This month’s Commercial Fleet Tire Digest from Pressure Systems International (PSI) attempts to answer, ‘What’s all that rubber on the side of the road?’
“Heat is a tire’s worst enemy,” PSI says. “Under normal operating speeds, at proper load and inflation, tires will run ‘cool’ and have no performance related issues. But, when tires run underinflated, especially in combination with excessive speed and high loads, the tire footprint area and sidewall deflection will lead to extreme heat buildup in the rubber compounds.
“During the summer months, with high ambient temperatures and much hotter road surfaces, those underinflated tires are prone to even higher rubber temperatures. The rubber will actually start chemically breaking down inside the tire casing, which can lead to a tire blowout and rubber on the road.”
For more on this phenomenon, please CLICK HERE.
