Aerodynamics
What makes racing so interesting and
exciting? Speed, and if you read the engines part of this, you’ll get the idea
engines have a lot to do with speed! But there is another factor, and that
entails aerodynamics. Aerodynamics, defined as the study of properties of
moving air, and especially, of the interaction between the air and solid bodies
moving through it. If you stick out your hand and turn it in various ways, you
can feel the air pushing against you or you may feel and easy glide, however
you position your hand. This is aerodynamic. If you put your hand in a vertical
position, you’ll find that the air is pushing against you.
(Shows
the drag with and without a spoiler) (Shows
some forces that act on the car as air passes over it)
Aerodynamics can be used to improve
the speed of a car, making it easier for a car to travel and also to improve
fuel economy! But when it comes to racing, whoever’s faster and it doesn’t have
to be much, is very crucial. If you watch NASCAR, you would see cars that are
built specifically to lower drag, giving them an edge when it comes to racing. These
types of cars are built for the sole purpose of lowering drag and increasing
speed. And if they’re faster than their competitors, they’ll have a good chance
of winning.
(The type of high end sports cars,
usually seen performing in quarter mile drag strips)
When vehicles first became a part of
society and resources were plentiful (lots of oil, no pollution, etc.), cars
were widely and heavily used. Over the course of time, and more in recent
years, there has been strong incentive to improve efficiency in vehicles. One
area of study, aerodynamics, has proven to be successful, according to Chicago
resident Jonny Cohen, creator and innovator of the Green Shield Project. His
idea, which is relevant to sports car racing and I’ll explain why later,
improved the efficiency of busses by implanting a shield that decreased drag
and increased efficiency of the bus. His innovation will most likely be
implemented on school busses later in the future, when patenting and other
various forms of paperwork are complete.
(Jonny’s
Green Shield innovation)
Now this is related to sports cars
because through innovation from many car manufacturing companies have indeed
improved the aerodynamics of cars, such as Jonny who improved it for busses. The
same goes for
high-end
sports cars and other vehicles alike. As you see in the first couple pictures,
you see that a spoiler installed on the back of the car can dramatically reduce
drag, but if you take a closer look you will also find that drag doesn’t just
happen over a car but under as well. BMW and other foreign car manufacturers
have taken initiative to solve this problem. A very special breed of car called
the Bugatti Veyron, is the fastest, off the production line car in the world.
First off, it has a well-tuned high powered engine, but it’s got one feature
that allows it to reach its maximum speed of 253 mph! It has the ability to
dramatically lower drag by decreasing its height from the ground. This feature
of the car, with its already aerodynamically built exterior, allow it to
quickly speed up and reach its maximum speed.
How to calculate drag:
Drag
= ½ * drag Coefficient * density * velocity^2 * Cross Area
This can be used to calculate drag
on any object or person.
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