Many winter shoes do not survive on slipping

Most regular winter shoes are really bad from a slipping point of view, says Viveca Wallqvist, a researcher in materials science at the Rise research institute.

- We have examined common winter shoes that are on the market, and examined what the soles are made of. We first looked at what people really wear during the winter, we examined it in Luleå. So we picked up such shoes and tested them.

The result was disappointing, she says. Many of the shoes that people wore were not even designed for winter wear, such as popular sneakers and fine boots with smooth soles. Although the soles of the boots and shoes sold as substantial winter donations were also poor. The rubber became far too hard in cold, and the pattern was not sufficient for icy roadways.

- The soles were really not good in the tests. Although the shoes are winter-lined, it is not a guarantee that the soles are not slippery.

Shoe soles are a separate industry in the shoe industry, she says, and there are only a limited number of manufacturers in the world. This allows the same kind of soles to sit on shoes of different brands.

She talks about an ambitious test done in winter country Canada. A hundred shoes were tested there for slipping, but only a handful reached the beginning of the 10-degree scale.

- Exactly the shoes that were tested there may not be here, but it looks the same here.

The pattern is important, she explains, it should be a proper pattern with depth in the direction of movement, and preferably also oblique to it.

- It is also important to have a large and good grip surface, so that the sole makes contact with the substrate.

Many soles had a blend of dark material to make them resistant to UV radiation, she says.

- It makes them more durable. There we saw that a lot of carbon black, or carbon, is used. But the carbon is anti-friction, so it makes the soles extra slippery.

Now the researchers will meet with the shoe industry to talk about the results, and also discuss a system for labeling shoes from a slipping point of view.

- It would really be needed. It is very difficult for consumers to know what the shoes are in the winter. The fact that the soles feel soft in the shop does not mean that they keep the softness of snow and ice, says Viveca Wallqvist.