Jackles-UK wrote:Does the exhaust ramp set-up as present on the Red Bull spread the exhaust flow to a wider area of the diffuser?
That is well conceivable.
Compared to solutions like McLaren there will probably be less rotation of the exhaust stream and it has a longer way along the floor before reaching the diffuser edge. Therefore I would inded expect a somewhat fan-shaped expansion of the exhaust gases.
Could this be a feature of the RB9 (& RB8 I guess) where almost all of the diffuser if being fed by the exhaust rather than just the edges like the coanda systems run by most of the other teams?
A wider, flatter exhaust plume might be less vulnerable to yaw effects or speed dependent variation of vortices and flow around the sidepod and towards the diffuser edges.
The solution could be working over a wider range of speed and turn rates than solutions which are based on a more concentric plume pointing closer to the tyres/diffuser area.
Possible nice side effect: the inner part of the exhaust stream might acclelerate flow to the trailing edge of the outer part of the diffuser, improving expansion rate somewhat.
The cost of the RedBull solution in my view is increased drag. The drag through the tunnels will simply be significantly higher than the drag through the open area below the exhaust pods à la Ferrai/McLaren.