Effects of wheel orientation on predicted flow field and forces when modelling rotating wheels using CFD

Paper in proceeding, 2010

Wheels and tyres are important components on a passenger car, responsible for up to 25 % of the aerodynamic drag. Since CFD is very common in early design evaluation, it is important to understand how modelling of different phenomena might affect the results. This paper presents a study on the sensitivity of wheel geometrical orientation when modelling rotating wheels using Multiple Reference Frames (MRF). Predicted flow field and aerodynamic forces are compared with experimental data as well as time averaged results from transient simulations using MRF and sliding mesh to simulate more realistic wheel rotation. Results show large local deviations in flow field and local forces for some of the wheel geometries. The overall aerodynamic drag and lift did also experience changes due to the wheel orientation.