Alcoa Gets Patent For Rim Flange Wear Product

(Akron/Tire Review) Alcoa Wheel Products said it has been granted a US patent on its Dura-Flange aluminum wheel surface treatment, a product that the company said: “Guards against excessive rim flange wear on commercial vehicle wheels.” Alcoa said it developed the treatment “trucking applications where loads are heavy and prone to shifting, such as logging, tanker and heavy hauling.

In addition to the US patent, Dura-Flange treatment has patents pending in Canada, Mexico, Japan and throughout the European Union, said Alcoa. “Excessive rim flange wear is a phenomenon experienced by a number of heavy hauling fleets across North America, Australia and Europe, and this development has proven to be the answer to one of their primary safety and maintenance concerns,” said Mark Holtz, Alcoa Wheel Products’ marketing and technology manager for commercial vehicle wheels.

“Wheels with excessive rim flange wear can develop a sharp edge that must be removed. This treatment eliminates the maintenance necessary to maintain the rim flanges when wear occurs, he added.” Alcoa’s Dura-Flange wheel treatment reportedly “provides a protective shield that has prevents approximately 90 per cent of rim flange wear.”