Floor slot near rear wheel

[hardingfv32]

What is the possible theory for the slot in the floor just in front of the rear tire?

Brian

[Lycoming]

probably the same as the exhausts last year. Generate a vortex using the exhaust gasses streaming towards it to seal the diffuser.

[hardingfv32]

probably the same as the exhausts last year. Generate a vortex using the exhaust gasses streaming towards it to seal the diffuser.

Then we should have seen them last year.

This seems to feed the tire 'skirt' issue which I though was considered bad.

Brian

[jordangp]

Last year, the exhausts were closer to the diffuser than that, so that slot wouldn't do that job, as there would be no exhaust gases to feed it.

[Lycoming]

I was under the impression that last year the same effect was created by the shape of the exhaust outlets. I mean, the slot sits right where the exhaust outlets did last year so we could not have seem something like it.

[bhall]

My guess would be that it generates a vortex to stabilize flow distortion around the wheel.

"[Tests] illustrate that unsteadiness, large-scale separation, and longitudinal vortical structures dominate the turbulent airflow behind the tire. The flow is very unstable and has the tendency to fluctuate from side to side. The results also show that there is a region of separated flow close to the back of the tire where air particles recirculate and travel forward faster than the car moves. Finally, the simulations show that a system of counter-rotating vortices overwhelms the wake of the isolated tire very far downstream."

I can imagine such instability would play hell with a team trying to "seal" the diffuser absent strong exhaust. The slot-generated vortex then behaves almost like a virtual wheel fairing to combat the problem.

[strad]

A vent for the inner flow from the letterbox slot??

[mikemethadone]

Anyone know if this is the same update as they were trying to cover on the grid at Bahrain

[jordangp]

Anyone know if this is the same update as they were trying to cover on the grid at Bahrain

They were standing slightly further up the car, trying to cover the rear of the sidepods, around the exhausts, and the tunnel that they have now 'filled in'.