19 May 2011
By David Shaw, ERJ staff
Berlin -- Michelin has developed and patented a puncture-proof innerliner for tyres which can be used in any type of tyre, from car to moto to truck.
A Michelin spokesman said the new development comprises a soft, self-sealing material which can distort around intrusions such as nails, preventing the nail from breaking the air seal.
He was at pains to point out that the material is used in the place of the existing innerliner and is roughly doble the thickness and mass as the existing innerliner. He said there is no penalty in rolling resistance or air retention, and the new innerliner material adheres well to the carcass materia and is extremely stablel. The development is at least two years away from commercialisation.
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