Unheard -
Yeah, the sophisticated aero-mods frustrate me because they are much harder to prove. Here is another plane-inspired mod that would be cool for someone to test :
SinhaTech - Sinha Flexible Composite Surface Deturbulator
Quote:
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Dr. Sumon K. Sinha has developed a Flexible Composite Surface Deturbulator (FCSD) tape, that effectively reduces drag from air flow over surfaces. Although development is proceeding, Dr. Sinha's deturbulator has already produced 20% better performance in aircraft test flights.
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SinhaTech - Sinha Flexible Composite Surface Deturbulator
Quote:
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Semi-Tractor-Trailer Rigs
A grant from the National Science Foundation has been awarded to investigate deturbulation of semitrailer rigs. Testing has been performed on a deturbulated 2004 Freightliner Columbia double-sleeper tractor pulling a Wabash 53-ft box semi-trailer. The mileage data was obtained independently by the trucking company during normal roundtrip operation with cargo between Baton Rouge, LA and Pensacola, FL. The following graph from driver records shows 4% better mileage for overall driving, including idling periods, and 5% improvement on the highway. The truck cpu gave 5.95 mpg normally versus 6.26 mpg when deturbulated for overall trip mileage. Since then, we have extended the treatment and preliminary data indicate 6.6 mpg or 10% better overall mileage. These test runs were performed in typically humid conditions indicating that the version 2 deturbulator is not adversely affected by humidity.
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I don't think you can just "make it yourself" because the design tolerances are so small. Also, I feel like you need to have a PhD to know "where to put them".
This is also interesting to me because it is counter-intuitive. You normally *want* your surface to be rigid in relation to laminar flow (right?!?!?!?!). This gizmo-tape is designed to vibrate as you move (nano-turbulence?!?!?!).
CarloSW2