F1technical.net

zac510 wrote:Well the underside of the nose is in quite close proximity to the upper side of the front wing. I don't really know, I'm just thinking aloud.

Don't forget the pressure differential between the upper and lower surfaces is more a drop in pressure below the wing than a rise in pressure above the wing - the squared relationship for dynamic pressure makes it so




As for endplates on the nose - they might not be allowed to in case it acts as a spear in an accident? But I'm really not sure

But the air on top of the nose is sure to be lower pressure, being a smooth surface and gradient, certainly laminar flow.

zac510 wrote:But the air on top of the nose is sure to be lower pressure, being a smooth surface and gradient, certainly laminar flow.

It'll not be laminar flow for any appreciable length of time, don't forget that the local pressure coefficient for inviscid, incompressible flow over a circular cylinder is given by:

Cp = 1 - 4Sin^2(theta)

Where theta is the angle from the freestream direction to the local surface normal.


You can see on the image below, the angle on the leading edge stagnation point is 0. Obviously this formula isn't totally applicable for viscious flow - due to the seperation, but the rough principles do apply upstream of this.

IIRC the '99 or '00 McLaren had fins either side of the nosecone, similar to the "nosecone endplates" suggested earlier.