The Tire Society finalizes papers for their 44th annual conference

Akron, OH – The Tire Society announced that the papers have been selected for the 44th Annual Conference, to be held September 23rd through the 25th, 2025, at the University of Akron, Ohio. Attendees at the Conference can expect high-quality presentations covering original works on Tire Technology delivered by their authors, in keeping with the Tire Society’s position as the world’s leading membership organization for tire science, engineering and technology, as well as invited speakers for the Keynote Address, Plenary Lecture and Awards Banquet.

Participation is truly global, with over 60% of the papers coming from outside of the United States presented by technologists from Canada, China, Germany, India, Italy, and Korea. Presenters represent twenty different organizations, including tire companies, universities, testing labs, consultants, and suppliers, plus a vehicle company, and the non-profit Consumer Reports organization.

Topics covered are wide-ranging and timely. In keeping with the sustainability theme, papers will be presented on rubber emissions, devulcanization, tire lifecycle and EV considerations. Tire performance topics range from noise, cornering, traction, wear, durability and demoulding, utilizing methods ranging from predictive testing, data analytics, mechanics approaches and advanced physics simulation. Vehicle related papers will be presented on sensors, algorithms and intelligent tires, multibody tools, vehicle modeling, active suspensions and model parameter and road characterization. In addition to the presented papers, sponsor exhibits and student posters will be stationed just outside the conference hall doors, providing an opportunity to connect one-on-one with top industry experts, as well as the next generation of tire technologists.

Also aligned with the sustainability theme, this year’s Keynote Address will be delivered by Dr. Surendra Chawla, on the subject “Sustainability in the Tire Industry: Driving Toward a Greener Future”. Dr. Chawla, spent 40 years at Goodyear, rising through a number of positions to the Director of Corporate Research and retiring as Senior Director, Global Innovation. After his retirement from Goodyear, Dr. Chawla joined the Polymer Industry Cluster as Leading Consultant during its startup phase, culminating with the Greater Akron region being designated as the Sustainable Polymers Tech Hub by the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA).

Frederic Biesse and Damien Lim, both from Michelin, will deliver the Plenary Address “Tire Wear Emissions and Air Quality: Current Insights and Pathways Toward a Sustainable Future.” Mr. Biesse has worked for 26 years at Michelin’s Clermont-Ferrand R&D Center, in France, focusing on noise, wear, and rolling resistance, and rising to Manager of the Tire Performance Analysis team. Mr. Lim has worked for 14 years at the Michelin Americas R&D Center, with experience in Test Engineering and NVH and is currently specializing in fundamental studies on tire wear and the development of predictive tools and testing for the Tire Wear Performance team.

The Banquet Speaker will be Scott Sass, Director of Technology at Alterra Energy, LLC, which has developed a continuous thermochemical liquefaction (pyrolysis) process, operated at scale, to recycle plastics that cannot typically be recycled into feedstock for manufacturing new plastics. The title of his talk is “Polymer Circularity: Steering Clear of Potholes.”

An important benefit is that registrants can access the presentations after the Conference via the “Play-on-Demand” feature. Those who cannot attend the conference are encouraged to register for this access to the presentations. All registrations includes Tire Society Membership, which gives access to the critically reviewed Tire Science and Technology Journal.

For more information about the Conference and final agenda, contact conference@tiresociety.org. For more information about the Tire Society, visit the website www.tiresociety.org.