Larson Institute hosts international friction workshop

Josh Jones of Oklahoma-based Blastrac showed off a machine designed to remove tire rubber, residue and surface contamination from asphalt surfaces to improve skid resistance, micro textures and macro textures. UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. Fifty-two registrants from France, Norway, Canada, Japan and the United States were represented at the 2013 International Friction Workshop hosted by the Thomas D. Larson Pennsylvania Institute from May 13 to 16 at Penn State. Previously a long-standing tradition at the NASA Wallops Island Flight Facility in Virginia, the workshop was relocated to the Larson Institute's facilities in 2009. The workshop is part of a research initiative to revise existing American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) International standards and develop a new ASTM standard describing technical specifications for water delivery systems and water nozzle design. This research is warranted because the number of friction measurement devices used today for the assessment of surface conditions on highways and airports is numerous, with a significant number of design and operational differences. ASTM governs most of the standards under which this equipment operates.