Fuel Economy, Hypermiling, EcoModding News and Forum - EcoModder.com - View Single Post - Advice on aero-cap shape

t vago · 03-14-2012, 10:52 PM

I've been re-thinking this idea. It's counterproductive to have a significant downward angle on the cap, without having similar angles on the sides of the bed. The downward angle is going to cause the top air to also move down at an angle, and it's going to react with the air moving on either side of the truck, and it's going to cause power-robbing vortices to form on either side of the truck's rear end. I've seen this happen with my own aerocap.

I'm going to design version 3 of my aerocap pretty soon, based off the master's Naval Post-Grad School paper that LT Williams wrote...

http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc...c=GetTRDoc.pdf

I am going to do this because, using LT Williams' numbers, he would be able to get a 13% increase in fuel economy using only his aerocap. This is better than the 10% I am currently seeing with my version 2 aerocap.

03-14-2012, 10:52 PM	#24 (permalink)
t vago MPGuino Supporter Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Hungary Posts: 1,808 iNXS - '10 Opel Zafira 111 Anniversary Suzi - '02 Suzuki Swift GL Thanks: 831 Thanked 709 Times in 457 Posts	I've been re-thinking this idea. It's counterproductive to have a significant downward angle on the cap, without having similar angles on the sides of the bed. The downward angle is going to cause the top air to also move down at an angle, and it's going to react with the air moving on either side of the truck, and it's going to cause power-robbing vortices to form on either side of the truck's rear end. I've seen this happen with my own aerocap. I'm going to design version 3 of my aerocap pretty soon, based off the master's Naval Post-Grad School paper that LT Williams wrote... http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc...c=GetTRDoc.pdf I am going to do this because, using LT Williams' numbers, he would be able to get a 13% increase in fuel economy using only his aerocap. This is better than the 10% I am currently seeing with my version 2 aerocap. Last edited by t vago; 03-14-2012 at 11:20 PM..