College of Engineering

Department of Mechanical Engineering

Spring 2019-20

Senior Design Project Report

Aerodynamic of Solar Car (CFD)

In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the

Degree of Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering

Team Members

Student Name Student ID

1 Abdulaziz Alwakeel 201501068
2 Omar Albuainain 201602964
3 Ibrahim Almajed 201700331
4 Abdullah Almessairei 201600094
5 Abdullah Almazyad 201502740

Project Advisors:

Advisor Name: Dr. Esam Jassim

Abstract
Aerodynamics is a science that studies the movement of air and its effects on a solid
body, where this body will be positioned in the flow field as an obstacle. As a matter of fact,
aerodynamics is a sub-field, where the fundamentals of mainly fluid dynamics and
thermodynamics are implemented, including all governing equations, boundary layer theory,
ideal gas assumption, and turbulence. This project adopts the method of using computational
fluid dynamics (CFD) to design a body for a solar car, and this is a branch from fluid mechanics
that applies numerical analysis as well as data structures to analyze problems involving fluid
flows. In other words, it is a tool for generating solutions for fluid flows whether with or
without solid interaction. Furthermore, in a CFD analysis, the conductance of examinations is
done according to multiple properties such as velocity, pressure, temperature, density, and
viscosity. These properties have to be simultaneously considered in order to virtually generate
a solution for any physical phenomenon that involves fluid flow. For this project, a car body is
designed using SOLOD WORKS, where this body is required to have a drag coefficient of at
least 0.2 after testing the design in ANSYS. Consequently, a car body was finalized having all
required geometries, in addition to having streamlined, smooth body shape that will surely
boost its aerodynamic capabilities. This, after manufacturing the car and having it driven, will
enable it to be extremely efficient (having relatively long range), as well as improved
performance. Therefore, students must have basic fundamental knowledge in the fields of fluid
mechanics and thermodynamics at least to sufficiently meet all requirements, and come up with
an adequate design using a software that offer CFD analysis such as ANSYS, and a software
that will enable them to design a detailed body such as SOLIDWORKS.

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Acknowledgments
Our work would never come to light if it wasn’t for the people behind us who gave us
the proper guidance and assistance throughout the way. Specifically, we would like to thank
our advisor, Dr. Esam Jassim for his continuous efforts in helping us with every detail, as he
never hesitated in giving us his point of view on almost everything, including difficulties and
confusing points along the way. His assistance is kindly appreciated, and we are extremely
thankful for everything he has done. In addition, we would like to recognize the exemplary
efforts of Dr. Mohamed ElMehdi Saleh for his constant availability to answer our questions
and inquiries, his efforts are very much appreciated. Moreover, we would like to express our
kind and honest appreciation to the entire Mechanical Engineering Faculty at Prince
Mohammed Bin Fahd University for their help and assistance, during our classes with them,
they offered their opinions and knowledge regarding our project every time the subject came
up, and their assistance is well recognized and valued. Finally, special thanks to the group
members, the leader Abdulaziz Alwakeel for his constant supervision and interest in reviewing
all work done to make sure everything is intact, Omar Albuainain for his continuous ambition
in achieving the best outcomes and results by keeping track of time and quality, Ibrahim
Almajed for his ever expanding motivation for overcoming obstacles and difficulties that faced
us throughout the semester, Abdullah Almessairei for all the efforts he has done to reach
sources and information needed for the project, and Abdullah Almazyad for his well-known
determination for achieving perfection and cooperation.

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List of Acronyms (Symbols) used in the report:

Symbols What it represents

A Frontal Area

CFD Computational fluid dynamics

 Air Density

CD Drag Coefficient

FD Drag Force

V Air Velocity

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List of Figures:
Figure 2.1: Computational Domain for CFD Simulation Setup (Front View)......................10
Figure 2.2: Computational Domain for CFD Simulation Setup (Side View).....................10
Figure 3.1: Velocity Vs Drag Force & Drag Coefficient...........................................................18
Figure 3.2: Isometric view of the final design...........................................................................19
Figure 3.3: The rear side of the car……………………….......................................................19
Figure 3.4: The right side of the car………………………......................................................19

List of Tables:
Table 3.1: Physical Properties..................................................................................................14
Table 3.2: Chemical Properties.................................................................................................15
Table 3.3: Mechanical Properties..............................................................................................15
Table 3.4: Thermal Properties..................................................................................................15
Table 3.5: The Most acceptable results of drag coefficient and drag force................................17
Table 3.6: Velocity Vs Drag Force & Drag Coefficient............................................................18
Table 3.7: Table of material......................................................................................................19

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Table of Contents
Abstract ................................................................................................................................................................2
Acknowledgments ....................................................................................................................................................2
List of Acronyms (Symbols) used in the report: ......................................................................................................4
List of Figures: .........................................................................................................................................................5
List of Tables: ..........................................................................................................................................................5
Chapter 1: Introduction ............................................................................................................................................7
1.1 Project Definition ...................................................................................................................................7
1.2 Project Objectives ...................................................................................................................................7
1.3 Applications ............................................................................................................................................8
Chapter 2: Literature Review ...................................................................................................................................9
2.1 Project background .................................................................................................................................9
2.2 Previous Work ........................................................................................................................................9
Chapter 3: System Design ......................................................................................................................................12
3.1 Design Constraints................................................................................................................................12
3.2 Engineering Design standards ...............................................................................................................14
3.3 Theory and Theortical Calculations ......................................................................................................16
3.4 Product Subsystems and Components ..................................................................................................18
3.5 Implementation .....................................................................................................................................20
Chapter 4: Conclusions and Future Recommendations .........................................................................................20
4.1 Conclusions ..........................................................................................................................................20
4.2 Future Recommendations .....................................................................................................................21
5. References ......................................................................................................................................................23
Appendix A: Progress Reports ...............................................................................................................................24
Appendix B: Engineering Standards ......................................................................................................................27
Appendix C: CAD Drawings and Bill of Materials ...............................................................................................28
Appendix D: Datasheets.........................................................................................................................................32

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Chapter 1: Introduction

1.1 Project Definition

This project is about designing and manufacturing a car that runs on solar power. Our
car design is a special type of electric vehicle that only get its power from the sun; thus, we
will be using solar cells implemented on the surface of the car to produce electricity to power
the motor. Hence, we will be using SOLIDWORKS that will be based on dimensional
optimization analysis. Moreover, the aerodynamics of any vehicle can significantly increase its
range by reducing the amount of drag on the body, as this will result in less consumption of
power. Core manufacturers nowadays would improve their cars’ aerodynamics in order to
reduce drag, which eventually can result in greater fuel economy, and better performance when
it comes to acceleration and top speed. Therefore, aerodynamics is a key aspect to consider
when designing any type of vehicles for the purposes of better fuel economy and performance,
and in certain areas, sustainability.

1.2 Project Objectives

1. The main objective of this project is to design, manufacture, and test a solar car.
2. The specific objective of this group is to design the body of the car and implement all
necessary aerodynamic knowledge to come up with a body that allows as much as
smooth flow to go pass with minimal drag force.
3. To implement SOLIDWORKS and ANSYS background knowledge to design the body
using these latest programs.
4. To come up with a prototype that has all the design language of our subject, which is
aerodynamics, and that prototype needs to demonstrate all design ideas we gave
implemented.
5. To test the prototype using a wind tunnel in both software, as well as physical wind
tunnels.
6. To calculate the coefficient of drag and drag force after testing the prototype.
7. To compare designs, and choose the most suitable, and viable design to begin
manufacturing.

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1.3 Applications

• Aerodynamics is used in the aerospace industries as in planes and rockets.

• HVAC systems also relies heavily on it.
• Widely used in the automotive industry as it plays a vital role in determining the
efficiency of the cars.
• Naval shipbuilding implements the fundamentals of aerodynamics as well, and a
submarine is an adequate example for that.
• In the military sector as well, as bullets are designed with the fundamentals and
knowledge of aerodynamics in mind.

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Chapter 2: Literature Review

2.1 Project background

Solar cars were invented in order to save our environment and adapt to our latest
technologies. We aim to design the body of a solar car using applications such as Ansys, and
SolidWorks to get different kinds of measurements, and compare it with the latest car designs.
The whole purpose is to design and build the body with minimal cost and minimal drag force.
The flow has to travel in various speeds facing the car in order to determine the drag force and
the coefficient of drag for different circumstances. The car must have a streamlined body
because that will cause the body to penetrate through the air with minimal resistance. Hence, a
bulky looking body would be a disastrous design to rely on, as the coefficient of drag will be
significantly high. Furthermore, the challenges we will be facing is material selection, and
building the actual prototype accurately to test it in a wind tunnel. The idea we have is to design
different kind of bodies with different materials and geometries to calculate and compare the
drag force for each design.
Key words: Solar car, Aerodynamics, CFD simulation, Drag Coefficients, Drag Force.

2.2 Previous Work

To achieve great efficiency numbers in a vehicle, aerodynamics is a major aspect to

consider. Thus, aerodynamics is vital to reach adequate efficiency, which means designing the
vehicle in a way that the drag force and drag coefficient are minimal. To minimize the drag
force and drag coefficient, we have to do several designs, and these designs have will be tested.
Furthermore, designs were made by using CAD software (Computer Aided Design) which hold
the necessary tools to conduct software tests. Then, transferring it to CFD (computational fluid
dynamics) program to apply all parameters and test the smoothness and fluency of the car. As
a result, we have chosen one of the 8 designs we did, and that is the 6th design. We have
achieved our target with the lowest coefficient of drag force and drag force act on solar car
body (Mark, Partap & Salim, 2013).

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Figure #2.1 Computational Domain for CFD Simulation Setup (Front View)

Figure #2.2 Computational Domain for CFD Simulation Setup (Side View)

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 A car with low drag force is essential to achieve great results with respect to efficiency
and performance. Most solar cars that are used in the World Solar Challenge event have the
shape of a “Cockroach” which was considered the best shape to achieve optimum speed and
aerodynamics characteristics. However, the team of University of Malaya have designed a solar
car with the shape of a box fish. This shape has even better aerodynamics that resulted in less
drag force, and a small coefficient of drag. They have designed their shape using numerical
studies and advanced programs to simulate their car. They used computational fluid dynamics
(CFD) with a code termed FLUENT. In addition, they reached reasonable results compared to
normal road solar cars (Taha, Passarella, Rahim, Sah & Ahmad-Yazid, 2011).

In the case of solar vehicles, due to the fact that the number one necessity is to optimize
the energy efficiency for the duration of motion, many efforts are addressed by designers in
searching for the suitable aerodynamics. That means that we have to minimize the drag force
on different speeds and that can be done by creating a certain design and test it by several
programs. There are two programs which are used in this research, CAD and CFD programs.
The CAD software is used to create the design, while CFD is used to test the aerodynamics of
the design. This design will be created by composite manufacturing processes which will
decrease the weight of the car and facilitate the formation of the desired shape. After the
manufacturing of the car, a reverse engineering manner is performed with the purpose of
scanning the vehicle’s body and examine it to the preliminary theoretical design (Betancur,
Fragassa, Coy, Hincapie & Osorio-Gómez, 2017).

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Chapter 3: System Design

3.1 Design Constraints and Design Methodology

3.1.1: Geometrical Constraints

Every engineering design involves some sort of geometrical constraints and limitations.
In our case, in computational fluid mechanics’ perspective, we are faced with multiple
limitations. For instance, the body’s aerodynamic must be active enough to produce a
maximum of 0.2 in terms of drag coefficient. In addition, in designing the body shape of the
vehicle using SOLIDWORKS, we are entitled to certain geometrical limits, such as the fact
that the wheelbase of the vehicle must be 3 meters, with 1.32 meters distance between the inner
surfaces of the left and right wheels. Furthermore, the width of the whole car should be 2 meters
long, and the length of the vehicle should be 5 meters long. Moreover, the distance of the gap
between the front and back doors to the front end of the car should be 2 meters long, and 3
meters long between the very same gap and the back end of the car. Finally, the height from
the lower end of the body itself and the upper most point should be 1.2 m high. These limits
were given in order to easily construct the vehicle with enough surface area to place solar
panels on the whole roof, as well as having comfortable space to implement our other necessary
designs such as steering and braking systems. Additionally, the body will then have enough
surface area to easily construct the technical specification in terms of material selection and
weight determination, along with other aspects such as measurement of performance.
Specifying geometry helps overwhelming barriers that could impede the process of conducting
the tests and measurements mentioned earlier. Hence, it is crucial to specify certain geometry
that helps mitigating all processes with minimum difficulties that could be emerged in the way
of manufacturing.

3.1.2: Sustainability
To ensure the vehicle’s durability for a long period of time, certain materials with
specific quality of mechanical properties must be chosen to avoid any damage-causing
processes such as corrosion. However, in our case, to ensure the sustainability of the vehicle,
the geometry of the body and its aerodynamics must be designed in a way that during high
speeds, the vehicle won’t be affected by the adverse wind force that could cause various issues

12
such as disassembly, vibrations, and loud internal wind noises. This will be achieved by
designing the vehicle in a way that its aerodynamics would allow the vehicle to penetrate
through the wind with maximum fluency and smoothness to avoid harmful drag forces.
3.1.3: Environmental
Nowadays, emissions of harmful gases such as carbon dioxide are reaching high and
record-breaking amounts. This process of emitting harmful gases to the atmosphere is
increasing, unfortunately, in an exponential manner. As the industry expands, cities are built,
and population is increasing, the demand for energy is increasing as well. Thus, burning of
fossil fuels is what is being adopted right now to meet this demand. However, this is causing
major and mind-blowing effects to the environment, as it is the cause of what we are
experiencing right now with global warming and climate change. This man-made disturbance
of nature’s balance may be the starting point on a way to a major catastrophe. Therefore, bold
and immediate actions must be taken to tackle this ever-expanding issue, and the main answer
to this problem is renewable resources. In our project, we aim to use the reusable source of
solar energy. This is part of our plan to shift towards renewable energy, which is using vehicles
that run on environmentally friendly fuels such as electricity, which is produced using solar
energy by implementing solar panels on the vehicle in our case. This idea aims to inspire other
members of our society and try to open their minds to whole new horizons as they witness their
cities, ecosystems, and health get battered from pollution.

3.1.4: Social
This vehicle is totally an effort to plant an idea in people’s minds that the time to shift
towards green energy is today. In addition, it has a goal of trying to show the easiness and
simplicity of a green vehicle to oppose some sort of stereotypes that state that these kinds of
cars are extremely complex, difficult to repair, and expensive. Moreover, it is planned that our
vehicle will showcase itself by moving in public roads to mainly grab the attention of people
not to show-off our achievement, but to reflect the need for these types of vehicles as soon as
possible.

3.1.5: Economics
One of our goals in this project is to reflect the idea of simplicity in a vehicle that does
not run on ordinary, familiar fossil fuels. To achieve this, we must reduce the cost of producing
the vehicle, as well as cost of maintenance. Hence, we will carefully select the right materials
that include a balance between sustainability, cost-reduction, and efficiency to construct and

13
build the vehicle. In addition, specifically in our case in computational fluid dynamics, we aim
to design the shape of the car in a way that its aerodynamic should produce less drag and
consequently, consume less energy. This would eventually lead to improve the travel range and
the efficiency, as large drag force causes the vehicle to consume more energy.

3.1.6: Safety
In terms of design, the vehicle’s ride height should make it easy for a person to get in
and out, with side pillars being as thin as possible to increase outer vision and minimize blind
spots around the vehicle. This is essential for the safety of the driver and people around it.
Therefore, the windscreen, side windows, and rear window should be big enough to look
around the car easily. Also, the side pillars’ thickness should be reduced to increase sight as it
blocks a significant amount of outer view.

3.1.7: Ethical
Designing and building a solar car is not a new idea, it was performed by numerous
people around the world. However, we intend to build this car in order to implement our
mechanical engineering knowledge effectively, and to improve on areas where people have left
it as it is. For example, we have chosen a bold and distinctive design (a truck made by Tesla),
to implement the ideas and procedures that will convert it from a car that runs on rechargeable
lithium-ion batteries from charge points on the streets, to solar panel charged batteries that is
keeps on recharging as long as the sun is up and bright. It is essential to state the fact that this
project does not include any type of unethical actions, intents, or purposes. In fact, this project
and every process within is planned and agreed upon by us, and hopefully it will make a
positive effect.

3.2 Engineering Design standards

The material of the body is Aluminum 6061-T6 and the property is shown below:

Property Value
Density 2.7 g/cm3
Table #3.1 Physical Properties

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 Element Maximum Unless Range is Specified
Silicon 0.40 - 0.8
Iron 0.7
Copper 0.15 - 0.40
Manganese 0.8 - 1.2
Magnesium 0.8 - 1.2
Chromium 0.04 - 0.35
Zinc 0.25
Titanium 0.15
Others Each 0.05
Others Total 0.15
Aluminum Balance
Table #3.2 Chemical Properties

Properties Values
Ultimate Tensile Strength 310 MPa
Tensile Yield Strength 276 MPa
Elongation at Break 12%
Hardness, Brinell 95
Modules of Elasticity 68.9 GPa
Table #3.3 Mechanical Properties

Properties Values
Melting temperature (Tm) 585 °C (1,085 °F)
Thermal conductivity (k) 151–202 W/(m·K)
Linear thermal expansion coefficient (α) 2.32×10−5 K−1
Specific heat capacity (c) 897 J/(kg·K)
Table #3.4 Thermal Properties

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3.3 Theory and Theoretical Calculations

3.3.1: Calculating the frontal area of the car:

The frontal area of the car can be calculated by dividing the car into different parts and
sum the areas of these parts, we will then have the total frontal area. On the other hand, we can
measure the frontal area in an easier way with computer programs.
We used ANSYS software to calculate the frontal area of the designed car and we have
found it as shown below:
A= 4.824415 m2.

3.3.2: Calculation of Drag coefficient and Drag force:

To calculate the drag coefficient, we have to use either the normal equations we have
learned in fluid mechanics course or use the program by performing a simulation for our design
depending on several components and parameters. Moreover, we have imported our geometry,
designed in SolidWorks program, to the simulation software modeling “FLUENT” in Ansys
then the coefficient of drag force and drag force were calculated by the program.

The Ansys version we used was the student version 2019. This version has limitations
in usage and can’t conduct the work properly, as demonstrated in the result that we got. We
were forced to use this version because were choked by limited time, but we managed to design
the car in time with the required geometry given to us. Due to the corona virus epidemic, we
were also forced to use the free version of Ansys which is provided to students, since we can’t
use the full version which is provided in the university campus. The version found in the
campus is more accurate and gives a perfect result compared to the one in hand, which is 2019.

The frontal area is calculated by the program and is shown below:

A= 4.824415 m2.

The density of air as we know is fixed with respect to the atmospheric temperature and
pressure which is shown below:

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 𝜌 = 1.225 Kg/m3.
The speed of the fluid in the wind tunnel which we have calculated the Drag coefficient
and Drag force:

V= 80 km/h = 22.222 m/s.

The drag force and drag coefficient has been calculated in the program as follows:

Zone Drag Force (N) Drag Coefficient

pressure 94.478035 0.064744726
Viscous 1.5699013 0.0010758356
Total 96.047936 0.065820561
Table #3.5 The most acceptable results drag coefficient and drag force
We can prove this measurement using equations of fluid mechanics for calculating the
coefficient of drag force on external surfaces which is shown below:

2𝐹𝐷
CD = (3.1)
𝜌𝐴𝑉 2
2 × 96.047936
CD = 1.225×4.824415×22.2222 = 0.06582198845.

As we can see, both ways work to have the same results but if we need to use the
equations that we used in fluid mechanics, we have to determine the drag force to calculate the
drag coefficient, in other words if we’re using Ansys, it will use try and error in simulation
until it reaches the value of drag force and drag coefficient of designed car with respect to air
speed and frontal area of the car.
We’ve also measured the drag coefficient and conducted simulations for several
velocities. Consequently, we found that there is a positive relationship between the velocity
and the drag coefficient, which means that as the velocity increases, the drag coefficient and
drag force will increase as well. In addition, as we’ve discussed earlier that the measurement
wasn’t accurate due to the student version of 2019. This version gives different readings in
every simulation for the same geometry and design, as the values shown above are the most
reasonable values measured by ANSYS 2019. However, this version has limitations in usage.

17
The relationship between velocity, drag coefficient, and drag force are shown in the table and
the figure below:
V (km/h) CD FD (N)
10 5.28E-06 0.0001205
20 0.000401 0.0365691
40 0.000573 0.2090237
60 0.0006906 0.5668918
80 0.0014945 2.1807786
Table #3.6 Velocity Vs Drag Force & Drag Coefficient

Velocity Vs Drag Force & Drag Coefficient

2.5 1.60E-03

1.40E-03
2
1.20E-03

Drag Coefficient
Drag Force (N)

1.5 1.00E-03

8.00E-04
1 6.00E-04

4.00E-04
0.5
2.00E-04

0 0.00E+00
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90
Velocity (m/s)

Fd Cd

Figure #3.1 Velocity Vs Drag Force & Drag Coefficient

3.4 Product Subsystems and selection of Components

3.4.1 Design of the car

We designed the solar car with dimensions given as 5 meters for the length of the car,
2 meters for the width, 1.2 meters for the height, and 3 meters for the wheelbase. We also
designed the front of the car to be streamlined so the coefficient of drag will be small so it will

18
have minimum drag. We also chose for the material to be Aluminum 6061-T6 because it
distributes stress equally and it also allows more interior volume. The top figure shows an
isometric view of the final design of the car. The figure on the left shows the rear side of the
car, while the right figure shows the car from the right view. We also chose different colors to
show the different parts such as windows, rear lights, front lights, and the body of the car itself.

Figure#3.2 Isometric view of the final design

Figure#3.3 The rear side of the car Figure#3.4 The right view of the car

3.4.2 Selection of materials:

Component Details
Body Aluminum 6061-T6
Type: Monocrystalline
Solar Panel Front cover: Tempered Glass
Frame material: Anodized aluminum alloy
Glass Laminated glass
Table #3.7 Table of Material

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Body:
We used Aluminum because it is a relatively light material which can result in better
acceleration, braking, and handling. It has high strength to weight ratio and much safer than
other traditional mild steel structure. It is commonly used and available everywhere. It is known
for its weldability, easy machining, and resistance to corrosion.

Glass:
Laminated glass is known for its durability, it is commonly used for automobiles. It is
manufactured to provide maximum strength and it doesn’t shatter in case of an accident, which
is why it’s called safety glass. It protects passengers and interior materials from UV ray
penetration. It is also known for its low weight compared to tempered glass, and it is a
commercially available glass.

Solar Panel:
We will be using Monocrystalline due to its high efficiency 15%-20% which is better
than the polycrystalline 14%-16%. The front cover will be tempered glass to increase its
strength which is six times more than a normal plate glass, and frame material is anodized
aluminum alloy to increase the corrosion resistance.

3.5 Manufacturing and assembly (Implementation)

Because of the corona virus epidemic, we haven’t manufactured any component of the body,
nor have we assembled any part.

Chapter 4: Conclusions and Future Recommendations

4.1 Conclusions
In the end, because of the difficulties we faced with this version of ANSYS, there were
some unreasonable and non-viable results reached, because of the limitations that are in that
specific version we used. Nevertheless, we managed to simulate our design in multiple
conditions and scenarios, which are in other words, different velocities the wind is hitting the

20
car with, and they are 10, 20, 40, 60, and 80 Kilometers per hour. As a result, we reached some
conclusions such as that the coefficient of drag will increase dramatically between 10 and 20
Km/h, as well as 60 and 80 Km/h. However, from 20 to 60, the drag coefficient increased in a
significantly lower rate as demonstrated in Figure #3.1. In this project, we gained a few new
skills, mainly the ability to use ANSYS and navigate well in it, in addition to the fact that
numerous aerodynamic knowledge being understood and learned, such as the fact that the
geometry of a vehicle can significantly affect the coefficient of drag and drag force. In addition,
it is an adequate project to do given the current circumstances, with all the environmental issues
that are facing the world, with this solar car we are becoming a part of a much wider group of
people around the globe that are sending a clear message that the earth needs cleaner air to stop
catastrophic outcomes to come to light. Hence, there was a sense of motivation within us as
soon as we began with our tasks. Furthermore, the subject of aerodynamics is quite interesting
to work on, as we found it relatable to our everyday lives, whether with our cars, planes,
mechanical systems such as ducting systems, or even wildlife such as birds. Finally, we
achieved our goals and met the requirements for every task given, with giving our absolute best
to do so. However, the challenges we faced were not merciful, as the process of design and
simulation gave us a hard time when we tried to open our Solid Works file in ANSYS, as well
as the fact that the version of ANSYS we are using is actually filled with limitations that
prevented us from actually coming up with a viable result. Nevertheless, all group members
did their best to produce what this group produced, and every single one of them did their
absolute best to achieve that.

4.2 Future Recommendations

Along the way of working on, and completing our project, we faced numerous
difficulties, and we managed to overcome these difficulties by learning from our mistakes.
Hence, for the people who will work on projects with similar aspects, there are multiple
recommendations that we would like to give to them. First of all, to make sure that all necessary
software for doing the work are available and functional, as this issue gave us a really hard
time during the semester. Secondly, all tasks required for the project need to be known from
the beginning to ensure smoothness in working on the project with no delays, as we had our
stops because of the fact that we didn’t know what to do next. Nevertheless, we managed to
complete everything on time, but knowing everything from the start is still essential and a wise

21
thing to do. In addition, distributing tasks amongst members of the group is a fundamental thing
to do before everything else, as it is important that every member has a clear understanding of
his tasks in order to make sure that no one will be held up, thus holing everybody else up. This
is a major problem that faced many groups including ours. Finally, motivation is the most
important aspect of any group work, if only one member lacks it, problems will rain down on
the entire group. It is vital to find what motivates everyone so that everyone would do his own
work with full competency.

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5. References

[1] Betancur, E., Fragassa, C., Coy, J., Hincapie, S., & Osorio-Gómez, G. (2017, April).
Aerodynamic effects of manufacturing tolerances on a solar car. In International Conference
on Sustainable Design and Manufacturing (pp. 868-876). Springer, Cham.

[2] Cybertruck. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.tesla.com/cybertruck?redirect=no

[3] Eroz, E. (2006). Development of a racing strategy for a solar car. The Graduate School of
Natural and Applied Sciences of Middle East Technical University, Ankara.

[4] Jalil, J. M., & Alwan, H. Q. (2007). CFD simulation for a road vehicle cabin. Engineering
Sciences, 18(2).

[5] Mark Darwin, A., Partap Singh, L., & Salim, S. M. (2013). Aerodynamic investigation of
a solar car body. In Proceedings of engineering undergraduate research catalyst conference
(EURECA2013), Malaysia.

[6] Taha, Z., Passarella, R., Rahim, N. A., Sah, J. M., & Ahmad-Yazid, A. (2011). CFD analysis
for merdeka 2 solar vehicle. Advanced Science Letters, 4(8-9), 2807-2811.

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 Appendix A: Progress Reports
SDP – WEEKLY MEETING REPORT
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Prince Mohammad bin Fahd University

ACADEMIC
SEMESTER: Spring 2019/2020
YEAR:
PROJECT
Aerodynamics of a Solar Car (CFD)
TITLE
SUPERVISORS Dr Esam Jassim

Month 2: March

ID Number Member Name

201501068 Abdulaziz Alwakeel (leader)
201602964 Omar Albuainain
201700331 Ibrahim AlMajed
201600094 Abdullah Almessairei
201502740 Abdullah Almazyad

List the tasks conducted this month and the team member assigned to conduct these
tasks

Progress
Team member Delivery
0%-
# Task description assigned proof
100%
1 Designing the vehicle (SolidWorks) Ibrahim Almajed 100%
Improving the design, applying
2 Abdulaziz Alwakeel 100%
detailed design points and geometry
3 Materials selection Abdullah Almessairei 100%
4 Simulation via ANSYS Omar Albuainain 100%

5 Calculating Drag Coefficient Abdullah Almazyad 70%

List the tasks planned for the month of April and the team member/s assigned to
conduct these tasks

Team member/s
#
Task description assigned
1 Abdullah Almazyad
Completion of drag coefficient calculations
2 Chapter 3: System Design All team members
3 Chapter 4: Conclusion and Future Recommendations All team members

24
 4 All team members
Midterm Presentations
5 Finalizing and submission of the project report All team members

- To be Filled by Project Supervisor and team leader:

- Please have your supervisor fill according to the criteria shown
below
Outcome MEEN4:
an ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make
informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic,
environmental, and societal contexts
Criteria None (1) Low (2) Moderate (3) High (4)
Demonstrates
satisfactory
MEEN4A. Fails to Shows limited and
understanding
Demonstrate an demonstrate an less than adequate
of engineering
understanding of understanding of understanding of
professional Understands appropriately and
engineering engineering engineering
and ethical accurately the engineering
professional and professional and professional and
standards and professional and ethical
ethical standards ethical standards ethical standards
their impact on standards and their impact on
and their impact on and their impact on and their impact on
engineering engineering solutions in global,
engineering engineering engineering
solutions in economic, environmental, and
solutions in global, solutions in global, solutions in global,
global, societal contexts
economic, economic, economic,
economic,
environmental and environmental, and environmental, and
environmental,
societal context societal contexts societal contexts
and societal
contexts
Outcome MEEN5:
an ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a
collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks, and meet objectives
Criteria None (1) Low (2) Moderate (3) High (4)
Demonstrates
Shows limited and
MEEN5A: Ability satisfactory
Fails to develop less than adequate Properly and efficently
to develop team ability to develop
team work plans and ability to develop makes team work plans
work plans and team work plans
allocate resources team work plans and and allocate resources and
allocate resources and allocate
and tasks allocate resources and tasks
and tasks resources and
tasks
tasks
Demonstrates
Shows limited and satisfactory
MEEN5B: Ability
Fails to participate less than adequate ability to
to participate and
and function ability to participate participate and Function effectively in
function effectively
effectively in team and function function team work projects to
in team work
work projects to effectively in team effectively in meet objectives
projects to meet
meet objectives work projects to meet team work
objectives
objectives projects to meet
objectives

25
 Shows limited and Demonstrates
MEEN5C: Ability Fails to less than adequate satisfactory
Communicates properly
to communicate communicate ability to ability to
and effectively with team
effectively with effectively with communicate communicate
members
team members team members effectively with team effectively with
members team members

Indicate the extent to which you agree with the above statement, using a scale of
1-4 (1=None; 2=Low; 3=Moderate; 4=High)
# Name Criteria Criteria Criteria Criteria
(MEEN4A) (MEEN5A) (MEEN5B) (MEEN5C)
1 Abdulaziz Alwakeel 4 4 4 4
2 Omar Albuainain 4 4 4 4
3 Ibrahim Almajed 4 4 4 4
4 Abdullah Almessairei 4 4 4 4
5 Abdullah Almazyad 4 4 4 4

Comments on individual members

Name Comments
Abdulaziz Alwakeel

Omar Albuainain

Ibrahim Almajed

Abdullah Almessairei

Abdullah Almazyad

26
Appendix B: Engineering Standards

Property Value
Density 2.7 g/cm3

Element Maximum Unless Range is Specified

Silicon 0.40 - 0.8
Iron 0.7
Copper 0.15 - 0.40
Manganese 0.8 - 1.2
Magnesium 0.8 - 1.2
Chromium 0.04 - 0.35
Zinc 0.25
Titanium 0.15
Others Each 0.05
Others Total 0.15
Aluminum Balance

Properties Value
Ultimate Tensile Strength 310 MPa
Tensile Yield Strength 276 MPa
Elongation at Break 12%
Hardness, Brinell 95
Modules of Elasticity 68.9 GPa

Properties Value
Melting temperature (Tm) 585 °C (1,085 °F)
Thermal conductivity (k) 151–202 W/(m·K)
Linear thermal expansion coefficient (α) 2.32×10−5 K−1
Specific heat capacity (c) 897 J/(kg·K)

27
Appendix C: CAD drawings and Bill of Materials

28
29
30
31
Appendix D: Datasheets

Zone Drag Force (N) Drag Coefficient

pressure 94.478035 0.064744726

Viscous 1.5699013 0.0010758356

Total 96.047936 0.065820561

V (km/h) CD FD (N)

10 5.28E-06 0.0001205

20 0.000401 0.0365691

40 0.000573 0.2090237

60 0.0006906 0.5668918

80 0.0014945 2.1807786

Component Details

Body Aluminum 6061-T6

Type: Monocrystalline
Solar Panel Front cover: Tempered Glass
Frame material: Anodized aluminum alloy

Glass Laminated glass

32