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The objective of the study outlined in this paper was to optimize the performance of a 600cc four-cylinder FSAE engine through the use of one-dimensional simulation. The first step in this process was to validate a baseline model of the engine in its stock, unrestricted format. This was achieved through the use of crank-angle-resolved and cycle-averaged test data. The in-cylinder pressure history was also analyzed to provide combustion and friction data specific to this engine. This process significantly improved the correlation of the model with the test data and it was subsequently used to simulate and optimize the configuration of the engine planned for use in the 2008 FSAE competition. The process of validating the model, together with the specification of the subsequent optimized engine, are presented.

This work details the development of a lap time simulation (LTS) tool for use by Queen’s University Belfast in the Formula Student UK competition. The tool provides an adaptable, user-friendly virtual test environment for the development of the team’s first electric vehicle. A vehicle model was created within Simulink, and a series of events simulated to generate the performance envelope of the car in the form of maximum combined lateral/longitudinal accelerations against velocity (ggv diagram). A four-wheeled vehicle including load transfer was modelled, capturing shifts in traction between each tire, which can influence performance in vehicles where the total tractive power is split between individual wheel motors. The acceleration limits in the ggv diagram were used to simulate the acceleration and endurance events at Formula Student. These events were simulated using a MATLAB code considering a point mass, quasi-steady state model with a perfect driver.