Experimental and numerical investigation on the effect of material models of tire tread composites in rolling tire noise via coupled acoustic-structural finite element analysis

Tire noise has received enormous attention for its importance in vehicle noise, vibration, and harshness (NVH) along with noise regulation. This study demonstrates a numerical prediction of the rolling tire noises considering tread composite material models in the coupled acoustic-structural finite element analysis. The viscoelastic master curves were developed for the frequency-dependent damping in the structural vibrations of the tire. It was numerically found that the tread composites with 230.4% and 1,428% larger storage (E’) and loss moduli (E”), respectively, resulted in 1.16–9.79% louder structure-borne noises. Moreover, the elastic modulus (E) of the tread composites was proportionally related to the tire noises, suggesting that reduced elastic and viscoelastic moduli are desired for low-noise tires. This study can contribute to thoroughly understanding how the composite material properties, particularly viscoelasticity, can be designed to control structural noise and vibration in next-generation structures such as autonomous electric vehicles and urban air mobility.