Browse Topic: Drag

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From biology, to genetics, and paleontology, these fields share the DNA as a common and time-proven tool. In science, pressure may be such a tool, shared by thermodynamics, material science, and astrophysics, but not by aerodynamics. Pressure is a shorthand for a force acting perpendicular to a surface. When this surface is reduced to zero, so should the pressure. The wing area of an aircraft acts as a reference area to calculate its parasite drag coefficient. In this scenario, the parasite drag acts as a force over the wing area. If the wing area is reduced to zero, its parasite drag does not, as the fuselage is still generating parasite drag. The ratio of the parasite drag and wing area is an example of a pressure construct that uses a physically irrelevant reference area and has no absolute zero. Pressure constructs, more frequently used than pressures in aerodynamics, are a math-based parameter that preserve dimensional propriety according to the Buckingham Pi theorem but lacks a
Burgers, Phillip
The fuel economy performance of road vehicles is one of the most important factors for a successful project in the current automotive industry due to greenhouse effect gases reduction goals. Aerodynamics and vehicle dynamics play key roles on leading the automaker fulfill those factors. The drag coefficient and frontal area of the vehicle are affected by several conditions, where the ground height and pitch angle are very relevant, especially for pickup trucks. In this work, we present a combined study of suspension trim heights and aerodynamics performance of a production pickup truck, where three different loading conditions are considered. The three weight configurations are evaluated both in terms of ground height and pitch angle change considering the suspension and tires deflection and these changes are evaluated in terms of drag coefficient performance, using a Lattice-Boltzmann transient solver. Results are compared with the baseline vehicle at road speed condition, where both
Buscariolo, Filipe FabianTerra, Rafael Tedim
Road loads, encompassing aerodynamic drag, rolling resistance, and gravitational effects, significantly impact vehicle design and performance by influencing factors such as fuel efficiency, handling, and overall driving experience. While traditional coastdown tests are commonly used to measure road loads, they can be influenced by environmental variations and are costly. Consequently, numerical simulations play a pivotal role in predicting and optimizing vehicle performance in a cost-effective manner. This article aims to conduct a literature review on road loads and their effects on vehicle performance, leveraging experimental data from past studies from other researchers to establish correlations between measured road loads and existing mathematical models. By validating these correlations using real-world measurements, this study contributes to refining predictive models used in automotive design and analysis. The simulations in this study, utilizing five distinct empirical
Pereira, Leonardo PedreiraBraga, Sérgio Leal
The aerodynamic force produced by external flows over two-dimensional bodies is typically decomposed into two components: lift and drag. In race cars, the lift is known as downforce and it is responsible for increasing tire grip, thereby enhancing traction and cornering ability. Drag acts in the direction opposite to the car’s motion, reducing its acceleration and top speed. The primary challenge for aerodynamicists is to design a vehicle capable of producing high downforce with low drag. This study aims to optimize the shape of a multi-element rear wing profile of a Formula 1 car, achieving an optimal configuration under specific prescribed conditions. The scope of this work was limited to a 2-D model of a rear wing composed of two 4-digit NACA airfoils. Ten control parameters were used in the optimization process: three to describe each isolated profile, two to describe their relative position, and two to describe the angles of attack of each profile. An optimization cycle by finite
Souza Dourado, GuilhermeHayashi, Marcelo Tanaka
This document specifies dimensional, functional and visual requirements for Automotive grade coaxial cable. This material will be designated AG for general-purpose automotive applications or AG LL for low loss applications. It is the responsibility of the user of this cable to verify the suitability of the selected product (based on dimensional, mechanical, electrical and environmental requirements) for its intended application. It is the responsibility of the supplier to retain and maintain records as evidence of compliance to the requirements detailed in this standard
USCAR
Aerodynamic analysis is a primary requirement in the development of electric scooters to predict the impact of air flow around the vehicle on critical performance parameters including the overall range, vehicle stability due to wind loads, air cooling of electric motor and battery. Any new design of vehicle requires an aerodynamic evaluation to estimate the variations in drag forces with speed. It is prohibitively expensive and time consuming to perform full-scale model wind tunnel tests on each variant of the vehicle configuration for wide range of driving scenarios. Physics-based 3D simulation is the preferred approach in the present context and the use of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) for such cases has been well understood and established. Although only the external shape changes make a difference to external aerodynamics, sometimes even a small variation in shape could trigger unwanted flow behavior leading to large drag forces, or enhance the vehicle performance by reducing
Balachandran, KarthikDas, AlokShinde, Pranav
Since the inception of battery driven electric vehicles in the automotive world, there has been a constant challenge in maximizing the range of an electric vehicles through various means including battery technology, vehicle weight optimization, low drag coefficients etc. The tires being a viscoelastic composite material have now become a vital to the range performance of an EV. The rolling resistance of a tire is now become a hotter topic than ever. The rolling resistance coefficient (RRC) is the measure of energy loss during rolling due to viscoelastic dissipation in the tire. The viscous dissipation in tire arises due to hysteresis in the various components of a tire including tread, sidewall, inner liner, apex etc rubber compounds. The internal friction between layers of body ply, steel belts and tread crown ply also contribute to the internal heat generation. Therefore, the development of ultra-low RRC tires is a serious challenge for tire engineers. Nevertheless, the recent
Mishra, NitishSingh, Ram Krishnan
The SAE J2923 procedure is a recommended practice that applies to on-road vehicles with a GVWR below 4540 kg equipped with disc brakes
Brake Dynamometer Standards Committee
ABSTRACT Determining the required power for the tractive elements of off-road vehicles has always been a critical aspect of the design process for military vehicles. In recent years, military vehicles have been equipped with hybrid, diesel-electric drives to improve stealth capabilities. The electric motors that power the wheel or tracks require an accurate estimation of the power and duty cycle for a vehicle during certain operating conditions. To meet this demand, a GPS-based mobility power model was developed to predict the duty cycle and energy requirements of off-road vehicles. The dynamic vehicle parameters needed to estimate the forces developed during locomotion are determined from the GPS data, and these forces include the following: the gravitational, acceleration, motion resistance, aerodynamic drag, and drawbar forces. Initial application of the mobility power concept began when three U.S. military’s Stryker vehicles were equipped with GPS receivers while conducting a
Ayers, PaulBozdech, George
ABSTRACT An inverse dynamics approach is applied to assess the relationship and establish an adjustable balance between acceleration performance, slip energy efficiency, and mobility margins of a wheel of a vehicle with four wheels individually-driven by electric DC motors. The time history of the reference wheel torques are recovered which would enable the motion at the desired linear velocity. Target velocity profiles are applied which provide different rates of acceleration. The profiles are simulated in stochastic terrain conditions which represent continuously changing, uncertain terrain characteristics with various quality of rolling resistance and peak friction coefficient. A wheel mobility margin is determined to track how close a driving wheel is to immobilization. When moving in drastically changing stochastic terrain conditions, boundaries are adjusted to accommodate changes in the resistance to motion in order to guarantee the motion while not exceeding limits which would
Paldan, JesseVantsevich, VladimirGorsich, DavidJayakumar, ParamsothyMoradi, Lee
ABSTRACT A distinctive feature of unmanned and conventional terrain vehicles with four or more driving wheels consists of the fact that energy/fuel efficiency and mobility depend markedly not only on the total power applied to all the driving wheels, but also on the distribution of the total power among the wheels. As shown, under given terrain conditions, the same vehicle with a constant total power at all the driving wheels, but with different power distributions among the driving wheels, will demonstrate different fuel consumption, mobility and traction; the vehicle will accelerate differently and turn at different turn radii. This paper explains the nature of mechanical wheel power losses which depend on the power distribution among all the driving wheels and provides mathematical models for evaluating vehicle fuel economy and mobility. The paper also describes in detail analytical technology and computational results of the optimization of wheel power distributions among the
Vantsevich, Vladimir V.Gray, Jeremy P.
This paper investigates the drag reduction matching of modular flying cars based on a nested configuration. To address the high aerodynamic drag issue of traditional modular flying car configurations, a nested design scheme is proposed. In this scheme, the cabin is extracted from a low-drag car and combined with the flying module using a nested approach, achieving aerodynamic matching between the cabin, driving module, and flying module. First, the conceptual design of the new modular flying car and the parameters of each module, including the driving module, cabin module, and flying module, are introduced. Then, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) methods are utilized to numerically simulate the aerodynamic characteristics of the new flying car, and the results are compared with the existing typical modular flying car, AIRBUS. The research results show that the nested modular flying car exhibits superior aerodynamic performance in both driving and flying modes. Compared to the typical
Li, YanlongYe, ShengfeiZhou, Hua
The objective of the paper is to enhance the aerodynamic performance of an aircraft wing using the injection–suction method. This method utilizes simulation techniques based on the Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) equations with a k-epsilon turbulence model solver. The results of the simulations demonstrate a significant improvement in the wing’s performance, with a 33% increase in the stalling angle and a 10% enhancement in the lift coefficient compared to the baseline airfoil. The drag value is decreasing up to 40% depending on the angle of attack. The novelty of this proposed method was in the strategic placement of injection and suction. Injection is applied over the top airfoil at the separation point, while suction is applied at the midsection of the bottom airfoil. This configuration optimizes the aerodynamic flow over the wing, leading to improved performance metrics of lift coefficient and stall angle. This concept has potential applications in subsonic fixed-wing
Rameshbhai, Patel AnkitkumarPatidar, Vijay KumarBalaji, K.
The objective of this study is to develop a new aerofoil shape to enhance aerodynamic efficiency in turbo machinery applications. Numerical and experimental analyses were conducted by solving the RANS equations using the k-omega SST and standard k-epsilon models. A wind tunnel was employed to measure the lift and drag coefficients of the aerofoil, and these results were compared with those of existing turbo machinery designs. The results indicate a 38% increase in the peak lift coefficient and a 25% improvement in stall characteristics. Additionally, a 20% reduction in overall drag was observed across both methods. The novelty of this work lies in creating a more curved aerofoil using the Bézier curve method and the subsequent assessment of its aerodynamic performance through numerical and experimental approaches. The proposed method can be applied to various aerofoil types to enhance the aerodynamic performance of low-speed turbo machinery
R Vala, JigneshPatel, D. K.Umathe, ManishaBalaji, K.
Over the past twenty years, the automotive sector has increasingly prioritized lightweight and eco-friendly products. Specifically, in the realm of tyres, achieving reduced weight and lower rolling resistance is crucial for improving fuel efficiency. However, these goals introduce significant challenges in managing Noise, Vibration, and Harshness (NVH), particularly regarding mid-frequency noise inside the vehicle. This study focuses on analyzing the interior noise of a passenger car within the 250 to 500 Hz frequency range. It examines how tyre tread stiffness and carcass stiffness affect this noise through structural borne noise test on a rough road drum and modal analysis, employing both experimental and computational approaches. Findings reveal that mid-frequency interior noise is significantly affected by factors such as the tension in the cap ply, the stiffness of the belt, and the properties of the tyre sidewall
Subbian, JaiganeshM, Saravanan
This research study investigates the influence of undercover design on three critical aspects of vehicle performance: water entering into air intake filter, Aerodynamic performance, thermal performance on vehicle engine room components (Condenser, Radiator and Air Intake System). Undercover serves the purpose of protecting Engine, underhood components and also improves aerodynamics of the vehicle. Through CFD simulations, various undercover design configurations: Full Undercover, no undercover and half undercover cases are evaluated to assess their effectiveness in mitigating the water ingress into the air intake system. Additionally, we explore the implications of these design alterations on the thermal performance and aerodynamic drag. By systematically exploring these interactions, results provided valuable insights on the effect of three undercover configurations related to vehicle performance which can help automotive engineers to develop the undercovers that strike a balance
Padakandla, Kishore KumarNagendra, K. YallaBisoyi, Ram Prasad
There are examples in aerodynamics that take advantage of electric-to-aerodynamic analogies, like the law of Biot–Savart, which is used in aerodynamic theory to calculate the velocity induced by a vortex line. This article introduces an electric-to-aerodynamic analogy that models the lift, drag, and thrust of an airplane, a helicopter, a propeller, and a flapping bird. This model is intended to complement the recently published aerodynamic equation of state for lift, drag, and thrust of an engineered or a biological flyer by means of an analogy between this equation and Ohm’s law. This model, as well as the aerodynamic equation of state, are both intended to include the familiar and time-proven parameters of pressure, work, and energy, analytical tools that are ubiquitous in all fields of science but absent in an aerodynamicists’ day-to-day tasks. Illustrated by various examples, this modeling approach, as treated in this article, is limited to subsonic flight
Burgers, Phillip
The Kenworth booth at the 2024 Advanced Clean Transportation (ACT) Expo in Las Vegas garnered much interest thanks to the reveal of its futuristic-looking SuperTruck 2. Developed over a six-year period as part of the DOE's SuperTruck program, the demonstrator vehicle improved freight efficiency by up to 136% compared to the 2009 T660 model. The team improved fuel efficiency up to 12.8 mpg and reduced the combination weight by about 7,100 lb (3,220 kg) - 4,150 lb (1,880 kg) from the tractor and 2,950 lb (1,340 kg) from the trailer. The design led to a 48% reduction in drag compared to Kenworth's baseline vehicle. A Paccar MX-11 diesel engine, rated at 455 hp (339 kW), is paired with a Paccar TX-12 automated transmission and a 48-volt electric generator, creating a mild hybrid system to operate accessories and provide engine-off “hoteling.” The 48V generator also powers the exhaust heater in an in-house-developed close coupled aftertreatment system that demonstrated CARB 2027 ultra-low
Gehm, Ryan
Homologation is an important process in vehicle development and aerodynamics a main data contributor. The process is heavily interconnected: Production planning defines the available assemblies. Construction defines their parts and features. Sales defines the assemblies offered in different markets, where Legislation defines the rules applicable to homologation. Control engineers define the behavior of active, aerodynamically relevant components. Wind tunnels are the main test tool for the homologation, accompanied by surface-area measurement systems. Mechanics support these test operations. The prototype management provides test vehicles, while parts come from various production and prototyping sources and are stored and commissioned by logistics. Several phases of this complex process share the same context: Production timelines for assemblies and parts for each chassis-engine package define which drag coefficients or drag coefficient contributions shall be determined. Absolute and
Jacob, Jan D.
The problem of transport-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is common knowledge. In recent years, the electrification of cars is being prompted by many as the best solution to this issue. However, due to their rather big battery packs, the embedded ecological footprint of electric cars has been shown to be still quite high. Therefore, depending on the size of the vehicle, tens -if not hundreds- of thousands of kilometres are needed to offset this burden. Human-powered vehicles (HPVs), thanks to their smaller size, are inherently much cleaner means of transportation, yet their limited speed impedes widespread adoption for mid-range and long-range trips, favouring cars, especially in rural areas. This paper addresses the challenge of HPVs speed, limited by their low input power and non-optimal distribution of the resistive forces. The article analyses dissipation sources from rolling resistance, aerodynamics, inertia, and more for various vehicles, emphasizing the fundamental role of
Di Gesù, AlessandroGastaldi, ChiaraDelprete, Cristiana
The study of aerodynamic forces in hypersonic environments is important to ensure the safety and proper functioning of aerospace vehicles. These forces vary with the angle of attack (AOA) and there exists an optimum AOA where the lift to drag force ratio is maximum. In this paper, computational analysis has been performed on a blunt cone model to study the aerodynamic characteristics when hypersonic flow is allowed to pass through the model. The flow has a Mach number of 8.44 and the AOA is varied from 0° to 20°. The commercial CFD solver ANSYS FLUENT is used for the computational analysis and the mesh is generated using the ICEM CFD module of ANSYS. Air is selected as the working fluid. The simulation is carried out for a time duration of 1.2 ms where it reaches a steady state and the lift and drag forces and coefficients are estimated. The pressure, temperature, and velocity contours at different angles of attack are also observed. It is found that the lift-to-drag ratio increases
Deka, SushmitaKamal, AbhishekPatra, SanjuktaSahoo, Niranjan
Severe problem of aerodynamic heating and drag force are inherent with any hypersonic space vehicle like space shuttle, missiles etc. For proper design of vehicle, the drag force measurement become very crucial. Ground based test facilities are employed for these estimates along with any suitable force balance as well as sensors. There are many sensors (Accelerometer, Strain gauge and Piezofilm) reported in the literature that is used for evaluating the actual aerodynamic forces over test model in high speed flow. As per previous study, the piezofilm also become an alternative sensor over the strain gauges due to its simple instrumentation. For current investigation, the piezofilm and strain gauge sensors have mounted on same stress force balance to evaluate the response time as well as accuracy of predicted force at the same instant. However, these force balance need to be calibrated for inverse prediction of the force from recorded responses. A reliable multi point calibration
Kamal, AbhishekDeka, SushmitaSahoo, NiranjanKulkarni, Vinayak
The present study discusses the determination of the Seal drag force in the application where an elastomeric seal is used with a metallic interface in the presence of different fluids. An analytical model was constructed to predict the seal drag force and an experimental test was performed to check the fidelity of the analytical model. A Design of Experiment (DoE) was utilized to perform an experimental test considering different factors affecting the Seal drag force. Statistical tools such as the Test for Equal Variances and One Way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) were used to draw inferences for the population based on samples tested in the DoE test. It was observed that Glycol fluids lead to lubricant wash-off resulting in increased seal drag force. Additionally, non-lubricated seals tend to show higher seal drag force as compared to lubricated seals
Yarolkar, MakrandTelore, MilindPatil, Sandip
The design of aerospace applications necessities precise predictions of aerodynamic properties, often obtained through resource-intensive numerical simulations. These simulations, though they are accurate, but are unsuitable for iterative design processes due to their computational complexity and time-consuming nature. To address this challenge, machine learning, with its data-driven approach and advanced algorithms, offers a novel and cost-effective solution for predicting airfoil characteristics with exceptional precision and speed. This study explores the application of the Back-Propagation Neural Network (BPNN), a machine learning model, to forecast critical aerodynamic coefficients such as lift and drag for airfoils. The BPNN model is fed with input parameters including the airfoils name, flow Reynolds number, and angle of attack in relation to incoming flows. Training the BPNN model is accomplished using a dataset derived from CFD simulations employing the Spalart–Allmaras
M N, LochanN, RakshithaPrasad, B K SwathiSivasubramanian, Jayahar
Dimensional optimization has always been a time-consuming process, especially for aerodynamic bodies, requiring much tuning of dimensions and testing for each sample. Aerodynamic auxiliaries, especially wings, are design dependent on the primary model attached, as they influence the amount of lift or reduction in drag which is beneficial to the model. This study aims to reduce the time period taken to finalize the design parameter for the same. For a wing, the angle of attack is essential in creating proper splits to incoming winds, even under high velocities with larger distances from the separation point. In the case of a group of wings, each wing is then mentioned as a wing element, and each wing is strategically positioned behind the previous wing in terms of its vertical height and its self-angle of attack to create maximum lift. At the same time, its drag remains variable to its shape ultimately maximizing the CL/CD ratio. A high value of CL indicates a significant component of
Hujare, Pravin PHujare, Deepak PChoudhary, PrateekSakat, AbhishekKaranjkar, Rushil
Defense Innovation Unit Washington D.C. info@DIU.mil
The dynamic model is built in Siemens Simcenter Amesim platform and simulates the performances on track of JUNO, a low energy demanding Urban Concept vehicle to take part in the Shell Eco-Marathon competition, in which the goal is to achieve the lowest fuel consumption in covering some laps of a racetrack, with limitations on the maximum race time. The model starts with the longitudinal dynamics, analysing all the factors that characterize the vehicle’s forward resistance, like aerodynamic forces, altimetry changes and rolling resistance. To improve the correlation between simulation and track performances, the model has been updated with the implementation of a Single-Track Model, including vehicle rotation around its roll axis, and a 3D representation of the racetrack, with an automatic trajectory following control implemented. This is crucial to characterise the vehicle’s lateral dynamics, which cannot be neglected in simulating its performances on track. Analysis of suspension
De Carlo, MatteoDragone, PaoloTempone, Giuseppe PioCarello, Massimiliana
This paper investigates the tire-road interaction for tires equipped with two different solid rubber material definitions within a Finite Element Analysis virtual environment, ESI PAMCRASH. A Mixed Service Drive truck tire sized 315/80R22.5 is designed with two different solid rubber material definitions: a legacy hyperelastic solid Mooney-Rivlin material definition and an Ogden hyperelastic solid material definition. The popular Mooney-Rivlin is a material definition for solid rubber simulation that is not built with element elimination and is not easily applicable to thermal applications. The Ogden hyperelastic material definition for rubber simulations allows for element destruction. Therefore, it is of interest and more suited for designing a tire model with wear and thermal capabilities. Both the Mooney-Rivlin and Ogden-equipped Mixed Service Drive truck tires are subjected to a simulated static vertical stiffness test to validate their static domain characteristics against
Ly, AlfonseEl-Sayegh, ZeinabEl-Gindy, MoustafaOijer, FredrikJohansson, Inge
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