Computer Simulation and Experimental Study of Deformation in a Radial Tire under Different Static Loads Using Finite Element Method

This research work is devoted to the simulation of a steel-belted radial tire under different static loads. The nonlinear finite element calculations were performed using the MSC. MARC code، installed on a computer system equipped with a parallel processing technology. Hybrid elements in conjunction with two hyperelastic models، namely Marlow and Yeoh، and rebar layer implemented in surface elements were used for the modeling of rubbery and reinforcing parts، respectively. Linear elastic material models were also used for the modeling of the reinforcing elements including steel cord in belts، polyester cord in carcass and nylon cord in cap ply section. Two-dimensional axisymmetric elements were used for the modeling of rim-mounting and inflation and three-dimensional models were developed for the application of the radial، tangential، lateral and torsional loads. Different finite element models were developed، in which both linear and quadratic elements were used in conjunction with different mesh densities in order to find the optimum finite element model. Based on the results of the load deflection (displacement) data، the tire stiffness under radial، tangential، lateral and torsional loads were calculated and compared with their corresponding experimentally measured values. The comparison was verified by the accuracy of the measured radial stiffness. However، due to the neglecting of the stiffness in shear and bending modes in cord-rubber composites، modeled with rebar layer methodology، the difference between computed values and real data are not small enough so that a more robust material models and element formulation are required to be developed.