Williams FW35 Renault

[amouzouris]

Williams low drag RW analysis from Gary Anderson....

Rant start: Ok, I'm going to be the aero-nitpicky-Nazi here because I'm getting tired of non-aero people guessing about aero stuff to the tune of violating the laws of physics and other people using the wrong terms, thus confusing things even more..

Yes, technically the middle section of that rear wing does have a slightly shorter chord, but the main reason it produces less downforce is because its Angle of Attack (AOA) is much less than the outer sections.

Rant Over.

While I do agree with you that its the AoA that makes the central section produce less downforce. Maybe F1 engineers define different rear wing designs in terms of their chord and not the AoA (as it is adjustable). Because of the rules an aerodynamicist will always use the maximum length allowed int he z-axis but not in the y-axis to vary its chord length (and AoA).

[Artur Craft]

Even with explanation of what the wing does its strange that we have seen both the upwards RW and downwards RW from Williams on low downforce tracks, i think they used the downwards wing in Spa once, same year they used upwards for the first time at Canada.

How can the exact opposite of something be true for tracks that demand low downforce ?

It was in 2011


The upwards RW, as used in Canada, have a bigger chord at the flanks and the "gap" in the centre of the wing is to compensate that and decrease drag

While the downwards one, as is the case with the Spa's one, have it's flanks with a very short chord which already decreases drag considerably. So, they can afford to run a bigger chord at the centre

Both do the same, Williams just switched the position where they want to concentrate the reduction of drag(flanks or centre)

Albeit, teams like Red Bull have so much rear downforce that they can afford to a smalll chord and AoA in the entire's wing span, when on low downforce tracks such as Canada, Spa.

Only in the ultra low downforce config that requires Monza that ALL teams go for a full span short chord and AoA

[roadie]

Do the end plates create drag? If so then having the draggy downforce producing part of the wing near them makes sense I guess? Probably not that simple though!

[Artur Craft]

I think endplates actually reduce drag as they kind of "control", or limit, the vortices of air that circulate through the high pressure zone to the lower one.

I can't answer with certainty because I'm not sure how much these vortices contribute to drag.

A very simple CFD test would answer that, though.

Just draw a simple aifoil and test with and without an endplate.

With the endplate, downforce will surely increase, the question will be to check if the coefficient of drag decreases with it, as well, making the L/D even better

[marcush.]

I always thought endplates are there to reduce drag and increase downforce as the endplate does separate the flows obove and below the profile very efficiently close the the end of the wing .
so i would think a narrow wing with not much angle of attack would create less of a pressure delta upper and lower surface and as a matter of this less strong vortices ?
On the other hand .if your wing profile changes along the span width dramatically ther emust be an element of crossflows inducing drag as well ...so there might be a case of dimishing returns in trying to optimise a wing by altering its chord profile along a short spanwidth....

[beelsebob]

I think endplates actually reduce drag as they kind of "control", or limit, the vortices of air that circulate through the high pressure zone to the lower one.

I can't answer with certainty because I'm not sure how much these vortices contribute to drag.

A very simple CFD test would answer that, though.

Just draw a simple aifoil and test with and without an endplate.

With the endplate, downforce will surely increase, the question will be to check if the coefficient of drag decreases with it, as well, making the L/D even better

Certainly on aircraft, endplates were 99.9% about reducing drag. Yes they increase lift, but the vortex spilling off the end of the wing creates an *awful* lot of drag.

[raymondu999]

Wouldn't it be correct to say that endplates (in and of themselves) generate drag - but when put on a wing, they synergise and reduce the total drag of the wing+endplate system?

[Artur Craft]

That's pretty obvious, though.

Any body, by itself, generate drag, only by restricting vortices of an airfoil that would make a body, such as an endplate, to be "drag reducting"(if that expression is right).

[stefan_]

Great Britain 2013 - Thursday (27.06.2013)






via Dickie Stanford

[Huntresa]

I thought they said they would have a new livery to celebrate 600 races ?

[stefan_]

Yes, with the names of all their 600+ employees on the car.

Great Britain 2013 - Thursday (27.06.2013)




via AMuS



via Dickie Stanford

[wesley123]

Funny how they are updating both specs of front wings. The 2013 one has had a few updates already and the 2012 one now has the vg's on the wing outer end updated(smoother top profile)

[stefan_]

Great Britain 2013 - Thursday (27.06.2013)

[wesley123]

new wheel hub. The grey duct is gone

[patryksok]

New cascade section on front wing with splitted airfoils