I assume that anyone have noticed in 2006 the Vertical fin mounted on the rear light in Mc laren MP4/21 . Since then many teams introduced their versions according to their special needs . I suppose that this fin reduces turbulence but does anyone kwow more about it ?
Last edited by bar555 on 17 Feb 2008, 10:50, edited 1 time in total.
Hard to say as the shark tail has evolved to be effecient at moving side to side to produce forward momentum.
Applying that to a race car? Hmm... in corners the air hitting the sides might be dealt with more effeciently.
I did read a cool article about humpback whales and the bumps on the leading edge of their fins.
The whales dive very deep and climb slowly to the surface blowing bubbles, while swimming in a spiral... the bubbles coral the fish in the center of the bubble tube.
The bumps on the fins allow the water to pass over the fins easier and increase the stall angle.
Thinking that every F1 car would have bumps on the leading edges of all aerodynamic surfaces seemed like the next thing, but a fluid flow altering surface in water needs to be much smaller then its aero cousin to produce similar effects.
I wonder if the effects that the shark enjoys are part of a total hydronamic package, maybe using the 'dirty water' from the dorsal fin as a pushing point for the tail.
Take a look at tunas, the torpedoes of the sea. I wonder if the serations on the tail would work on the engine cover of an f1 car?
The tail fin is actually more to do with the cross section of the rear impact structure and the flow coming up and around it from the diffuser.
The flow out the back of an F1 car is near vertical, the open top of the diffuser is beneath this fin. The diffuser flow joins the upwards flow through the rear wing. Thus a more aerofoil\teardrop shape to the crash structure eases the flow around the structure. Last years McLaren was quite extreme in its shaping. In fact the rear light was in a separate pod attached to the end of the crash structure. As Last year the structure only needed to meet the crash test. This year the width\height and position is mandated by the rules. This years rear ends are more uniform and the pyramid structure was slow to reappear (Toyota had the first one on the launch car).
