Tyre engineers at Falken seem to have achieved a seemingly impossible feat. They have employed Japanese Earth Simulator supercomputer and high energy synchrotron radiation to develop their latest Ecorun PCR tyre. Sumitomo’s Sincera SN832 Ecorun is the brand’s first product to earn an ‘A’ rating on the EU label for wet grip.
The Historical Development of Sincera SN832 Ecorun Tyre
Falken Tyre Corporation, a subsidiary of SRI (Sumitomo Rubber Industries), has accomplished an outstanding feat. The firm has successfully developed an innovative energy efficient car tyre using ‘Earth Simulator’ supercomputer and world’s premier high energy synchrotron radiation research facility.
SRI has accomplished developing its latest “4D Nano Design procedure” using unconventional tyre industry techniques, and has used the same to build its new Sincera SN832 Ecorun tyre.
The tyre manufacturer asserts that the novel technology has enabled it to carry out simulations and analyses in greater detail, and in turn to curb rolling resistance and reduce braking distances as compared to the tyre’s predecessor. The said tyre is the first ever from Falken to earn an A-grade EU tyre labelling rating for wet grip.
Falken’s Innovative Approach
The Earth Simulator – Japanese super computer employed – is generally used to represent climatic changes on a large scale, or to study the effects of seismic activities or tsunamis. The aforementioned synchrotron radiation facility – courtesy, SPring-8 Materials Research Centre – produces light energy, more brilliant than regular X-ray sources by around a billion times. This facility is typically used by research scientists for an array of research projects.
Reportedly, these resources enabled Falken tyre engineers to explore the effects of tyre compound and construction minutely, at sub-nano scales, as a part of their 4D Nano Design technique. Falken explains that it used the coalescence of the Earth Simulator and synchrotron radiation technology to replicate real-world conditions experienced by a tyre. Consequently, it could identify the cause and areas of heat generation and ways to minimise the same, thus reducing rolling resistance.
The scientists at SPring-8 bonded polymers into certain “functional groups” along with silica to formulate a new compound. These groups curtail elemental movement and resultant temperature rise.
Besides compound innovations, Falken’s Sincera SN832 Ecorun construction features more globular cross profile, resulting in more even load distribution. The driver can hence experience better directional stability and more accurate handling. The tyre’s stiffer outer shoulders feature straight and broader lateral grooves that improve hydroplaning resistance by around 32% over its precursor –the SN828 tyre.
Markus Bogner, Director – Sales and Marketing at Falken Tyre Europe states that it is definitely not easy to enhance performance of a particular tyre to this extent. He adds that Falken, being an SRI arm, has had the privilege to access finest innovations in the industry. And the results have demonstrated the effectiveness of employing their 4D Nano Design process.
Falken will make its Sincera SN832 Ecorun available for purchase from spring. Initially, the tyre will be offered in T speed rating and 19 dimensions, ranging from 13 to 15 inch sizes. The fitments are suitable for vehicles like Ford Fiesta, VW Touran, Fiat 500 and the Nissan Juke.
Source: Tyre Blog
Published: 03 Mar 2014