Research Motivating Problem:
Aerodynamics plays an essential role in the total driving resistance and hence fuel consumption of vehicles. New upcoming legislations on permissible CO2 – emissions and increasing fuel prices will push vehicle manufacturers to develop vehicles with a low fuel consumption. As a consequence the aerodynamic resistance has to be further reduced.
Research Question:
- How can the rear wake be controlled and optimized such that air resistance is reduced and that fuel consumption and CO2 – emissions are lowered?
Deliverable(s):
- Improved understanding of wake structures affecting aerodynamic forces and how to control the structures to reduce drag, while maintaining stability.
- Improvement of experimental and numerical methodology for unsteady flow investigations.