Quote:
Originally Posted by freebeard
Isn't that "inviscid" airflow?
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Well, I think we're all a bit right on this one.
Aerodynamics of Road Vehicles (5th ed) makes the point that inviscid flow is not real, but that using the
model of inviscid flow works for flows away from boundaries, and allows us to picture pressures from streamlines.
Aerodynamics of Road Vehicles (2nd ed):
Provided no flow separation takes place, the viscous effects in the fluid are restricted to a thin layer of a few millimeters thickness, called the boundary layer. Beyond this layer the flow is inviscid and its pressure is imposed on the boundary layer.
Two points:
1. I've corrected Aerohead's misquote
2. Obviously there isn't a car made where flow separation doesn't take place.
So with the very important point kept in mind that inviscid flow is just a simplified model, we can use it when considering pressures
where there is attached flow.