ROAD & RACE AERODYNAMICS: ASSIGNMENT -2

Performance analysis of an Automotive Rear Spoiler using Computational

Fluid Dynamics and Mathematical evaluation of Simulation Data.

INTRODUCTION

Rear spoilers are commonly used in road vehicles to enhance their performance and aid in

stability during high-speed maneuvers. Spoilers generate downforce (opposite to the direction of

lift force) and also help in reducing drag by altering the flow at the rear side of the vehicle.

In this assignment, you will compute the downforce produced by a spoiler using computational

fluid dynamics and then evaluate the performance of the spoiler at various speeds and angles of

attack and finally, you have to mathematically evaluate the data obtained from simulation.

Figure 1: Spoiler located at the rear of a vehicle

This assignment consists of three parts:

Part-1: Determination of downforce of a spoiler using computational fluid dynamics

Part-2: Performance analysis of the spoiler at varying speeds and angle of attack

Part-3: Mathematically evaluate the data obtained from the simulation

Finally, write a report in your own words, no less than 1500 words & no more than 2000 words;

explaining the whole process along with the images captured during modeling, meshing,

physics set-up, solution, results, and analytical calculations. This is an individual assignment

and you must work entirely alone on this assignment and no collaboration is allowed.

Part-1: Determination of downforce of a spoiler using computational fluid dynamics

In the first part of this assignment, you should research spoilers and their types. During this

process, you need to create a simple CAD geometry of a spoiler and perform CFD analysis to

determine the downforce generated by the spoiler.

Figure2: Spoiler with support structure – (For Illustration Only)

In addition to the downforce, also observe the pressure distribution, the velocity of the flow near

the spoiler and the turbulence. You shall create a contour plot for all these results in addition to

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vector plots and streamlines wherever applicable.

Figure 3: Contour plot and X-Y plots – (For Illustration Only)

While you perform simulation, solution convergence history i.e., residuals plot should be

monitored and the same must be explained in the report. It is important to note that all equations

should converge and achieve the target residual criteria which should be set to a reasonable

and acceptable level.

Part-2: Performance analysis of the spoiler at varying speeds and angle of attack

In this second part of this assignment, you have to perform multiple simulations with increasing

air velocity (i.e., vehicle speed) and angle of attack to evaluate the performance of the spoiler.

Before the simulation, you should clearly define the load cases i.e., the number of studies and

then follow that in the subsequent process and then compare the results.

The simulation can be performed assuming the flow is isothermal, however, an effort to simulate

the variation in performance of the spoiler with respect to temperature or other factors is

appreciated and will be credited accordingly.

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 Figure 4: Spoiler with support structure on a generic car model– (For Illustration Only)

To evaluate the performance of the spoiler, you can both use the previous simulation set-up as

a starting point and create multiple cases as required or you can add the spoiler to a generic

vehicle and then evaluate the performance of the spoiler. In either case the objective remains

performance evaluation of the spoiler and not the vehicle performance.

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 Figure 5: Contour plot and Streamline superimposed– (For Illustration Only)

For each simulation case, you should obtain all the results similar to what you have done in the

part-1 of this assignment.

As an extended activity, you can also improve on the design of the spoiler to enhance

performance, but remember that the analytical approach that you will use in the next part of this

assignment will become more complex if the deign gets complex, so it is advised that you work

on one simple but efficient design.

Part-3: Mathematically evaluate data obtained from simulation.

In this section, you should use analytical methods to evaluate the performance of the spoiler

and then co-relate with data obtained through CFD simulations. You can present your results in

a tabular form and as X-Y plots.

You must validate at least one set of simulation data using an analytical method. However

additional validations will be credited accordingly.

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DETAILS OF REQUIRED WORK, MARK ALLOCATION:

The assignment is worth 50% of the total marks for the module, broken down in the following
areas;

100% is based on the work carried out in parts 1 & 2.

 Part 1 = 40%
 Part 2 = 30%
 Part 3 = 30%