Pneumatic tire rollers, leveraging their core characteristics of flexible compaction (elastic deformation of rubber tires), kneading effect (lateral shear force during synchronous rolling of multiple tires), and adjustable ground contact pressure (achieved by adding/removing counterweights or adjusting tire pressure), can adapt to a variety of engineering materials that are sensitive to compaction methods or require uniform density. The specific applicable types are as follows:

1. Asphalt Mixtures (Core Adaptable Materials)

Pneumatic tire rollers are key equipment for the "final compaction stage" in asphalt pavement construction and can also assist in initial/re-compaction, especially suitable for the following asphalt materials:

• Hot-Mix Asphalt (HMA): A common material for asphalt pavement surface layers (upper and middle layers). The flexible compaction of tires avoids "pushing deformation" (high-temperature asphalt mixture being squeezed and deformed by rigid steel drums) that may occur with steel drum rolling. Meanwhile, the kneading effect ensures asphalt fully coats aggregates, fills tiny pores, improves the density and flatness of the pavement surface layer, and reduces the risk of water seepage in later stages.

• Modified Asphalt Mixtures: Due to the addition of modifiers (e.g., SBS), these mixtures have stronger high-temperature stability but higher viscosity. The adjustable ground contact pressure of pneumatic tire rollers (usually adjusted to 0.7–1.2MPa) enables "gentle yet sufficient" compaction without damaging the aggregate structure, avoiding aggregate crushing caused by concentrated pressure from steel drums.

• Stone Mastic Asphalt (SMA): SMA is rich in asphalt mastic and requires maintaining the integrity of the aggregate skeleton during compaction. The elastic contact of tires reduces compressive damage to the skeleton while ensuring mastic fills gaps evenly, enhancing the pavement’s rutting resistance.

2. Semi-Rigid Base Materials

Semi-rigid bases (e.g., cement-stabilized macadam, lime-fly ash stabilized soil) are the mainstream type of road bases. Their compaction needs to balance "density" and "crack resistance", where pneumatic tire rollers show significant advantages:

• Cement-Stabilized Materials: The strength of these materials increases rapidly after initial setting, so compaction must be completed within a specified time, and base cracking caused by rigid rolling should be avoided. The kneading effect of pneumatic tire rollers allows macadam particles to interlock more fully; at the same time, flexible pressure disperses stress, reducing the generation of microcracks inside the base. They are especially suitable for the "re-compaction stage" of base compaction and can work with steel drum rollers to achieve the combined effect of "first intensive compaction, then flexible compaction".

• Lime/Cement-Soil Materials: For lime-soil or cement-soil bases with high viscosity, steel drum rolling tends to cause the problem of "hard surface crust but loose interior". The kneading effect of tires can break the surface crust, ensuring more uniform pressure transmission and consistent density from the surface to the interior of the base, thereby improving overall load-bearing capacity.

3. Graded Sand-Gravel and Crushed Stone Cushion Materials

Graded sand-gravel (e.g., graded crushed stone, graded gravel) is a common material for subgrade cushions and parking lot bases. Its compaction needs to avoid particle segregation, and pneumatic tire rollers have strong adaptability:

• Graded Crushed Stone Cushions: Crushed stone particles vary in size, and rigid steel drum rolling easily squeezes fine particles to the edges, causing "segregation of coarse and fine particles". The multi-tire contact of pneumatic tire rollers (usually 6–10 tires) creates uniform ground contact pressure; combined with the kneading effect, coarse and fine particles fill each other, reducing segregation and forming a stable cushion structure.

• Natural Gravel Cushions: Natural gravel contains a certain amount of fine soil. The flexible compaction of tires prevents fine soil from being over-squeezed and hardened, while ensuring gravel particles are closely arranged—balancing the water permeability and load-bearing capacity of the cushion. It is suitable for cushion compaction in municipal roads and community parking lots.

4. Special Modified Soil Materials

For modified soils that require gentle compaction (e.g., lime-modified soil, fly ash-modified soil), pneumatic tire rollers can avoid damage to the material structure:

• Lime-Modified Soil (Lime-Modified Clay): Although lime modification reduces the viscosity of clay, "interlayer shear damage" caused by rigid rolling still needs to be prevented. The elastic contact of tires transmits pressure slowly, allowing modified soil particles to gradually adjust their arrangement, reducing interlayer sliding and improving the overall stability of the subgrade.

• Fly Ash-Modified Soil: Fly ash is light in texture and fine in particles. Steel drum rolling easily causes surface dusting or particle crushing. The flexible pressure of pneumatic tire rollers enables "light compaction with multiple passes", ensuring density while reducing the breakage of fly ash particles and maintaining the structural performance of the modified soil.

Inadaptable Materials (Avoidance Required)

Although pneumatic tire rollers have a wide application range, their flexible compaction characteristic makes them unsuitable for pure rigid materials (e.g., cement concrete slabs), large-diameter rock fills (e.g., rock-filled subgrades with particle sizes exceeding 30cm), and high-moisture-content soft soils. These materials require rigid impact or high-pressure compaction, and the flexible pressure of tires cannot meet the design density requirements—even potentially causing material deformation or low compaction efficiency.