Proceedings

of the
ITRN2011

31
st
August 1
st

September,
University College Cork
Kennedy, Woods, Forrest: Development of an air
intake and exhaust system for a race car.



DEVELOPMENT OF A NEW AIR INTAKE AND EXHAUST SYSTEM FOR A
SINGLE SEAT RACE CAR

Mr. Damien Kennedy

Dublin Institute of Technology


Dr. Gerry Woods

Dublin Institute of Technology


Mr. Darragh Forrest

Dublin Institute of Technology


Abstract
This paper deals with the design, analyses and testing of a new air intake system for a single
seat race car designed and manufactured by a team of DIT students for the 2011 formula
student competition in Silverstone. It also deals with the design, CFD analyses and noise
emission testing of a new exhaust system for the vehicle which is powered by a 600cc
Suzuki GXR engine. The new air intake system was developed to satisfy the rules of the
formula student competition which required a 20mm restriction to be placed on the air intake
system. It was a requirement that all engine airflow passed through this restrictor.
Implementation of the air restriction also meant that a new engine map was required for
effective operation of engine. This paper looks at a number of different alternative air intake
designs and compares the air flow simulations using CFD analyses. The use of rapid
prototyping techniques to produce a physical model is discussed. The design and
manufacture of a new throttle body is also presented. The process for engine remapping and
dyno test results are also presented. The competition also required an exhaust system with
noise emissions below 110db. This paper presents the design and analyses of alternative
exhaust paths and noise emission testing.

1. INTRODUCTION
The basic function of an air intake system is to provide the throttle bodies with air where it is
then mixed with the fuel and sent to the combustion chamber. The construction of the intake
system has a major influence on how the engine performs at various RPMs.
With reference to Fig 1 an air intake system compiles of four main parts:
Filter which is normally a paper element, of conical shape that filters the air from dust and
dirt particles before it reaches the engine.
Filter to Plenum Runner his is the tube/pipe that takes the air from the filter to the plenum.
The Plenum is the chamber or reservoir of air that supplies the engine. The Intake Runners
which are the tubes that feed the air from the plenum to the throttle bodies. Long runners
give good top end speed whereas shorter runners give good low end torque.
Most performance cars will require a certain RPM range where they will want most of their
power. This is known as the Peak Torque Location. The range of the peak torque location is
dependent on what kind of tracks the car is driving on. Winding tracks with short straights will
require an engine tuned for low end torque to power out of the corners and have a low peak
torque location. Wide and open tracks with long straights will require an engine tuned for
good top end speed and will subsequently have a higher peak torque location. The peak
torque location is depicted by three main features of the air intake system plenum volume,
runner length, runner area.
Kennedy, Woods, Forrest: Development of an air
intake and exhaust system for a race car

31
st
August 1
st

September,
University College Cork
Proceedings
of the
ITRN2011





Fig 1 Intake System [5]
In the case of the formula student rules a restriction of 20mm was placed on the main intake.
The challenge therefore was to optimise the design of the intake system and remap the fuel
injection system to optimise the engine performance for the expected racing conditions.
2. DESIGN CALCULATIONS
The Formula Student Silverstone track is geared toward the low end powerful and
nimble race car as can be depicted from the track description. With average speeds in the
endurance race between 48 km/hr to 57 km/h and top speeds of approximately 105 km/hr
the engine spends most of its time it the lower region of its power band. As a result an RPM
level of 5000 was chosen as the most suitable for intake tuning. The main design
calculations were in relation to plenum volume, runner length and runner diameter. Research
into other plenums used in the Formula SAE competition showed a volume of approx. 2.5
litres recommended as a good base line volume.[1,3]
Vizards rule [2] was used in the calculation of the runner length. This stated that
You should begin with a runner length of 17.8 cm for a 10,000 rpm peak torque location,
from the intake opening to the plenum chamber. You add 4.3 cm to the runner length for
every 1000 rpm that you want the peak torque to occur before the 10,000 rpm.
For Peak Torque Location at 5000RPM
Or 393mm
The optimum runner length for a peak torque location of approximately 5000 rpm 393mm
which can be rounded up to 400mm for ease of manufacture. Vizard also states the ideal
runner diameter can be calculated using the following formula

[(target rpm for peak torque x Displacement x VE)/ 3330 ]

VE = Volumetric Efficiency of Engine (assumed to be 90% or 0.9)
For a peak torque of 5000 rpm

5000 x 0.599 x 0.09/3330 = 0.8168
= 0.90376 in =22.96 mm
The designs outlined in this paper were all based around these calculations such that the
intake would keep the optimum peak torque location of approximately 5000 rpm.

3. CONCEPT DESIGNS & FEA ANALYSES
Proceedings
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ITRN2011

31
st
August 1
st

September,
University College Cork
Kennedy, Woods, Forrest: Development of an air
intake and exhaust system for a race car.


Four different design concepts were examined in the SolidWorks flow simulation. The
results of the CFD analyses are shown in Fig 2- Fig 5. Detailed data for each runner is also
shown in Table 1 Table 4.
Air was introduced from the inlet at a speed of 22m/s. The four outlets were set to
atmospheric pressure. In the first 3 designs A-C the airflow is concentrated around the two
central runners leaving the outside cylinders running lean and the inside cylinders running
rich. There is also a substantial amount of turbulence to be seen in all three cases.
It was apparent that the base plate was causing turbulence so it was necessary to design a
profile with no flat edges. A new concept was developed as shown in Fig 5. This consisted of
a central inlet with curved plenum which transferred the air at right angles to four tapered
runners. The concept here is that the air enters the plenum and travels to the back wall
where the profile of the wall will disperse the air to all four runners. With this concept an even
distribution of air among all four runners was achieved with minimum turbulence. This design
was manufactured using Fused Deposition Modelling Rapid prototyping and later testing on
the race car.

4. TESTING & ENGINE MAPPING
The GSX-R engine comes fitted with eight sensors as standard that relay real time engine
characteristics back to the engine management system so it can control the amount of fuel
being injected. The sensors include Intake air pressure (IAP), Manifold Air Pressure (MAP)
,Atmospheric Pressure (AP) ,Intake Air Temperature (IAT) ,Engine Temperature (ET) ,Crank
Position (CKP) ,Cam Position (CMP) ,Throttle Position (TP)
The crank position sensor uses an 8 toothed wheel on the crankshaft and a magnetic sensor
which tells the ECU the RPM of the engine. The cam position sensor uses a pin positioned
at a known location on the camshaft and a Hall Effect sensor to tell the ECU when cylinder
#1 is at Top Dead Centre (TDC). These two sensors work together to control the timing of
ignition and sequence of fuel injection system.
The throttle position sensor uses a rotary potentiometer to sense the driver throttle position
and controls how much fuel is injected into the engine. During mapping the throttle position
was the primary sensor for fuel map tuning.
Engine Temperature and Intake Air Temperature were used as compensation tools whereas
Intake Air Pressure, Manifold Air Pressure and Atmospheric Pressure were not used.
To tune the engine to the new air intake system the main fuel table had to be modified to suit
the restricted airflow. To achieve peak power a 14.7:1 air fuel ratio or 1.0 lambda was the
target.
A lambda sensor was installed in the exhaust system upstream of the muffler which
measures the air fuel mixture.
The engine was tuned across the rev range and throttle position on a dynamometer or rolling
road.
Lambda readings in excess of 1.00 indicates a lean air fuel mixture and lambda readings
lower than 1.00 indicates an air fuel mixture. [4]
Tuning required the engine to be loaded and run until the engine reached the RPM limit.
Data during the run was logged in the Motec ECU and then analysed using the data logging
software.


Kennedy, Woods, Forrest: Development of an air
intake and exhaust system for a race car

31
st
August 1
st

September,
University College Cork
Proceedings
of the
ITRN2011














Fig 2 Design A
Fig 3 Design B


Fig 4 Design C Fig 5 (a) Design D
Proceedings
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ITRN2011

31
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August 1
st

September,
University College Cork
Kennedy, Woods, Forrest: Development of an air
intake and exhaust system for a race car.










Fig 5(b) Design D Plan view


Total Cylinder 1 Cylinder 2 Cylinder 3 Cylinder 4
-9.72
Litres/Sec
-0.634
Litres/Sec
-5.37
Litres/Sec
-1.39
Litres/Sec
-2.3
Litres/Sec
Table 1 Design A Results

Total Cylinder 1 Cylinder 2 Cylinder 3 Cylinder 4
-81.63
Litres/Sec
-17.35
Litres/Sec
-29.9
Litres/Sec
-18.19
Litres/Sec
-16.36
Litres/Sec
Table 2 Design B Results

Total Cylinder 1 Cylinder 2 Cylinder 3 Cylinder 4
-10.2
Litres/Sec
3.23
Litres/Sec -8.32 Litres/Sec -8.27 Litres/Sec
3.13
Litres/Sec
Table 3.
Design C Results

Total Cylinder 1 Cylinder 2 Cylinder 3 Cylinder 4
-47.5
Litres/Sec
-14.8
Litres/Sec -8.8 Litres/Sec -9.1 Litres/Sec
-14.8
Litres/Sec
Kennedy, Woods, Forrest: Development of an air
intake and exhaust system for a race car

31
st
August 1
st

September,
University College Cork
Proceedings
of the
ITRN2011




Table 4 Design D Results


Fig 6 Motec software

Fig 6 shows readings from four of the three main areas of the engine that affect tuning,
Throttle Position, RPM, and Lambda. From analysing the data the main fuel table was
adjusted using the throttle position and rpm data to move the lambda value as close to 1.00
as possible. After the main fuel table was adjusted the dyno run was repeated and the data
analysed again. This process was repeated until the lambda value was as close to 1.00 as
possible across all rpm and throttle position areas. The final result was a 2003 GSX- R 600
engine with a 20mm restricted air intake producing 78 bhp.

5. EXHAUST DESIGN
A twin exhaust system with 2 cylinders exhausting on each side was initially considered.
However due to physical constraints of frame members and other vehicle components it was
only possible to implement a single exhaust system on right hand side. When choosing a
silencer the noise restriction of 110db imposed by FS rules had to be considered. A baffled
Suzuki silencer was chosen as its specifications satisfied these requirements. However
noise emissions below 110db from the entire exhaust assembly still had to be validated.
Two possible but similar paths existed going either side of a frame member. CFD analyses
was carried out on each path in order to obtain gas flow data and compare the suitability of
each path. The results of these simulations are shown in Fig 7 and Fig 8. Path A shown in
Fig 7 was chosen as it demonstrated a slightly higher velocity of exit gases and therefore
had the potential to enhance engine performance.
Proceedings
of the
ITRN2011

31
st
August 1
st

September,
University College Cork
Kennedy, Woods, Forrest: Development of an air
intake and exhaust system for a race car.



Fig 7 (a) Flow Simulation of Path A Fig 7 (b) Velocity Profiles of Path A



Fig 8(a) Flow Simulation of Path B Fig 8(b) Velocity Profiles of Path B

6. NOISE TESTING
The formula student rules demanded that the noise emissions remain below 110db at
approx 11000rpm. Noise tests were carried out during the competition to determine
compliance. The setup for noise testing was as shown in Fig 9. Measurements were
made with a free-field microphone placed free from obstructions at the exhaust outlet
level, 0.5 m (19.68 inches) from the end of the exhaust outlet, at an angle of forty-five
degrees (45) with the outlet in the horizontal plane. The test was run with the gearbox in
neutral at the required engine speed. The test results gave a reading of 103db at approx
11000rpm which was well within the formula student requirements.

Kennedy, Woods, Forrest: Development of an air
intake and exhaust system for a race car

31
st
August 1
st

September,
University College Cork
Proceedings
of the
ITRN2011





Fig 9 Noise Testing

7. CONCLUSIONS
Results of FEA analyses showed the air-intake design in Fig 5 to be the most suitable in
terms of air distribution. Subsequent dyno testing with the air intake also supported these
conclusions. Physical testing however did highlight some issues with the strength and rigidity
of the ABS material used in the rapid prototype. Contraction of the walls of the intake system
were visible due to the vacuum created at high RPM. As the intake system was generated
from a number of assemblies sealing the unit proved difficult. It is recommended that a
different manufacturing process be used eg carbon fibre or plastic moulding.
The exhaust system design passed all the formula student requirements and gave a reading
of 78 bhp on dyno testing. However this is a highly baffled silencer in order to meet noise
emissions and is likely to have adverse effects on engine performance. It is recommended
that future vehicle designs accommodate twin exhaust approach instead of the four into one
exhaust as this would have the potential to improve engine performance.

REFERENCES
[1] Devlin, Barry, Investigation into Engine Mapping & Design and Manufacture of an Intake
System For a Formula Sudent Car. 2010.
[2] Vizard, David, Rule for Intake Manifold Runner Length.
[3] Claywell, Mark, Horkheimer, Donald and Stockburger, Garrett, Investigation of Intake
Concepts for a Formula SAE Four Cylinder Engine Using 1D/3D (Ricardo WAVE-VECTIS)
Coupled Modelling Techniques. 2006, p. 24.
[4] Hartman, Jeff, 2003. How to Tune and Modify Engine Management Systems.
[5] Delaney, Michael. Intake Manifold Tech: Runner Size Calculations. www.team-
integra.net. [Online] 30 09 2002. http://www.team-
integra.net/forum/blogs/michaeldelaney/130-intake-manifold-tech-runner-size-
calculations.html.