Red Bull RB8 Renault

[N12ck]

agree

Flow through a pipe is not smooth in the slightest, it is not laminar, and is very disturbed with the boundary layer getting bigger and bigger and more disturbed as the pipe goes on, without a pipe (tunnel) the flow would be much better,,,

unless, the pipe constricts the flow and forces it into a smaller exit volume to create higher pressure over the top of the diffuser along a concentrated jet of air (from the tunnel) -wild idea

[PlatinumZealot]

My word guys, avoid ALL journalist analysis of anything technical. They rarely get it right.

[shelly]

Red Bull's double-floor
One of Red Bull's technical trademarks is the refusal to abandon an idea just because it doesn't work at the first attempt.

....... Very neat.

McCabism

i completely disagree. this sounds like rationionalism and a perpertual motion scheme.

what about the surface drag and interference losses in that duct? why do the pressure zones behind the tunnel act 'better' through that duct than they do through free stream air?

i'll stick with the simple answer: the tunnel keeps the lower sidepod air from messing up the ramp flow. if they didn't have a ramp, the whole coke bottle area would work better without a tunnel.

does anyone think those tunnels would be there if they didn't have the exhaust ramp?

I disagree with you. surface drag is negligible; the interference losses are small; the pressures zones behind the tunnel through the duct do act better then they would in free stream, because the flow is ducted. The ramp gives the opportunity to loophole the 50mm rule and create a 100mm heigt duct which is effective.

That said, I could be wrong of course.

[hardingfv32]

The ramp gives the opportunity to loophole the 50mm rule and create a 100mm heigt duct which is effective.

Please expand on the application of the 50 mm rule.

Brian

[hardingfv32]

If sealing the gap between the floor and rear tire opening is so valuable (McLaren, etc.), why does RB route flow away from this area with the tunnel?

Brian

[/quote]

[wesley123]

If sealing the gap between the floor and rear tire opening is so valuable (McLaren, etc.), why does RB route flow away from this area with the tunnel?

Brian

Because it isnt that valueable with regular air.
The tunnel is there to regain a bit from the coke bottle but also taking air away to reach the space you mentioned, this so the exhaust can have better effect there.

[siskue2005]

The ramp gives the opportunity to loophole the 50mm rule and create a 100mm heigt duct which is effective.

Please expand on the application of the 50 mm rule.

Brian

what he meant was, the height of the tunnel should not go above 50mm coz of the minimum radius rule (RBR version 1)
But now the ramp like bodywork exploits the loophole and provide a 100mm height tunnel
pretty clever

[siskue2005]

If sealing the gap between the floor and rear tire opening is so valuable (McLaren, etc.), why does RB route flow away from this area with the tunnel?

Brian

http://www.formula1.com/wi/0x0/sutton/2 ... ur1214.jpg

they want both the effect
they want to seal the diffuor and also want the sidepod flow
the exhaust above seals it and the tunnel below provides advantage of coke bottle shape

[Crucial_Xtreme]

Good up close picture of the tunnel








@Shelly I agree completely. I think Dr. McCabe was spot on in his analysis. He's a very smart guy and is usually right.

[ForMuLaOne]

They use the channel to change the direction of airflow which is heading towards the floor`s edge. It is an approach to prevent the air to stream around this edge underneath the car as the diffusor suction has an effect at this part of the car already. If you take a look at the vane inside the tunnel you can see how steep the airflow goes inside.

[marcush.]

They use the channel to change the direction of airflow which is heading towards the floor`s edge. It is an approach to prevent the air to stream around this edge underneath the car as the diffusor suction has an effect at this part of the car already. If you take a look at the vane inside the tunnel you can see how steep the airflow goes inside.

the air is not really forced in it should be attracted to go there...this is the result of the shape and end point of the duct (which should end at the back of the car ?)

[Chuckjr]

Aren't any clear shots of the exits?

[Kiril Varbanov]

agree

Flow through a pipe is not smooth in the slightest, it is not laminar, and is very disturbed with the boundary layer getting bigger and bigger and more disturbed as the pipe goes on, without a pipe (tunnel) the flow would be much better,,,

unless, the pipe constricts the flow and forces it into a smaller exit volume to create higher pressure over the top of the diffuser along a concentrated jet of air (from the tunnel) -wild idea

This is rather general sentence and as such I tend to disagree, because it will depend on the conditions.
At low Reynolds numbers the flow is laminar. As the Reynolds number increases it becomes turbulent after going through a transition region, that said, we don't know the velocity of the air feeding that duct|tunnel (presumably from the lower sidepods stream, most of which derived from turning vanes and bargeboards), nor we know what's inside that duct, i.e. profiles.

I do not agree about the surface drag which someone has mentioned previously - since this is type of drag caused by skin friction, I don't see large disadvantage here - it's rather ducting the air vs. free stream.

[marcush.]

intriguingly ,Webber´s topspeed inQualy was just 1KPH slower than Vettels...Assuming the DRS did not work at all in Qualy for Webber the time difference is solely owed to acceleration and being able to shed drag and downforce were it´s not needed.They gear not for DRS open topspeed?

[hardingfv32]

we don't know the velocity of the air feeding that duct|tunnel (presumably from the lower sidepods stream, most of which derived from turning vanes and bargeboards)....

Can we assume the flow velocity is no greater than the car's speed at best or is that and over simplification?

Brian