You guys are killing me. Just spend 2 hours translating this article. **** my fingers are tired...
Sorry for some traslation. If something is not very clear let me know and I'll try to put it in a more clear way.
______________________________________________
“Combustible and lubrication materials.” This is the official name of the product listed on accounting papers of a small factory of Shell in a city of Thornton [I’m not sure if that’s correct translation], not far from Manchester. Chief accountant of this place probably has a difficult time explaining all aspects of his work to government tax collecting agency. Production capacity for any oil refinery is miniscule – what are 220000 liters of gasoline and 40 tons of oil per year? The cost of the products, however, is exorbitant. There is only one hope that government agent is familiar, or maybe heard of, the only one client of this factory. In a recent time clients’ name has been rather familiar – Scuderia Ferrari F1.
Why lie… Factory is indeed small, although it’s located on the giant territory of Technical Park and is one the major research centers of Shell Global Solutions UK. Count only the number of dynamometer stands – there are more than 30 of these here. Besides there are endless laboratories, people in white coveralls, gas -chromatographs, and roentgen-spectrograph equipment.
In large halls of this research institution is rather easy to get lost. And here the most sacred place of formula one program of Shell, two weeks before the first grand prix in Melbourne, journalists were allowed to enter. For the first time Shell has lifted the secrecy from the manufacturing oils and fuel for Formula 1.
As usual in these cases however, the curtain was lifted only to the level so that no one would be able to see anything “extra” (what you was not supposed to see). Trade espionage which is very common in high profile racing is an accustomed factor. But from an amateur point of view we still saw in Thornton a lot which have dramatically changed our usual assumptions about F1 technology.
Do you know, for example, that almost for any race of the championship Shell is manufacturing a special fuel? Scientists from Thornton are working with a close contact with engineers from Ferrari, using exactly the same computer systems to calculate combustion processes as in Maranello. For one circuit gasoline is made to provide a maximum power, for others – completely opposite mixture – to provide maximum fuel economy. Not in vain Michael Schumacher, who became world champion third time in a row, mentioned that without constant research work from scientists of Shell, his famous delayed pit-stops would have been impossible.
Strict requirements FIA regulate, that gasoline used in F1 must not be much different in formulation from available market products which you use in your cars. Octane number is certainly very high – above 100, it also contains a number of very special additives, but still it is the gasoline, not some kind of methanol or a synthetic product with unbelievable combustion rate and properties.
The main difference of F1 gasoline from a regular 98 grade is a rate of combustion (which is very important for the engine making 18000 rpm) and quite surprisingly a clean exhaust. Reason behind it, of course, is not environmental standards or requirements, but in the economy. The volume of gas tank is rather limited and no one wants to carry extra gasoline during the race which will fly away into the exhaust pipe without any result. In reality F1 cars stand out from other racing cars with exceptional fuel economy!
Average fuel consumption for the car in the race is 40-50 liters per 100 km [5-6 miles per gallon]. And this is for the cars with 800 bhp which constantly run at rpm limit.
So, gasoline suppliers can only modify fuel in a certain FIA restrictions. We have to considering the fact that a gasoline can be taken at any moment from a car’s gas tank by a race judges and for testing, as well as from team’s main gas tanks in the pit. Tested gasoline must be the same as the test sample provided by the team and approved before the race.
“Is it possible to obtain some kind of advantage by manipulating a fuel a little bit?” – I ask from Michael Mackny, Shell’s fuel expert, directly working on fuel before every Grand Prix.
“No – No. These times have already passed. FIA brings a special very sophisticated portable laboratory for every race, in which any attempt to cheat will be most likely discovered. Problems and scandals related to a wrongful sample are usually made by unintentional mistakes from the teams. Sometimes it is enough for a gasoline to overheat a little bit in a barrel in order for it to show an incorrect correspondence to a sample during the analysis. To exclude such possibilities we sample after very run including training sessions. Our portable gaso-chromatograph located in a section of Ferrari, is probably even more sophisticated and more advanced compared to the one used by FIA, that’s why mistakes are excluded.”
Rules related to oils are much less tougher. Here triboligists have much broader field to work with materials and use creativity. Shell is using the same synthetic base; as for example, well know Helix Ultra, but of course without a number of additives like cleaning and anti-blow-by.
Why do you need these if the oil is changed at most every 400 km. It must, however, protect engine during a huge temperatures. Here a compromise approach must be taken again. Thicker the oil film on engine and transmission parts – better protection and cooling. [Cooling? Is this correct?] But if the oil film is too thick and restricts parts from easy sliding there is an excessive drag and additional loss in power. That’s why oil for the engine, as well as transmission, is also made specifically for each race.
For example, on a small and twisty circuits of Monaco and Hungaroring [sorry for the translation
] where speeds are low and transmission is loaded with constant shifting, temperature pattern of the engine is very severe, especially when the driver is following the rival. Radiators of the car are very restricted and air flow is low as well. For these circuits a thicker oils are used which provides better protection for engine and transmission.
Straight, high speed circuits like Monza and Indy is a different thing. Here cars are going at a high speed most of the time and shifts are much rarer. During such races tribologists are trying to use oil which will reduce mechanical waste of energy on friction. Engineers are constantly pushing the limits of lubrication materials and requesting products which can withstand higher temperatures. Higher the temperature oil can withstand – smaller oil radiator size, thus better aerodynamics and higher speed.
In a portable lab in Ferrari garage during Grand Prix there is one person, whose role is difficult to overestimate. Main process of oil perfection goes silently in a depth of research institutions and laboratories.
During the race weekend, however, from Tobias Tashe depends a lot. His main tool – roentgen spectrograph, which can detect during the analysis metallic particles in oil and other technical fluids of the car. It is possible to diagnose engine without teardown using this method. Size of metallic particles, their structure, form, or composition tells about the main thing: which part or unit has been stressed beyond the limits to experience excessive wear. Very often after Tashe’s expert conclusion team makes a decision about replacement of engine, transmission or other unit. During a one Grand Prix Tobias collects and analyses about 50 samples.
In everything what was told by personnel from Thornton (about 40 people here work for F1 program) there was a great pride in what they’ve done. Can you imagine how it’s like in England where everyone is in love with motor sport for some junior staff member to be related directly to victories of Ferrari?
Jokes aside, but they indeed should be proud of their work. For the seven years which Shell and Ferrari have been partners, Scuderia have become a legend.
_______________________________________________
Regards
[ March 03, 2004, 02:42 AM: Message edited by: Titanium_Alloy ]
Sorry for some traslation. If something is not very clear let me know and I'll try to put it in a more clear way.
______________________________________________
“Combustible and lubrication materials.” This is the official name of the product listed on accounting papers of a small factory of Shell in a city of Thornton [I’m not sure if that’s correct translation], not far from Manchester. Chief accountant of this place probably has a difficult time explaining all aspects of his work to government tax collecting agency. Production capacity for any oil refinery is miniscule – what are 220000 liters of gasoline and 40 tons of oil per year? The cost of the products, however, is exorbitant. There is only one hope that government agent is familiar, or maybe heard of, the only one client of this factory. In a recent time clients’ name has been rather familiar – Scuderia Ferrari F1.
Why lie… Factory is indeed small, although it’s located on the giant territory of Technical Park and is one the major research centers of Shell Global Solutions UK. Count only the number of dynamometer stands – there are more than 30 of these here. Besides there are endless laboratories, people in white coveralls, gas -chromatographs, and roentgen-spectrograph equipment.
In large halls of this research institution is rather easy to get lost. And here the most sacred place of formula one program of Shell, two weeks before the first grand prix in Melbourne, journalists were allowed to enter. For the first time Shell has lifted the secrecy from the manufacturing oils and fuel for Formula 1.
As usual in these cases however, the curtain was lifted only to the level so that no one would be able to see anything “extra” (what you was not supposed to see). Trade espionage which is very common in high profile racing is an accustomed factor. But from an amateur point of view we still saw in Thornton a lot which have dramatically changed our usual assumptions about F1 technology.
Do you know, for example, that almost for any race of the championship Shell is manufacturing a special fuel? Scientists from Thornton are working with a close contact with engineers from Ferrari, using exactly the same computer systems to calculate combustion processes as in Maranello. For one circuit gasoline is made to provide a maximum power, for others – completely opposite mixture – to provide maximum fuel economy. Not in vain Michael Schumacher, who became world champion third time in a row, mentioned that without constant research work from scientists of Shell, his famous delayed pit-stops would have been impossible.
Strict requirements FIA regulate, that gasoline used in F1 must not be much different in formulation from available market products which you use in your cars. Octane number is certainly very high – above 100, it also contains a number of very special additives, but still it is the gasoline, not some kind of methanol or a synthetic product with unbelievable combustion rate and properties.
The main difference of F1 gasoline from a regular 98 grade is a rate of combustion (which is very important for the engine making 18000 rpm) and quite surprisingly a clean exhaust. Reason behind it, of course, is not environmental standards or requirements, but in the economy. The volume of gas tank is rather limited and no one wants to carry extra gasoline during the race which will fly away into the exhaust pipe without any result. In reality F1 cars stand out from other racing cars with exceptional fuel economy!
Average fuel consumption for the car in the race is 40-50 liters per 100 km [5-6 miles per gallon]. And this is for the cars with 800 bhp which constantly run at rpm limit.
So, gasoline suppliers can only modify fuel in a certain FIA restrictions. We have to considering the fact that a gasoline can be taken at any moment from a car’s gas tank by a race judges and for testing, as well as from team’s main gas tanks in the pit. Tested gasoline must be the same as the test sample provided by the team and approved before the race.
“Is it possible to obtain some kind of advantage by manipulating a fuel a little bit?” – I ask from Michael Mackny, Shell’s fuel expert, directly working on fuel before every Grand Prix.
“No – No. These times have already passed. FIA brings a special very sophisticated portable laboratory for every race, in which any attempt to cheat will be most likely discovered. Problems and scandals related to a wrongful sample are usually made by unintentional mistakes from the teams. Sometimes it is enough for a gasoline to overheat a little bit in a barrel in order for it to show an incorrect correspondence to a sample during the analysis. To exclude such possibilities we sample after very run including training sessions. Our portable gaso-chromatograph located in a section of Ferrari, is probably even more sophisticated and more advanced compared to the one used by FIA, that’s why mistakes are excluded.”
Rules related to oils are much less tougher. Here triboligists have much broader field to work with materials and use creativity. Shell is using the same synthetic base; as for example, well know Helix Ultra, but of course without a number of additives like cleaning and anti-blow-by.
Why do you need these if the oil is changed at most every 400 km. It must, however, protect engine during a huge temperatures. Here a compromise approach must be taken again. Thicker the oil film on engine and transmission parts – better protection and cooling. [Cooling? Is this correct?] But if the oil film is too thick and restricts parts from easy sliding there is an excessive drag and additional loss in power. That’s why oil for the engine, as well as transmission, is also made specifically for each race.
For example, on a small and twisty circuits of Monaco and Hungaroring [sorry for the translation
Straight, high speed circuits like Monza and Indy is a different thing. Here cars are going at a high speed most of the time and shifts are much rarer. During such races tribologists are trying to use oil which will reduce mechanical waste of energy on friction. Engineers are constantly pushing the limits of lubrication materials and requesting products which can withstand higher temperatures. Higher the temperature oil can withstand – smaller oil radiator size, thus better aerodynamics and higher speed.
In a portable lab in Ferrari garage during Grand Prix there is one person, whose role is difficult to overestimate. Main process of oil perfection goes silently in a depth of research institutions and laboratories.
During the race weekend, however, from Tobias Tashe depends a lot. His main tool – roentgen spectrograph, which can detect during the analysis metallic particles in oil and other technical fluids of the car. It is possible to diagnose engine without teardown using this method. Size of metallic particles, their structure, form, or composition tells about the main thing: which part or unit has been stressed beyond the limits to experience excessive wear. Very often after Tashe’s expert conclusion team makes a decision about replacement of engine, transmission or other unit. During a one Grand Prix Tobias collects and analyses about 50 samples.
In everything what was told by personnel from Thornton (about 40 people here work for F1 program) there was a great pride in what they’ve done. Can you imagine how it’s like in England where everyone is in love with motor sport for some junior staff member to be related directly to victories of Ferrari?
Jokes aside, but they indeed should be proud of their work. For the seven years which Shell and Ferrari have been partners, Scuderia have become a legend.
_______________________________________________
Regards
[ March 03, 2004, 02:42 AM: Message edited by: Titanium_Alloy ]
