Characterization of Vehicle Tire Hydroplaning Using Numerical Simulation and Field Full-Scale Accelerated Loading Methods

Increasingly frequent extreme rainfall commonly leads to water accumulation on the road surface, elevating vehicle tire hydroplaning to a major threat to driving safety. Existing research mainly focused on tire model optimization or predicting critical hydroplaning speed features based on empirical formulas and numerical simulations. However, there is a lack of systematic validation of the tire–water–pavement coupling interaction under realistic pavement conditions, with particular insufficient attention paid to pavement dynamic responses. In this study, numerical simulation and field full-scale accelerated loading methods were applied to investigate dynamic response characteristics of the tire–water–pavement coupling interaction system. Parametric analyses were first performed to investigate the influences of vehicle speed, vehicle load, water-film thickness, and tire lateral position on the mechanical behaviors of the fluid–structure interaction for a moving vehicle tire. Subsequently, field-measured dynamic responses’ features were used to validate the numerical model, which was then further applied to predict critical conditions of vehicle tire hydroplaning. Finally, the mechanisms of hydroplaning and corresponding mitigation measures were discussed. The study revealed that increasing vehicle speed and water-film thickness, as well as decreasing vehicle load, would reduce the pavement supporting force. The tire–pavement contact stress and strain decreased from the vehicle tire’s center position towards its shoulders. The predicted critical hydroplaning condition suggested that increasing vehicle load mitigated hydroplaning by reducing the proportion of water-induced hydrodynamic lifting force relative to the total vehicle load. When the water depth is relatively shallow, the hydroplaning risk increases rapidly with water depth, while the water’s adverse impact on tire–pavement contact force gradually diminishes as water depth continues to increase. It implies that a vehicle with a relatively low axle load driving on the pavement with a thin thickness of retained water in light rain will still face the hydroplaning risk, as the pavement’s supporting force may be substantially reduced in this weather. The findings provide theoretical foundations and experimentally supported insights on driving safety assessment and anti-skid design of water-covered pavement.