Sliding on ice at speeds exceeding 90 mph is terrifying for most
people, but the USA Luge team is seeking assistance from the U.S. Army
Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) along with academic and
industry leaders to go even faster.
In the sport’s rule book, luge is afforded a great deal of
engineering leeway to customize their sleds and runners. They have their
own team of technicians to manufacture the sleds, and athletes
routinely engage in the design/build process making luge not only a
competition of technique but also one of technology.
It’s all about moving fast on ice, and as such, the team reached out to Dr. Emily Asenath-Smith, lead of the Ice Adhesion Facility at ERDC’s Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (CRREL).
“We first started discussions about high-speed ice friction research
about six years ago,” said Asenath-Smith. “Ice adhesion and ice friction
are both interface phenomena. They are essentially ice interacting with
materials, and they are very related research areas."
“CRREL has worked in this space for a number of years,” she added. “The Army cares a lot about ice friction — whether they are pulling sleds in cold regions or driving vehicles across frozen ground.”
Unfortunately, when USA Luge first contacted Asenath-Smith, there wasn’t enough time to develop a productive collaboration.
“They were getting ready for the 2018 Winter Olympics, but because of
timelines to make modifications, there just wasn’t adequate time to do
the number of studies that we needed to do,” she said.
However, this time when the team reached out in fall 2022, the timelines finally lined up.
“They got back in touch with me, and said, ‘hey we’re ready and
pulling together a research team — we have time,’ so we started talking
about what our involvement in the luge research team might look like,”
said Asenath-Smith. “What research studies could we do at CRREL? How
could we support them?”
To explore and ultimately define the partnership, Asenath-Smith and
Dr. Austin Lines, a mechanical research engineer and ice friction
researcher at CRREL, accepted the invitation to a workshop held in Park
City, Utah, in March 2023. This effort solidified the interdisciplinary
research and development (R&D) team and established a roadmap to
develop approaches that decrease ice friction and increase speed for the
luge team.
“USA Luge took a very organized approach to building out an R&D
team for their sport,” said Asenath-Smith. “They had some of their
industry research experts, me and Austin — we all went to Park City and
engaged in extensive discussions, tours and learning for two days. We
met athletes, toured the facilities and engaged in deep
cross-disciplinary discussions about all the aspects that affect
friction and the interaction of ice with materials.”
Consequently, the luge R&D team is now working on an extensive
test plan that integrates technologies that are being developed in other
CRREL programs, mainly those in the Materials and Manufacturing
Program.
“Essentially this effort fits under a portfolio in advanced materials
that we have going with the South Dakota Mines,” said Asenath-Smith.
“We were able to connect the luge team with them to help engineer new
alloys for their runners. Since we already have a relationship with the
university, it’s beneficial to us all. We will get to test some of the
materials the luge team may be interested in — albeit indirectly."
Understanding high and variable speed ice friction is of strategic
importance not only to the USA Luge team but to U.S. Army operations in
the Arctic. While most mobility and traction applications require good
adhesion between ice and tire materials, skis and sleds are an important
mobilization method where decreased friction can reduce soldier fatigue
and reduce fuel consumption. The collaborative efforts between USA Luge
and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers can have a profound effect in the
future.
“They have so much liberty to engineer and innovate with their sleds
that they are the perfect team to undertake an R&D venture,” said
Asenath-Smith. “Ultimately, our success will be determined by the luge
team’s success at future Olympic games. There just might be a gold medal
on the horizon.”
This article was originally published by the US Army Corps of Engineers, on their
Engineer Research and Development Center website.