Technical Discussion: Aerodynamic Planes on Wings

[Blake]

It has always confused me as to why wings on F1 cars have multiple horizontal planes to create a profile of the wing instead of using one large smooth plane. It always seemed to me as if less air would be wasted and more downforce created if one continuous plane was used.

I consider my understanding of aerodynamics to be pretty decent for a novice, but it always bothered me that I didn’t understand this fundamental aspect of an F1 car’s aero.

After figuring out what I believe is the reason behind this I decided I would share this with everyone, because I’m sure I’m not the only F1 fan on GTP interested in the aerodynamics of the cars.



I realised the problem with using a single plane is that the wing will stall at speed if it is angled too sharply in relation to the on-coming wind. What this means is that after a certain angle of attack (usually called the critical angle of attack) is reached, the air underneath the wing will separate from the surface. When the air separates from the surface of a plane there is a massive increase in drag, and as well a decrease in downforce produced.



(As an aside, when McLaren were running with a single-plane wing at Monza they were fine because they used such a small angle of attack.)

A multi-plane wing minimises this phenomenon as a surface’s critical angle of attack is relative to the direction of the air heading towards the wing. Thus, by changing the direction of the air through the initial planes, we can run a much higher wing angle on the following plane without the air separating from the bottom surface of the plane so quickly.



For example, in the diagram above, as the air hits the top surface of the bottom plane the air is pushed upwards, and as it exits off of the top of the plane it comes into contact with the bottom surface of the second plane, and follows that surface. As each plane follows this pattern the air is travelling along a surface for longer, decreasing drag and increasing downforce.

Also, as a side note to possibly initiate some discussion: as I understand it the flexi-wing drama of 2006 was an effort by designers to minimise the effects of wings stalling at speed, as when the wings would flex the angle of attack would decrease.

Hopefully my explanation is correct and actually generates some discussion.

 

[TheCracker]

the rear wing typically has a much larger aspect ratio, and often uses two or more elements to compound the amount of downforce created

Your diagram Blake has each element starting at the end of the previous one and finishing before the next one. If you look at a photo of a F1's triple-plane wing you'll see that they actually overlap each other (rather then sit in a line) which means that with a limited (by regulations) space available, slightly overlapping elements can give a larger surface area than a single element.

I'd also guess that a triple-plane wing allows finer tuning due to the fact that each element can be adjusted individually.

 

[Blake]

Your diagram Blake has each element starting at the end of the previous one and finishing before the next one. If you look at a photo of a F1's triple-plane wing you'll see that they actually overlap each other (rather then sit in a line)

Yes, my diagrams are pretty crude. But the point is, when the elements overlap the top surface of the bottom element leads to the bottom surface of the upper element, keeping the air travelling across the bottom surface of the upper-element where in a single plane situation there would be a vacuum at this point.

which means that with a limited (by regulations) space available, slightly overlapping elements can give a larger surface area than a single element.

Good point. 👍

 

[D0wNForc3]

are things like this something that normal f1 fans would know. i uderstand the basics of aerodynamics. and i userstand what has been shown here, but in general do you think most people understand this, or have an intersest in this, or do they just watch it for the cars and racing???

 

[Muzaffar]

Hmmm... i think Blake has got it correct. I mean with the diagram and the explanation. +rep for the effort . But i was also wondering, did the FIA banned triple plane wings? Well i just don't know what happened to that (as Renault was using it a few years ago and suddenly they stopped using it....) Never mind that, i was wondering what are the benefits of a triple plane wing and a double plane wing. A triple plane wing causes less wing stall but have a rough air flow and the opposite for the single plane wing.Should a double plane wing be the best between both setups?

(sorry, i don't really know well about aerodynamics. Hope there could be a better explanation of this.....)

 

[Blake]

Most teams use front wings with three planes these days. I think, IIRC, in 2004 rear wings were limited to two planes by the FIA mainly to increase readability of sponsorship on rear wings.