Mercedes Power Unit Hardware & Software

All that has to do with the power train, gearbox, clutch, fuels and lubricants, etc. Generally the mechanical side of Formula One.
PhillipM
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Joined: 16 May 2011, 15:18
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Re: Mercedes Power Unit

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In which case you'd just use less water, there's no real advantage to reducing the cooling effect of a coolant...

gruntguru
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Joined: 21 Feb 2009, 07:43

Re: Mercedes Power Unit

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PhillipM wrote:In which case you'd just use less water . . . .
. . . . smaller radiators etc.

By the way there are additives which improve the heat transfer characteristics of water.
je suis charlie

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ringo
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Joined: 29 Mar 2009, 10:57

Re: Mercedes Power Unit

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Toto is saying that Lewis' engine had a cracked carbon pipe.
I think some critical things should be kept in metal form. Carbon fiber piping for hot water is really extreme.
I've seen where Honda and Redbull use metal piping leading to their radiators. Mercedes must be really pushing to use carbon fiber.
For Sure!!

NL_Fer
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Joined: 15 Jun 2014, 09:48

Re: Mercedes Power Unit

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Guys, the point was Hamilton was running with no waterpressure but still no boiling of the coolant. Was this because of a very effecient and cool running engine, or a raised boiling point of the coolant.

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ringo
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Re: Mercedes Power Unit

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Heat rejection from the engine block may be very minimal with this jet ignition technology that they are using, but it's still baffling that he had zero water pressure. Either their engine's jacket temperatures dont exceed 100 degrees C, or their coolant has a highly modified boiling point.
Or.. the dang pressure sensor wasn't working and nothing was wrong with the car to begin with and the cracked pipe didnt give much pressure loss.
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Chuckjr
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Re: Mercedes Power Unit

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I think there's more to the story. You can't run that many laps without any pressure. The Merc is a great power unit yes, but it's not outside the realm of physics.
Watching F1 since 1986.

taperoo2k
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Joined: 02 Mar 2012, 17:33

Re: Mercedes Power Unit

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Chuckjr wrote:I think there's more to the story. You can't run that many laps without any pressure. The Merc is a great power unit yes, but it's not outside the realm of physics.
Perhaps they have a secondary cooling system ? That's a very wild stab in the dark.

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dren
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Joined: 03 Mar 2010, 14:14

Re: Mercedes Power Unit

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Or maybe a sensor broke? Telemetry communication issue? Or it wasn't quite a coolant issue at all?
Honda!

NL_Fer
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Re: Mercedes Power Unit

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Chuckjr wrote:I think there's more to the story. You can't run that many laps without any pressure. The Merc is a great power unit yes, but it's not outside the realm of physics.
Without pressure, does not mean without coolant at all. There was still coolant, just not pressurized, so less cooling capacity.

taperoo2k
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Joined: 02 Mar 2012, 17:33

Re: Mercedes Power Unit

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The motion of the car might have kept the coolant sloshing around even without any pressure.
It depends on how the coolant piping is routed of course.

avatar
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Joined: 13 Mar 2009, 22:01

Re: Mercedes Power Unit

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NL_Fer wrote:Without pressure, does not mean without coolant at all. There was still coolant, just not pressurized, so less cooling capacity.
Surely the pressure measured in liquid cooling is the difference of flow vs return from the pump?

If so, it follows that no pressure=no circulation?

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ringo
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Re: Mercedes Power Unit

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taperoo2k wrote:The motion of the car might have kept the coolant sloshing around even without any pressure.
It depends on how the coolant piping is routed of course.
I think it had to be a sensor problem. A 1.5 litre engine even if running in "safe mode" probably has around 600hp. That's still a considerable amount of heat to reject. I don't think sloshing water can take care of that at all.
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PhillipM
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Joined: 16 May 2011, 15:18
Location: Over the road from Boothy...

Re: Mercedes Power Unit

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avatar wrote:
NL_Fer wrote:Without pressure, does not mean without coolant at all. There was still coolant, just not pressurized, so less cooling capacity.
Surely the pressure measured in liquid cooling is the difference of flow vs return from the pump?

If so, it follows that no pressure=no circulation?
No, probably just the system pressure from the valve in the header tank that was lost if it was a hairline fracture (which we can assume it was, since the car didn't loose much water), so you would just drop the boiling point.

Brian Coat
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Joined: 16 Jun 2012, 18:42

Re: Mercedes Power Unit

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Ringo: "Carbon fiber piping for hot water is really extreme."

Not really.

NL_Fer
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Joined: 15 Jun 2014, 09:48

Re: Mercedes Power Unit

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Al these failures, it makes me wonder. Is Mercedes still that much better then the rest? Or was just the turbo sizing done right from the start, the early introduction of Jet ignition and tuning to chassis to front running?

And now since the other are catching up, they need extreme solutions like carbon piping?

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