For all those who had not heard of this phenomenon before, porpoising is something that already existed in Formula 1 in the last era of ground effect in the early 1980s.
However, the return of the category to that idea, giving more importance to the Venturi tunnels that are located under the flat bottom, has caused this phenomenon to be present again.
What is and what causes porpoising in F1 2022 cars?
Porpoising causes cars to bounce up and down in a sort of rocking or oscillating motion when reaching high speeds down the straights, a problem that almost every team has suffered to a greater or lesser extent at the start of 2022.
The key factor causing this phenomenon is that as more and more downforce builds up under the car, the car is sucked closer to the tarmac.
This causes the airflow to separate or directly stop at a certain point and, with the loss of downforce that this entails, the height of the car increases, which in turn causes the airflow to immediately return and the The car’s height drops again dramatically as downforce increases to the tipping point, creating a continuous cycle that causes the cars to bounce up and down.
How can porpoising be fixed in F1 cars?
Obviously, this problem could be avoided quite simply by increasing the height of the cars from the ground.
However, that’s not something teams want to do, as it could obviously compromise performance. Since the lower the height of the car, the greater the downforce.
So far, no team seems to have escaped this problem, although according to what they point out, each car is suffering from it in a different way.
This could be due to a number of factors, including the fact that from an aerodynamic perspective, each team has created its own design concepts despite having a very limited set of rules.
This can be seen in more detail in the design of the pontoons of the different teams. But also in the front wings, the floor of the car, the tunnels below and the diffuser, all the elements that influence this.
For example, those teams that find a better way to artificially seal the edge of the car’s floor with aerodynamic flow structures will likely have an advantage over those that don’t.
This will allow them to put their car in a less aggressive position from a suspension perspective and get the same result without running as low to the ground.
What causes porpoising in 2022 F1 cars?
While at first glance the dilemma facing teams may seem aerodynamic, it should also be remembered that some suspension elements from the last few decades that could have helped solve the problem have also been removed in 2022.
The suspension should now have much more classic springs, with the hydraulics that previously helped control the suspension banned entirely.
What could be causing most of the problems is in a sleep mode that is better known as ” heave “, which causes the car to slide vertically, an aspect in which the F1 teams have found a greater gain with the elements hydraulics throughout the years.
Some teams will continue to use “suspension elements” this year, as evidenced by the Haas and Ferrari front suspension below. However, they may not find that ability to adjust a better response from it because of the way teams have become accustomed to working with these systems.
Tires could also cause porpoising in F1 2022
Another variable that could be causing teams more headaches than they might have initially expected is the tyres.
Formula 1 changed its 13-inch wheels to 18″, which also caused the Italian manufacturer, Pirelli , to design a tire with a much shorter sidewall.
The teams had decades of experience with the characteristics of the old tyres, which in the past had allowed them to adjust the suspension accordingly.
While it is true that most of the teams helped Pirelli with the development of the new compounds, the fact of doing it with “mule” or retrofitted cars could also have caused some false or not entirely correct perception.
Also, from an aerodynamic perspective, which could be critical if we consider the new trend that focuses more on the downforce generated by the bottom of the car, the deformation characteristics of the tire when exposed to maximum load must be considered.
Finally and according to the statements of the teams themselves, it is understood that the simulations of the teams in CFD and also in their wind tunnels did not show a level of porpoising or roll as exaggerated as that currently seen on the track, which makes it clear that there is still work to be done both on the track and in the factory to learn to live with the phenomenon in a much more controlled way.
