Aerodynamic Concept Evaluation of Formula Student Side Structure

Abstract: Formula Student is a global engineering competition where university students collaborate to design, construct, and race formula-style cars. Aerodynamics is one aspect in the vehicle design that can improve on-track performance by increasing cornering and straight-line speed. To improve the aerodynamics of KTH Formula Student's DeV18 vehicle, the side structure is being redesigned. The current model, DeV17, features an underperforming tunnel-based side structure. To address this issue, this had the goal to investigate a new multi-element wing design that utilizes ground effect. The design study of the DeV18 vehicle is conducted using Siemens NX 2212 for 3D modelling and Simcenter Star-CCM+ 17.06.008-R8 for airflow simulations. To quickly investigate certain design parameters effect on the results, Design Manager Project inside Simcenter Star-CCM+ is used. The resulting side structure produces a total of 26 N of downforce and 6 N of drag at 40 kph, more than twice that of DeV17’s side structure while also producing less drag. Although this significant improvement compared to DeV17, it is believed that further increases in performance are necessary to compete with top teams. By using a more sophisticated method to optimize the multi-element wing, such as adjoint optimization, the concept could be improved. However, the overall potential of the concept is still considered too limited to achieve the desired performance goals, which is why it will no longer be investigated further.