Race ski bases : a search towards innovative solutions

This thesis reports on the investigations on the performance of alpine racing skis. The objective is to obtain a ski that guarantees better performance thanks to the replacement of the presently used base material, ultra-high molecular weight (UHMWPE), with a new type of material, subjected to appropriate physical and chemical treatments. Throughout this work a metallic alloy, titanal, was investigated. The interaction between snow and ski base was first analyzed through bibliographical research highlighting ideas for improving existing theories of ski –snow friction. The possibility of introducing, for this application, a radically different type of material was verified, assessing in laboratory the characteristics of wettability with respect to possible surface treatments of titanal samples. In order to compare the properties of the new material compared to the reference UHMWPE through laboratory tests, a snow tribometer – rheometer has been designed, realized, and used in a climatic cell. Through a testing machine calibration procedure, it was possible to compare the friction coefficients of various titanal samples for different testing speeds. After the laboratory stage, field tests were carried out on ah-hoc ski prototypes for each type of surface treatment. Our aim was to compare the experimental results on laboratory samples with real-scale tests. The results of laboratory tests and field tests are in mutual agreement, showing that the new material tested for ski bases application and the evaluation procedure opens the way to further developments.