Eathan Plaschka

Eathan Plaschka is a final year PhD student at Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) working in the soft matter group under the supervision of Prof. James Busfield. He holds a BEng in mechanical engineering from QMUL and an MSc in automotive engineering from the University of Bath. His work primarily involves modeling tire tread compound behavior via the use of mechanical testing techniques. One of his core objectives is to accurately replicate tread performance through laboratory testing.

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Presentation

Understanding the transitions in the abrasion behavior of tires

Styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) tire tread compounds varied by carbon black loading and cross-link density have been tested to evaluate their performance. This study presents an evaluation of the friction and wear properties using a uni-directional dynamic loading sequence, whereby a single tread block undergoes deformation in periodic intervals. Testing was conducted under different loading and temperature conditions. Transitions between abrasive and smear wear mechanisms are observed through the evolution of the friction and surface morphology. Optical microscopy techniques are used in the post-test phase to showcase how the fracture and friction of the compound evolve over time.