Tires
Bike tires are composite materials
with an elastomer as the matrix and various fibers and fabrics as the reinforcing
component. An exploded view of a typical tire is shown below.
The tire shown is a tubeless design with the inner Butyl rubber air liner replacing the inner tube. The sidewalls of the tire are reinforced with a two ply nylon fabric, and a cotton tape is used to separate the tire from the inside of the rim. Because it is not an open structure, the tire does not require the wire or kevlar bead that is needed in a tire/tube design. The tread is stabilized with two layers of reinforcing belt. One of these may run circumferentially and the other have radial fibers. The contact surface with the road is an elastomeric tread with a pattern that is designed to
provide water removal on a wet road and a suitable friction coefficient to give the traction forces required for acceleration, braking, and cornering. The Z21 tire shown is designed to have the lowest possible rolling friction
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