the case of the longitudinal
E 501. Five water-film thicknesses were analyzed: 1.0, 3.0, 5.0, 7.0, groove pattern and also of the transverse groove pattern. For cases
and 10.0 mm for all the tread patterns considered. Table 1 presents involving V grooves, it was found that 15 mesh elements in the rib
a summary of the values of study parameters adopted in this study. cross-section and 35 mesh elements in the cross-section of the thinnest
For each of the six tire-tread groove patterns, hydroplaning speeds water film were necessary to reach the required numerical conver-
were computed for 35 combinations of groove depth and water-film gence. The possible cause for the increase in the number of elements
thickness. for V grooves may be the more complex flow conditions involved.
Figure 3 shows the mesh designs in the tire–pavement interface region
for all the six cases analyzed.
DESCRIPTION OF SIMULATION MODEL Taking advantage of geometric symmetry, only half the tire is
modeled. The centerline of the wheel is treated as the plane of sym-
Model Parameters metry. The upstream boundary conditions consist of a pair of velocity
inlets, one for water and another for air. A uniform velocity profile
The hydroplaning phenomenon of a locked wheel with different is used. The inlet is placed at a distance of 300 mm away from the
tire-tread patterns sliding over a plane pavement surface covered leading edge of the wheel, so as to allow for any possible formation
with a film of water is analyzed in this paper. The case of a locked of bow wave. The side edges and the trailing edge are modeled as
wheel is commonly adopted for testing and evaluation by researchers, pressure outlets, with the pressure set as the atmospheric pressure.
94 Transportation Research Record 2094

Pressure outlet

Ribs

Symmetry along center

plane of the tire

Tire front
Velocity outlet for water

Tire surface

FIGURE 2 Three-dimensional finite element model for longitudinal groove pattern.

The top boundary is set as a pressure outlet at the atmospheric pres- Figure 4 also depicts the trends of hydroplaning speed variation
sure and is placed 25.4 mm (1 in.) above the top of the simulated tire. with water-film thickness. The general falling trend of hydroplaning
The locations of the boundaries have been chosen in such a way that speed when the water-film thickness increases is common to all six
they would not have any significant effect on the average ground tire-tread designs. This is in agreement with observations made in
hydrodynamic pressure under the wheel. experimental studies by past researchers that hydroplaning risk rises
with increasing surface water depth. It is observed that hydroplaning
speed initially falls more or less linearly with an increase in water-film
ANALYSIS OF SIMULATION RESULTS thickness until the thickness reaches about 7 mm. Thereafter, the
falling trend shows a tendency of leveling off at greater water-film
Table 2 lists the hydroplaning speeds obtained from the computer thicknesses. For the linear portion of the trend curves, the rates of
simulation analysis for all six tire-tread groove patterns. These results fall in hydroplaning speed for all tire-tread designs are found to
are plotted in Figure 4. In general, for all six tire-tread designs, vary from 1.35 to 1.65 km/h for each 1-mm increase of water-film
hydroplaning speed rises as tread depth (i.e., groove depth) becomes thickness.
deeper. This implies that that the common practice of controlling To evaluate the relative effectiveness of the different tire-tread
tire-tread depth to maintain sufficient skid resistance for wet-weather designs in reducing vehicle hydroplaning risks, the following further
driving is also valid for hydroplaning control. The rate of increase analyses are presented in the next subsections:
in hydroplaning speed for each millimeter increase of tread depth
generally varies from about 2.5 to 3.5 km/h per millimeter and does 1. Comparison of the magnitudes of hydroplaning speeds of
not change much among the different tread designs. different tire-tread designs;
Fwa, Kumar, Anupam, and Ong 95

Symmetry along the

center plane of the wheel
Symmetry along the
center plane of the wheel
(a)
(b)

Symmetry along the

center plane of the wheel Symmetry along the
center plane of the wheel
(c)
(d)

Symmetry along the

center plane of tire
Symmetry along the
center plane of tire

(f)
(e)

FIGURE 3 Finite element mesh design for tire–pavement interface of different groove patterns for
(a) longitudinal groove pattern, (b) transverse groove pattern, (c) V-20 groove pattern, (d ) V-40
groove pattern, (e) longitudinal and edge transverse groove pattern, and (f ) longitudinal and V-20
groove pattern.

2. Evaluation of the effect of the inclination angle of V grooves the four basic tread patterns studied, the ranking in increasing hydro-
on hydroplaning speed; and planing risk is as follows: transverse groove pattern with the least
3. Assessment of the effectiveness of tire-tread designs by con- risk, followed by the V-40° groove pattern, the V-20° groove pattern,
sidering the changes of hydroplaning speed as a function of groove and then the longitudinal groove pattern, which has relatively the
volume per unit tread area. highest risk. These differences are better seen in the bar chart in
Figure 5 for three selected sets of the computed hydroplaning speeds
at groove depths of 9.8, 5, and 1 mm.
Comparison Based on Magnitudes The two combined patterns considered are effective in raising the
of Hydroplaning Speeds hydroplaning speed (hence reducing hydroplaning risk) as compared
with the basic pattern of longitudinal grooves. Adding edge transverse
The magnitude of hydroplaning speed is directly associated with the grooves to the longitudinal groove pattern improves the hydroplaning
risk of hydroplaning. The higher the hydroplaning speed, the lower risk performance comparable to that of the V-40° grooves, and
the risk of hydroplaning. It can be deduced from Figure 4 that for adding V-20° grooves to the longitudinal grove pattern brings the
96 Transportation Research Record 2094

TABLE 2 Hydroplaning Speeds of Tire Tread Groove Patterns at Different Water Film Thickness and Tire Groove Depths

Hydroplaning Speed (km/h)

Water Film Tire Groove Longitudinal Transverse V-20° V-40° Longitudinal and Edge Longitudinal and
No. Thickness (mm) Depth (mm) Grooves Grooves Grooves Grooves Transverse Grooves V-20° Grooves

1 10.00 9.80 100.08 126.72 104.76 112.32 109.98 128.88

2 10.00 7.00 95.41 123.66 101.16 108.54 106.74 123.56
3 10.00 5.00 92.39 120.31 97.20 104.69 103.32 118.80
4 10.00 3.00 88.47 117.22 93.24 100.26 99.08 113.40
5 10.00 2.00 86.91 113.59 89.28 96.19 95.66 109.70
6 10.00 1.00 85.61 111.22 87.48 92.34 92.14 106.00
7 10.00 0.50 84.82 109.39 86.40 90.54 90.58 104.50
8 7.00 9.80 103.5 129.96 107.64 115.02 113.6 132.56
9 7.00 7.00 99.05 127.01 104.40 111.60 109.00 127.32
10 7.00 5.00 95.33 123.44 99.36 107.10 105.00 122.66
11 7.00 3.00 91.19 120.17 94.68 103.32 101.19 118.12
12 7.00 2.00 89.48 116.64 91.44 98.82 98.22 115.07
13 7.00 1.00 88.08 114.09 89.64 95.18 96.25 112.00
14 7.00 0.50 87.26 111.73 88.38 92.88 94.75 109.70
15 5.00 9.80 105.41 133.20 111.24 118.26 116.98 135.33
16 5.00 7.00 101.81 130.86 107.28 114.66 112.85 131.29
17 5.00 5.00 98.10 126.61 101.16 110.88 108.62 126.15
18 5.00 3.00 94.15 123.26 96.48 106.56 104.54 122.02
19 5.00 2.00 92.46 119.75 93.60 101.70 100.44 118.50
20 5.00 1.00 90.86 116.97 91.80 97.74 98.38 114.80
21 5.00 0.50 90.00 114.38 90.54 95.04 96.85 112.40
22 3.00 9.80 107.35 136.84 115.24 123.12 120.20 138.42
23 3.00 7.00 104.18 134.46 111.92 119.34 116.36 134.68
24 3.00 5.00 100.37 130.39 106.28 115.74 112.00 129.50
25 3.00 3.00 97.16 126.76 101.16 111.96 108.20 124.66
26 3.00 2.00 95.38 123.28 97.56 106.56 104.00 120.90
27 3.00 1.00 94.18 120.50 95.76 101.38 101.01 116.55
28 3.00 0.50 93.74 117.71 94.50 98.82 99.00 114.37
29 1.00 9.80 110.30 140.70 120.54 127.80 123.87 141.22
30 1.00 7.00 106.99 138.42 116.46 124.56 119.95 137.47
31 1.00 5.00 103.72 134.06 112.29 121.32 115.64 132.23
32 1.00 3.00 100.72 130.28 106.48 118.08 111.86 127.11
33 1.00 2.00 99.07 126.71 102.42 112.68 108.55 123.09
34 1.00 1.00 97.67 124.09 100.26 107.32 106.13 120.00
35 1.00 0.50 96.73 120.94 98.93 102.96 104.65 116.47

hydroplaning risk down to the same level as that provided by the speed. Intermediate values of hydroplaning speeds were obtained
transverse groove pattern. The benefits of the two forms of com- with the V-20° and V-40° groove patterns. The issue of longitudinal
bined groove patterns in reducing hydroplaning risk are of practical and transverse components of hydroplaning could possibly be inves-
significance. tigated further with vector mechanics, as illustrated by the authors
in an earlier paper dealing with the effectiveness of transverse
and longitudinal pavement grooves against vehicle skidding (13).
Effect of Groove Inclination Angle Figure 6 presents a plot that shows the relative performance of these
on Hydroplaning Speed groove patterns as a function of groove inclination angle for a water-
film thickness of 10 mm. The groove inclination angle refers to the
The computed results as shown in Table 2 and Figures 4 and 5 indi- angle between the centerline of the V-groove and the centerline
cate that the orientation of tire tread grooving has a significant effect of tire circumference. Hence, the groove inclination angle is 0° for
on the magnitude of hydroplaning speed. As depicted in Figure 5, the longitudinal grooves and 90° for transverse grooves.
transverse groove pattern produced the highest hydroplaning speed, Figure 6 indicates that hydroplaning speed increases gradually
and the longitudinal groove pattern had the lowest hydroplaning when the groove inclination angle is increased from 0° to 20°. From
Fwa, Kumar, Anupam, and Ong 97

115 150

Hydroplaning speed (km/h)

Hydroplaning speed (km/h)

145
110 Tire groove
140 Tire groove
depth (mm)
105 135 depth (mm)
9.8 130
100 9.8
7 125
7
95 5 120 5
3 3
90 115 2
2
1 110 1
85 0.5
105
0.5
80 100
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 0 2 4 6 8 10 12
Water film thickness (mm) Water film thickness (mm)
(a) (b)

125 130
Hydroplaning speed (km/h)

Hydroplaning speed (km/h)

120 125
115 Tire groove 120 Tire groove
depth (mm) depth (mm)
110 115
105 9.8
9.8 110
7
100 7 105 5
5
95 100 3
3
90 2 95 2
1 1
85 0.5 90 0.5
80 85
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 0 2 4 6 8 10 12
Water film thickness (mm) Water film thickness (mm)
(c) (d)

130 145
Hydroplaning speed (km/h)

Hydroplaning speed (km/h)

125 140 Tire groove

120 Tire groove 135 depth (mm)
115 depth (mm) 130
9.8
110 9.8 125
7 7
105 120
5 5
100 3 115
2 3
95 110
1 2
90 0.5 105 1
85 0.5
100
0 2 4 6 8 10 12
0 2 4 6 8 10 12
Water film thickness (mm) Water film thickness (mm)
(e) (f)

FIGURE 4 Variation of hydroplaning speed with water-film thickness for (a) longitudinal groove pattern,
(b) transverse groove pattern, (c) V-20 grooves, (d ) V-40 grooves, (e) longitudinal and transverse edge
grooves, and (f ) longitudinal and V-20 grooves.
98 Transportation Research Record 2094

140
Water film
A Longitudinal D V-40° grooves
thickness = 5mm
135 grooves
E Longitudinal & edge
B Transverse transverse grooves
130 grooves
F Longitudinal & V-20°
C V-20° grooves
125
grooves
Hydroplaning speed (km/h)

120

115

110

105

100
F B D E C A
95

90
B F D E C A
85 B F E D C A

80
9.8 5 1
Tire tread groove depth (mm)

FIGURE 5 Comparison of hydroplaning speeds of different tire-tread groove patterns at water

film thickness of 5 mm.

130
Water film thickness = 10mm 9.8
125
7
120 5
3
Hydroplaning speed (km/h)

115 2
1
110 0.5

105
Tire groove
100 depth (mm)

95
G78-15 tubeless tire of belted bias
90
construction (393.7mm X 148.6mm)
Smooth pavement surface
85
Tire inflation pressure = 186.2 kPa
80
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
Groove inclination angle in degrees

FIGURE 6 Effect of groove inclination angle on hydroplaning speed [G78-15 tubeless tire
of belted bias construction (393.7 mm  148.6 mm) on smooth pavement surface with tire
inflation pressure of 186.2 kPa].
Fwa, Kumar, Anupam, and Ong 99

about 30° (or from about 20° for cases with groove depth of 2.0 mm Rank 3. V-40° groove pattern,
or higher), the hydroplaning speed increases at a higher rate approx- Rank 4. Combined pattern of longitudinal and edge transverse
imately linearly until the inclination angle reaches 90°. This means grooves,
that the mid-value hydroplaning speed occurs at an inclination angle Rank 5. V-20° groove pattern, and
slightly higher than 45°. Rank 6. Longitudinal groove pattern (least effective).
On paper, when V-grooves are used, the option could be chosen
for an inclination angle of about 45°, so as to achieve reasonable This ranking is only valid for forward longitudinal vehicle movements.
hydroplaning speeds for vehicles movements in both longitudinal As explained earlier, the overall effectiveness of a tire-tread design
and lateral directions. Transverse grooves will give very good pro- against hydroplaning would have to be assessed by considering lateral
tection against hydroplaning in the longitudinal direction but not vehicle movements as well. For instance, in the lateral sliding move-
in the transverse direction. Similarly, while longitudinal grooves ments of vehicles, a tire with transverse grooves would have a higher
provide relatively low protection against hydroplaning in the longi- risk than one with longitudinal grooves. The ranking of transverse
tudinal direction, they offer good protection in the transverse direc- groove pattern and longitudinal groove pattern would be reverse,
tion. However, V-grooves with inclination angles higher than 40° with the transverse groove pattern now ranking last among the six
and transverse grooves are rarely used in practice because of tire tread patterns. In other words, a separate ranking of the six tread
noise problems (14, 15). From the earlier discussion on the hydro- patterns has to be established by repeating the hydroplaning speed
planing speed, the combined pattern of longitudinal and V-20° analysis for the case of lateral sliding of tires.
grooves (see Table 2 and Figures 4 and 5) appears to provide a good The ranking derived using the ratio of groove volume to rib area
design that offers a compromise between tire noise and hydroplaning is in general agreement with that obtained from the magnitudes of
risk. For hydroplaning risk, this combined groove pattern gives hydroplaning speeds. Although ultimately the hydroplaning risk
high hydroplaning speeds for both longitudinal and lateral vehi- of a tire-tread pattern is decided by the magnitude of hydroplaning
cle movements. For longitudinal forward vehicle movements, as speed, the ranking arrived at using the ratio of groove volume to rib
found in Table 2 and Figure 4, it has high hydroplaning speeds area is useful in assessing the relative effectiveness of the groove
comparable to that of transverse grooves. For lateral vehicle move- volume in reducing hydroplaning risk.
ments, longitudinal grooves would become favorable to give high
hydroplaning speeds.
CONCLUSIONS

Comparison Based on Groove Volume This paper has presented a study to analyze the influence of tire-tread
groove patterns on the hydroplaning characteristics of passenger
Evidence from work of past researchers has indicated that effective car tires. Six different groove patterns of tire tread were studied,
drainage at the tire–pavement interface helps to relieve hydrodynamic including a longitudinal groove pattern, a transverse groove pattern,
pressures and raise the hydroplaning speed. It is thus logical to expect a V-20° and a V-40° groove pattern, a combined longitudinal and
some form of relationship to exist between the hydroplaning speed edge transverse groove pattern, and a combined longitudinal and
and the groove volume available in the tire tread. With different V-20° groove pattern. The hydroplaning analysis was performed by
quantitative indicators tried as a representation of tire-tread groove means of a computer simulation model using a three-dimensional
volume, this study determined that the ratio of groove volume to rib finite element approach. The case of locked-wheel sliding on a plane
area provides the most suitable indicator for assessing the relative pavement surface—which is the most critical condition for hydro-
effectiveness of different tire-tread patterns in reducing hydroplaning planing consideration—was analyzed. In general, hydroplaning speed
risk. For illustration, the results for hydroplaning speeds computed was found to increase with groove depth of the tire tread and decrease
for water-film thicknesses of 3 mm and 10 mm are presented for dis- as the pavement surface water-film thickness increased. For the six
cussion. Table 3 summarizes the values of hydroplaning speeds for tire-tread designs analyzed, the rising rate of hydroplaning speed
the tire-tread groove patterns studied, and the corresponding ratios of per unit increase of tread depth did not change much among the
groove volume to rib area. These data are plotted in Figures 7a and 7b. different tire-tread designs, with its value varying from about 2.5 to
In Figure 7, the ratio of groove volume to rib area can be consid- 3.5 km/h per mm for the range of water-film thickness (0.5 to 10 mm)
ered as providing a basis for assessing the effectiveness of the total considered.
groove volume in raising the hydroplaning speed (i.e., reducing Hydroplaning evaluation was performed by comparing the magni-
hydroplaning risk). When a hydroplaning speed curve is positioned tudes of the computed hydroplaning speeds and also the effectiveness
high up in the plot, it means that the tire-tread groove pattern asso- of tire-tread grooving in reducing hydroplaning risk on the basis of
ciated with it is effective in maintaining a low hydroplaning risk. In analysis of the ratio of groove volume to rib area. It was found that
other words, on the basis of per unit groove volume, a tire-tread groove for forward sliding movements of a vehicle, the transverse groove
pattern that produces a higher curve in the plot is the one that more pattern was the most effective, and the longitudinal groove pattern
effectively protects against hydroplaning. The results as seen in was the least effective, with the V-shaped groove patterns producing
Figure 7 reveal that plotting hydroplaning speed against the ratio results in between these two extremes. The need to consider hydro-
of groove volume to rib area enables differentiation of the relative planing risk for lateral movements of vehicle and also tire noise were
effectiveness of the six tire-tread groove patterns considered. Accord- emphasized. The advantage of using V-shaped grooves to provide
ing to the two plots in Figure 7, the ranking in the order of decreasing adequate hydroplaning risk protection for both forward and lateral
effectiveness is as follows: movements of vehicle was highlighted. The analysis suggested that
a combined tread pattern of longitudinal and V-shaped grooves was
Rank 1. Transverse groove pattern (most effective), able to achieve good levels of hydroplaning risk protection for
Rank 2. Combined pattern of longitudinal and V-20° grooves, different modes of vehicle movements.
TABLE 3 Computed Hydroplaning Speeds Against the Ratio of Groove Volume to Rib Area

Longitudinal Groove Longitudinal and Edge Longitudinal and V-20°

Transverse Groove Pattern Pattern V-20° Groove Pattern V-40° Groove Pattern Transverse Groove Pattern Groove Pattern

Groove Groove Groove Groove Groove Groove

Volume, Volume, Volume, Volume, Volume, Volume,
Rib Area Hydroplaning Rib Area Hydroplaning Rib Area Hydroplaning Rib Area Hydroplaning Rib Area Hydroplaning Rib Area Hydroplaning
(mm) Speed (km/h) (mm) Speed (km/h) (mm) Speed (km/h) (mm) Speed (km/h) (mm) Speed (km/h) (mm) Speed (km/h)

Water Film Thickness = 10 mm, Tire Inflation Pressure = 186.2 kPa, Applied Load = 2,410 N
2.85 126.72 4.33 100.08 3.28 104.76 3.38 112.32 4.74 109.98 7.52 128.88
2.04 123.66 3.10 95.40 2.34 101.16 2.41 108.54 3.38 106.74 5.37 123.56
1.45 120.31 2.21 92.39 1.67 97.20 1.72 104.69 2.42 103.32 3.84 118.80
0.87 117.22 1.33 88.47 1.00 93.24 1.03 100.26 1.45 99.08 2.30 113.40
0.58 113.59 0.88 86.91 0.67 89.28 0.69 96.19 0.97 95.66 1.53 109.70
0.29 111.22 0.44 85.61 0.33 87.48 0.34 92.34 0.48 92.14 0.77 106.00
0.15 109.39 0.22 84.82 0.17 86.40 0.17 90.54 0.24 90.58 0.38 104.50
Water Film Thickness = 3 mm, Tire Inflation Pressure = 186.2 kPa, Applied Load = 2,410 N
2.85 136.84 4.33 107.35 3.28 115.24 3.38 123.12 4.74 119.52 7.52 138.42
2.04 134.46 3.10 104.18 2.34 111.92 2.41 119.34 3.38 116.36 5.37 134.68
1.45 130.39 2.21 100.37 1.67 106.28 1.72 115.74 2.42 113.12 3.84 129.50
0.87 126.76 1.33 97.16 1.00 101.16 1.03 111.96 1.45 108.75 2.30 124.66
0.58 123.28 0.88 95.38 0.67 97.56 0.69 106.56 0.97 105.66 1.53 120.90
0.29 120.50 0.44 94.18 0.33 95.76 0.34 101.38 0.48 101.01 0.77 116.55
0.15 117.71 0.22 93.74 0.17 94.50 0.17 98.82 0.24 98.54 0.38 114.37
Fwa, Kumar, Anupam, and Ong 101

140

130
Transverse groove pattern
Longitudinal & V-20°
Hydroplaning speed (km/h)

groove pattern
120

V-40° groove
pattern Longitudinal & Edge
110
transverse groove pattern

V-20° groove pattern

100
G78-15 tubeless tire of belted bias
construction (393.7mm X
Longitudinal groove 148.6mm)
90
pattern Smooth pavement surface
Tire inflation pressure = 186.2 kPa

80
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Groove volume/Rib area (mm)
(a)

150

140
Transverse groove pattern
Hydroplaning speed (km/h)

Longitudinal & V-20°

groove pattern
130

V-40° groove
120 pattern Longitudinal & Edge
transverse groove pattern

V-20° groove pattern

110
G78-15 tubeless tire of belted bias
construction (393.7mm X
100 Longitudinal groove 148.6mm)
pattern Smooth pavement surface
Tire inflation pressure = 186.2 kPa
90
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Groove volume/Rib area (mm)
(b)

FIGURE 7 Effect of groove volume on hydroplaning for water film thickness of (a) 10 mm and
(b) 3 mm [G78-15 tubeless tire of belted bias construction (393.7 mm  148.6 mm) on smooth
pavement surface with tire inflation pressure of 186.2 kPa].
 102 Transportation Research Record 2094

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