Driving Surfaces
Icy: These roads typically have the lowest coefficient of friction. For drivers, this is the most dangerous surface to be on. The small coefficient of friction give the driver the least amount of traction when accelerating, braking, or turning (which has angular acceleration). Icy roads have a frictional coefficient of around .1.
Wet: Roads wet with water have a coefficient of friction of around .4. This is around 4 times higher than an icy road. Although these roads are much safer to drive on, there is still the possibility of hydroplaning. Hydroplaning occurs when there is standing or flowing water on the road (typically from rainfall) that causes a tire to lose contact with the road's surface. The treads are designed to allow water to fill the crevices so that contact may be maintained between the road and the tire. However, if there is too much water, this may not be achieved and hydroplaning will occur. This is precisely the reason that racing slicks have such a high coefficient of friction on dry roads (about .9), and a much lower coefficient on wet roads (as low as .1).
Dry: Roads without precipitation are considered optimal for driving conditions. They have the highest coefficient of friction, around .9, which creates the most traction. This allows corners, acceleration, and braking to reach higher values without loss of control. Often times, if roads are not dry, races will be canceled due to the extreme dangers that a less than optimal frictional surface can pose.
Wet: Roads wet with water have a coefficient of friction of around .4. This is around 4 times higher than an icy road. Although these roads are much safer to drive on, there is still the possibility of hydroplaning. Hydroplaning occurs when there is standing or flowing water on the road (typically from rainfall) that causes a tire to lose contact with the road's surface. The treads are designed to allow water to fill the crevices so that contact may be maintained between the road and the tire. However, if there is too much water, this may not be achieved and hydroplaning will occur. This is precisely the reason that racing slicks have such a high coefficient of friction on dry roads (about .9), and a much lower coefficient on wet roads (as low as .1).
Dry: Roads without precipitation are considered optimal for driving conditions. They have the highest coefficient of friction, around .9, which creates the most traction. This allows corners, acceleration, and braking to reach higher values without loss of control. Often times, if roads are not dry, races will be canceled due to the extreme dangers that a less than optimal frictional surface can pose.