The bobsleighs to be used by the Dutch Olympic Team at the Olympic Games in
Turin contain special DSM vibration dampers that make the bobsleigh more
stable. This reduces the risk of steering errors and means that better times
can be achieved. The vibration dampers reduce the number of vibrations in the
bobsleigh runners to 40% compared with the dampers traditionally used for
bobsleighs.
As a major Partner in Sport of the Netherlands Olympic Committee/Netherlands
Sport Confederation NOC*NSF, DSM has been closely involved in the preparations
by the Dutch bobsleigh team in the run-up to the Olympic Games. The
innovations that could be made available to the two-man and four-man
bobsleighs have been decided in close collaboration over the last few months.
In doing so DSM has worked together closely with the Netherlands Organization
for Applied Scientific Research (TNO).
Vibration dampers
An important factor in achieving the fastest
time in bobsleighing is the stability of the bobsleigh on the track. This
depends on the input of the bobsleighers and on the dynamic properties of the
bobsleigh. The sleigh rests on runners that are cushioned by vibration
dampers, which improve the handling. These dampers were traditionally made
from rubber, and the damping effect was therefore heavily dependent on the
outside temperature: the lower the temperature, the colder and harder the
rubber and the less effective the damping.
In collaboration with TNO, DSM has now developed vibration dampers that
provide a constant level of damping at different temperatures. This leads to a
40% reduction in vibrations, so that the sleigh sits more firmly on the track.
In addition the bobsleighers no longer have to keep adapting the material to
the outside temperature.
Ilse Broeders, one of the pilots of the Dutch bobsleigh teams, is highly
satisfied with this new innovation for the bobsleigh: “We have tested the
vibration dampers extensively. It's nice to know that our impression that the
DSM dampers were reducing the amount of vibration in the sleigh has now been
confirmed by scientific measurements. These 'smart blocks’ on the runners of
the sleigh are a good step on the road to success in Turin."
Arnitel®
The innovative vibration dampers are made from
the high performance material Arnitel®, a thermoplastic elastomer of DSM
Engineering Plastics. A major advantage of Arnitel® is that its properties
remain constant over a wide range of temperatures - in this case from -30 to
+10 degrees Celsius.
TNO testing
On behalf of DSM, the Arnitel® vibration dampers
were extensively tested at the end of December 2005 by TNO and the Dutch
bobsleigh teams at the bobsleigh run in Altenberg (Germany). With the aid of
acceleration recorders and a data recorder, two kinds of Arnitel® products
were compared in various variants with the standard rubber material.The tests
revealed that the Arnitel® B damper with four teeth was the most effective for
the two-man bobsleigh. In the case of the four-man bobsleigh, where the
vibration dampers have to bear a greater weight, the Arnitel® B damper without
teeth achieved the best results.
