If you’re exploring another planet, tire damage is the last thing you want to deal with when AAA is millions of miles away. This is a concern that NASA has asked for a luglose titanium band it is supple like rubber, but almost indestructible. As has been the case with many of NASA’s inventions over the years, so will space technology in space. available to consumers soon.
The use of air-filled rubber tires on a vehicle is simply not a practical solution to discover nearby celestial bodies whose natural terrain is covered with rocks and sharp objects. So for the handful of vehicles NASA sent to the moon and Mars, metal wheels are a better alternative. For the Lunar Rover, which brought Apollo to the moon 15 months, wheels are made of hollow metal springs that can absorb bumps to make the ride more comfortable for astronauts. But most metals lose their shape over time and become brittle when bent repeatedly, leading to incorrect wheels not rolling as well, and even worse, severe damage that prevents them from rolling at all.
Alternatively, over the past seven years, NASA has spent several million dollars on the development of Nitinol: a metal alloy made of aluminum and titanium that behaves differently. Metal springs eventually lose their ability to jump back to their original shape because the bonds between their atomic structures are stretched so that they are no longer able to return to their original arrangements. But Nitinol has a more ordered atomic structure and exhibits something known as the shape memory effect, which makes it possible to deform but return again and again to the original manufactured shape without permanent damage. This allows to create metal tires that can deform to absorb the impact of uneven terrain such as rubber, without the flat tire occurring.
G / O Media can get a commission
This is incredible technology that will soon be available for a vehicle that will probably never leave Earth’s atmosphere: your bike. A start-up called The Smart Tire Company has announced that it is creating a metal bike tire using NASA’s Nitinol alloy that never needs to be inflated, and will never cause a leak and is likely to survive much longer than the bike itself.
Named the METL tire (Martensite Elasticized Tubular Loading), its creators are hopeful that it will be available by 2022 as an alternative to premium bicycle tire options. It remains to be seen how much a titanium alloy bicycle tire will cost, but you can assume that it will be a long time before children find a bicycle with Nitinol wheels under the Christmas tree. However, for cyclists who would like to spend tens of thousands of dollars on their bikes, the METL tires may be the last set they will ever have to buy, although they still require regular maintenance.
The most common problem with airless tires is that they have designs with an open structure, which can allow debris to enter and throw off the balance of the wheel. Using a structure made of metal instead of rubber further complicates things because the smooth finish means that the tire does not have much grip. To fix this, the METL tires will also be finished with a rubbery tread made of a material called Polyurethanium that adds grip and makes it suitable for riding on all terrain, including sidewalks, gravel and dirt. Over time, the tread will have to wear out and be reapplied, but it is expected to be much cheaper than replacing a set of tires regularly.
The METL tires are not suitable for every rider. After all, they are made of metal and are expected to be heavier than the premium lightweight tires used by professional cyclists and athletes. But for most other applications, including athletes using larger bikes on terrain, the tires do not feel different during a ride.
The Smart Tire Company delivers many promises about the benefits of its Nitinol tires over rubber tires – see this extensive Questions on his website which represents the virtues of technology – and there is good reason to be excited about technology. Clearly, NASA believed it was important enough to spend millions of dollars on its development. But we were already luglose tires promise for many years, from industrial giants like Bridgestone who have the manufacturing ability to make it a reality. They are still not here, not even for bicycles, which is about the least demanding application for the technology.
There is little doubt that one day flat tires will be a thing of the past, but will it be thanks to the efforts of this startup? If it can deliver the METL tires as planned over the next few years, there is good reason for Michelin, Goodyear and Bridgestone.