VEHICLE AERODYNAMICS

AND
BODY CONSTRUCTIONS

Presenter:

Mahona: John. P

MODULE DESCRIPTION &

CONTENTS
4

Unit I: Introduction
Definition,
sources of drag
Mechanics of air flow around a
vehicle
Aerodynamic forces and Drag
components
Aerodynamic aids Bumper spoilers,
Air dams, Deck lid spoilers, window

Unit II: Drag

5

Air density, and Drag coefficient

Experimental techniques to
determine drag and drag
coefficients.
Drag coefficients for various
shapes
Side force, lift force, Pitching
moment, Yawing moment, Rolling
moment and cross wind

Unit III:
6

Significance of
aerodynamic drag on
vehicle
body
shapes

Factors influencing aerodynamic drag

Reduction of drag coefficient and fuel
economy
Truck & Bus aerodynamics
(Commercial vehicles) Significance of
aerodynamic drag

Unit IV:
Vehicle body construction
Cars

Methods of improving
visibility and space in cars Safety:
Design safety equipment for
cars.
Car body construction

Unit V:
Commercial vehicles
Trucks - Body types - Dimensions of
driver's seat relation to controls - Drivers
cab design, Frame construction.
Buses - Frame construction, Double skin
construction - Types of metal section used
Regulations - Conventional and integral
type construction. Passenger and
Luggage requirements, body dimensions
and standards automotive Body repair
and refinishing.

Assessment criteria
9

Continuous Assessment:
Comprises of :
Homework
Project/Group H/W ---Classroom Test
Semester Examination:
60%

----- 40%
---1
----

2
2
----

10

INTRODUCTION

11

12

1900-1920 Adaptation
of shapes from other
fields

1920-1970 Adaptation of results of

airplane and airship development:
streamlining

13

Experimental
cars

1970-1990: Detail
optimizations

14

15

INTRODUCTION

Aerodynamics, is a branch of dynamics

concerned with studying the movement of air
and other gases when interacting with moving
solid objects and stationary ones. This
interactions takes place between the body
surfaces and surrounding air with varying relative
speeds and wind directions. In short it is a study
of airflow & the forces involved when an object
moves through the air or when air moves past an
object.
Aerodynamics
includes
the
study
of
the
interactions of air with moving objects, such as
airplanes, cars, bicycle and of the effects of
moving air on stationary objects, such as buildings.

INTRODUCTION - CONT
Automotive/Vehicle
aerodynamics.
17

Since our target solid object is the vehicle or

car
Is the study of the aerodynamics of road
vehicles.
Road vehicles include all modes of surface
transport plying on the road around the
world.
A vehicle is a mobile machine that is
designed or used to transport passengers or
cargo. Most often vehicles are manufactured,
such as bicycles, cars, motorcycles, trains,
ships, boats and aircraft.

INTRODUCTION cont Vehicle construction refers to how a

vehicle
is made or fabricated
Vehicles are a made up of interacting
mechanical-electrical systems and over
15,000 parts are used in a typical vehicle
Damage to one part can affect the
operation of another seemingly unrelated
part and Different types of vehicle
construction require different methods of
repair frame/uni-body damage

INTRODUCTION contAgain , Vehicle construction refers to how

a vehicle is made or fabricated is interrelated
with various Engineering and non Engineering
areas involved in the vehicles designs
together with their operations
Mainly these are categorically worked as
Engineering activities and Human Factors and
that they cannot work as the separate entity
both in time and materially

START -1/12/2014

 Is a study of airflow & the forces involved when an

object moves through the air or when air moves past
an object. It is governed by the following facts

The shape of an object affects

Vehiclethe
Aerodynamics
flow of air
Aerodynamic=Cuts through
the air
Not-Aerodynamic=Resists air

The air flow includes three interacting flow fields:

Flow past the vehicle body

Flow past vehicle components
(wheels, heat exchanger, brakes,
windshields, e.t.c.
Flow past the passenger / Luggage
compartment

Examples on how flow characteristics can

influence car operations as acts load and
walls

automotive

2
2

Example on how flow

characteristics both
on top and under the
moving car

Example on how flow

characteristics both on top
moving truck

Example on how flow

characteristics both on top
the moving car

CYCLING
Bike and rider aerodynamics
AERODYNAMICS
Peloton vs. single rider

2
4

Vehicle Aerodynamics
cont-

WHY STUDY AERODYNAMICS?

Study of aerodynamics is important to determine forces
and moments (torques) acting on moving vehicles
Forces and moments are caused as a result of
interaction between a body (vehicle) and air
surrounding it
Interaction depends on: Flow conditions (fluid properties, relative velocity, pressure,
temperature, etc.) and
Body shape (geometry)

After determining these F & M the main objectives are to:

Develop foundation of theoretical development
(mathematical)
2
Gain insight into physical phenomena taking place
6

MAIN GOALS
After accomplishing the objectives, main
27
goals of Automotive/Vehicle
aerodynamics are
Reducing drag and wind noise,
Minimizing noise emission- an
important issue for acoustic comfort
and
Preventing undesired lift forces and other
causes of aerodynamic instability at high
speeds ie Reduction of side force and Yaw
moment which has an important influence
on stability and handling
This is enabled through making use of these

TO ACHIEVE THIS SEVERAL

1. Approaches in vehicle aerodynamics
APPROACHES
1900-1920
Adaptation
of shapes from other
DONE
AND ATTEMPTED
28

fields
2. Approaches in vehicle aerodynamics
1920-1970 Adaptation of results of airplane
and
airship development:
streamlining
3. Approaches in vehicle aerodynamics
1970-1990: Detail optimizations
4. Approaches in vehicle aerodynamics
1990 TO DATE: Basic form optimization

29

To understand this AIR flow

CHARACTERISTICS, you can
visualize a car moving through
the air.
As we all know, it takes some
energy to move the car
through the air, and this
energy is used to overcome
generated forces as shown

Figure showing a moving saloon

car

Figure showing a
moving
medium/large size
car with the air
simulation as shown

As it moves
forward air
tends to
overcome
forces in
both
directions

What are the forces generated on a

Moving Airplane / Car?
Four major forces affect airflow on A or C
Lift, gravity, thrust & drag
These forces oppose each other
by Newton's Third Law
For every action there is an equal & opposite reaction.

 Drag opposes thrust. Imagine sticking your hand outside the

window of a moving car. The force that pushes your hand
back is called "drag (Friction Force) As your hand pushes
on the wind, the wind also pushes against your hand.
Drag is unwanted because it makes a car inefficient by
requiring more thrust to run successful.
To reduce drag several attempt are available on the car form
(shape)

These forces are explained briefly in

the following slide

Four Forces
generated
Lift is a force used to stabilize

and control the direction of car.

Drag is the aerodynamic force
parallel to the relative wind.
Weight is the force generated by
gravity on the car.
Thrust is the force which moves
the car forward.

DRAG
DRAG being the main opposing force it
is explained in the following context:Definition
Sources
Mechanics of air flow around a car
Air flow around a car
Forces
Components
Aids
Coefficients and their
determinations

DEFINITON
Drag generally speaking, is the mechanical
force generated by the interaction and
contacts of solid bodies (car) with fluids
(liquid or gases) for our case AIR, also
generated by the differences in velocity
between solid objects and fluids (AIR) hence
there must be a motion between them.
IN OTHER WORD
Is the force that opposes the forward
motion of an object in airflow (the flow
fields)

38

DRAG COMPRISSES OF
THE FOLLOWING
FORCES
1. PRIMARY FORCE
2. SECONDARY
FORCES

PRIMARY FORCES
39

Drag, in vehicle aerodynamics, is comprised

primarily of two forces: Frontal pressure
and Rear vacuum.
1.Frontal pressure is caused by the air
attempting to flow around the front of the car.
As millions of air molecules approach the front
grill of the car, they begin to compress, and in
doing so raise the air pressure in front of the
car.
2.Rear vacuum (a non-technical term, but
very descriptive) is caused by the "hole" left

SECONDARY FORCES
40

SIDE FORCES
DOWN AND LIFT FORCES

These forces are perpendicular to

the direction of the wind, which
keeps the object aloft.

42

DRAG SOURCES
Several sources of drag exists such as Skin
friction, pressure drag, Form drag.

The following figure shows the various areas

where possibly can be centered for
adjustments in order to temper with the drag
so as to reduce the drag purposely to enable
easy entry and exit for the solid body
(vehicle) into the flow field.

DRAG SOURCES cont45

Several sources of drag exists.

Skin friction, pressure drag, Form

dragg
Skin friction.
The air that sticks to the surface of a car
creates a drag force due to skin friction.
This type of drag is caused by the friction
between the air and the bodys surface.
Skin friction is generated inside the boundary
layer and depends on its Skin friction

Pressure drag
Pressure Drag - The flow separates near the trailing
edge, due to the shape of the body. This causes low
46
pressures near the trailing edge compared to the
leading edge. The pressure forces push the airfoil back.
It is created when the shape of the surface changes
abruptly, as at the point where the roof of an
automobile ends. The drop from the roof increases the
space through which the air stream flows.
Pressure drag is caused by the difference between
attached flow at the front of the car and detached flow
at the back.
The absence of a rear stagnation point means that
there is a significant difference in pressure between
front and back.
Therefore, there is a net force opposing the motion.

47

This smoke flow visualization photo shows

clearly the differences in the nature of the
flow between the front and back.
The separated flow in the wake is air that is
set in motion by the car. If the car is adding
momentum to the air, then it must lose
momentum itself. This loss of momentum is
a drag force.

 This slows down the flow and, by Bernoulli's

principle, increases the static pressure. The
air stream is unable to flow against this
48
sudden
increase in pressure and the boundary layer
gets detached from the surface creating an
area of low-pressure turbulent wake or flow.
Because the pressure in the wake is much
lower than the pressure in front of the car, a
net backward drag or force is exerted on the
car.
Pressure drag is the major source of drag
on blunt bodies.

Form drag
49

Car manufacturers experiment with vehicle

shapes (Form drag) to minimize the drag.
For smooth or "streamlined" shapes, the
boundary layer remains attached longer,
producing only a small wake.
For such bodies, skin friction is the major
source of drag, especially if they have large
surface areas. Skin friction comprises
almost 60% of the drag on a modern
airliner

50

Automotive Design Conflict

Requirements
(ADCR)
Having observed the major source of
DRAG which is the resistance to vehicle
motion resulting into more energy
consumption.
This results into the following conflicting
requirements in the vehicle design in
Automotive industries towards meeting
the AERODYNAMICS GOALS

Automotive Design Conflict

Requirements (ADCR)

51

Attractive styling for shape, texture

and finish
Acceptable handling characteristics
in cross winds
Comfortable accommodations
Passive safety for occupants
Economic production

START 5/12/2014

53

MECHANICS OF AIR FLOW

AROUND A VEHICLE / SOLID
BODY THE CONCEPTS
Understanding the motion of air (often
called a flow field) around a solid object
enables the calculation of forces and
moments acting on the object.
Typical properties calculated for a flow field
include velocity, pressure, density
and temperature as a function of
position and time.

54

MECHANICS OF AIR FLOW

CONT By defining a control volume around
the flow field, equations for the
conservation of mass, momentum, and
energy can be defined and used to
solve for the properties.
One of the first concepts of importance
is viscosity, the internal friction in a
fluid that makes it resistant to flow and
resistant to objects flowing through it.

MECHANICS OF AIR FLOW

CONT
55

It is considered because at the upper

most surfaces of vehicle (the skin)
viscosity becomes a factor because air
tends to stick to that surface.
All objects in the air are subject to two
types of airflow,
laminar and
turbulent.

Laminar

flow is smooth and regular,

always moving at the same speed and in

56

MECHANICS OF AIR
FLOW CONT This type of airflow is also known as
streamlined flow, and under these
conditions every particle of fluid that passes
a particular point follows a path identical to
all particles that passed that point earlier.

Turbulent flow the air is subject to

continual changes in speed and direction
as for instance when a stream flows over
shoals of rocks.

57

MECHANICS OF AIR FLOW

CONT Whereas the mathematical model of
laminar airflow is rather straightforward,
Conditions are much more complex in
turbulent flow, which typically occurs in
the presence either of obstacles or of
high speeds.

58

MECHANICS OF AIR FLOW

CONT In general Aerodynamics theories are
governed by various factors considered in
the mechanics of air flow such as

Streamlines
Velocity Distribution
Laminar Flow
Turbulent Flow

59

MECHANICS OF AIR FLOW

CONT Viscosity
Reynolds Number
Boundary Layer
Skin Friction, Bernoullis
Principle & Dynamic pressure
Pitot Tube
Pressure Coefficient

Brief explanations on these

governing
factors
Streamlines
60

Curves associated with a pictorial representation of air

flow
Smoke is commonly used in wind tunnels to represent
the streamlines
Streamlines are used to study air flow

Velocity Distribution
61

The nature of the fluid flow

A measure of changes in air flows
velocity close to the vehicle

Laminar Flow
62

Fluid motion that is "well organized"

Fluid with parallel velocity vectors
Generally, laminar flow has the ideal
aerodynamic properties

Turbulent Flow
63

Fluid motion that is not "well organized"

Fluid with parallel and other velocity
vectors
Generally, turbulent flow has undesirable
properties

Viscosity
64

The following is the Pictorial representations of fluid

viscosity

65

Reynolds Number
66

Quantifies the product of speed times

size
Is a dimensionless number Where,
is fluid density,

and
of the
object

is the viscosity,
V is the velocity,
L is the length

Reynolds Number
67

Represents the ratio between inertial and

viscous forces
Compensates for scale differences
Re can indicate the nature of the fluid flow
Higher values indicate turbulent flow
Lower values indicate laminar flow
Different flows can be considered the same if
they have similar Re values
Allows scale models to be accurately tested in
wind tunnels using different fluids and or

Boundary Layer
68

The thin layer of rapid tangential velocity change

close to an objects surface
Generally increases in thickness with the length
of the object

69

Bernoullis Equation

70

Skin Friction, Bernoullis

Principle & Dynamic
pressure

71

LASTLY EXAMPLES

FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES

1. Mass is neither created nor destroyed (mass is conserved)

Conservation of Mass
Often also called: Continuity
2. Sum of Forces = Time Rate Change of Momentum (Newtons 2 nd
Law)
Often reduces to: Sum of Forces = Mass x Acceleration (F = ma)
Momentum Equation
Bernoullis Equation, Euler Equation, Navier-Stokes Equation
3. Energy neither created nor destroyed (energy is conserved)
Can only change physical form
Energy Equation (1st Law of Thermodynamics)

How do we express these statements mathematically?

72

SUMMARY OF GOVERNING EQUATIONS

STEADY AND INVISCID FLOW

73

Incompressible flow of fluid along a

streamline or in a stream tube of
varying area
Most important variables: p and V
T and are constants throughout flow

Compressible, isentropic
(adiabatic and frictionless)
flow along a streamline or in a
stream tube of varying area
T, p, , and V are all variables

A1V1 A2V2

continuity

1
1
2
p1 V1 p2 V22
2
2

continuity

Bernoulli

1 A1V1 2 A2V2

isentropic
energy

equation of state
at any point

T1 1
p1 1

p2 2
T2
1 2
1 2
c pT1 V1 c pT2 V2
2
2
p1 1 RT1
p2 2 RT2

CONSERVATION OF MASS
Physical Principle: Mass can be neither created nor destroyed

Funnel wall

Stream tube
A2

A1
V1

V2

As long as flow is steady, mass that flows through cross section at point 1
(at entrance) must be same as mass that flows through point 2 (at exit)
Flow cannot enter or leave any other way (definition of a stream tube)
Also applies to solid surfaces, pipe, funnel, wind tunnels, airplane engine
74 What goes in one side must come out the other side

CONSERVATION OF MASS
Stream tube
A1: cross-sectional area
of stream tube at 1
V1: flow velocity
Normal (perpendicular) to A1
Consider all fluid elements in plane A1
During time dt, elements have moved V1dt and swept out volume A1V1dt
Mass of fluid swept through A1 during dt: dm=1(A1V1dt)

75

dm
kg
Mass Flow
m 1 1 A1V1

dt
s
m 2 2 A2V2
m 1 m 2

Example
What is a vehicles drag force, with a frontal
Area of 1.5 m2, CD of 0.4, and traveling at
30 m/s

Given
A = 1.5 m2
CD = 0.4
V = 30 m/s
Density = 1.22

Air Flow around a

ToVehicle
understand this flow, you can visualize a
77

car moving through the air (following figures).

As we all know, it takes some energy to move
the car through the air.
Again, for a vehicle, external and internal flow
are closely related.
The external flow has great influence on the
performance characteristics and the
directional stability of the vehicle, whereas
the internal flow makes reference to the
cooling system of the engine and the