How F1 Cars use Energy

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I wanted to share the little model I keep in my head of discrete little blocks of energy being shared about. #Formula1 #F1
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Patreon: / chainbearf1
Twitter: / chainbear
Music: "Chess Moves" by Telegrams
open.spotify.com/artist/0grDI...

[@SM-tq6om]

I don’t know about you, Mr. Chainbear, but I’m all for a nuclear powered formula one car

[@Cowmilker98]

Fusion propulsion next pls

[@alityogo9527]

just use Mr.Fusion Power Plant like Doc Brown DeLorean..

[@TheScorpionStrike]

Could make for an interesting endurance challenge. Which will last longer: three uranium fuel pellets or the driver?

[@NicholasTheKing]

Nah. I was all for gas but given the current situation we might need to revert to coal-powered engines.

[@CIinbox]

Red flags could last thousands of years!

[@sbef]

I already knew the concepts explained in this video, yet I watched it anyway because the animations and explanation is just excellent. Really well done!

[@Shaun.Stephens]

Same. Stuart does do a good job of making complex things more understandable and he did this well here.

[@allanfagnercs]

Hey Stuart! I love how approachable tour videos are. Have you ever considered creating more hardcore videos? I would love to watch a dip dive into how the energy conversion works in detail in an F1 car. Cheers

[@alessiorappa2081]

I doubt he got the expertise. He's not an engineer.

[@alessiorappa2081]

@noahbpm Exactly, it's a turbine. That's how it works.

[@Bluelink13]

@noahbpm IIRC the MGUH is essentially a turbine in the exaust of the combustion unit that turns as exaust gas runs through it

[@MikaTuukkanen]

@@Bluelink13 That is interesting. Without knowing any details of the method I would have thought that there would be some kind of a heat exchanger.

[@Bluelink13]

@@MikaTuukkanen A heat exchanger would really just add an extra step. No need to heat a liquid into a gas when the engine itself already provides it.

[@davidreichert9392]

I'm an engineer and already knew all this, but I still feel like I've learned something watching this video. Well done!

[@craftedworkshop]

Excellent video! Can't wait to see F1, and all of motorsport for that matter, become more efficient over the coming years.

[@AshishDesai444]

I like how you used the redbull blown diffuser in the opening logo music 👍🏼

[@jonsykes9705]

Fantastic breakdown as always. I'm a big fan of the way you make these concepts so accessible and approachable. Thanks for all your hard work in doing these types of videos

You were the first F1 channel that I subscribed to maybe 2-3 years ago, and last year's final was the first race I've seen in maybe 12-15 years. Really enjoy your easy to follow content, only wish you uploaded a bit more!

[@yahgent]

Glad to hear! Though the time, quality, and research that takes making his videos, I think an upload a week is perfectly adequate.

[@bjdmcvxd7542]

This is the first time I've seen one of my GCSE physics lessons actually put into practice. Brillaint explanation 👏👏

[@glokta1]

When you study electromagnetism in-depth later in IB or A-Levels, look up the MGU-K video

I love how concise your visualizations are. Great work!

[@dshaprin]

1:09 The mass is a property of the energy. The matter has energy, that is why it has mass.

[@hiigara2085]

The simplicity of presentation is amazing. I learned something. 🙏

[@blanckq]

Fascinated by the Gen 3 FE systems and mechanics but man I wish they looked a bit more open-wheel like the formula series'.

[@F1ll1nTh3Blanks]

The new cars still look gimmicky and childish to me but the good news for you is that the wheels are open again. No rear wing though. Formula E in a nutshell, gives with one, takes with the other.

[@rexthewolf3149]

The entire point of formula e is that it’s different. Why would they emulate other open wheels series. I don’t get your mind set

[@burakeren]

Open wheels are inefficient though, so its understandable. Personally i like their looks.

[@heretustay]

i love the gen 2 FE cars. they looked way cooler than the out-going F1 cars from last year imo ('22 spec F1 takes the cake over both tho)

[@wiegraf9009]

@@F1ll1nTh3Blanks They don't use any significant downforce generated by parts that could break off so the drivers are encouraged to race aggressively. I think it pays off with exciting races, especially now that they've improved the quali rules this year.

[@rom.c.40]

Chainbear, we have kettles here in the USA 😂

[@wiegraf9009]

Americans have a reputation for boiling water on the stove or in a microwave, which is seen as bizzare alien behaviour in the UK 😅

[@chainbear]

Good luck with your voltage!

[@carlob2409]

was expecting an AUS breakdown but this works too! CB is by far the best f1 content in all of youtube

[@Bengt.Lueers]

Awesome visuals!

[@RottenMuLoT]

I'm sorry to say that but... This video is absolutely awesome! It is so intuitive. We kind of all have that knowledge unconsciously in our mind but you basically gave life to a pretty complex abstract model. A model that can help people, for example, to program a racing videogame or help them understand their hybrid car challenges, etc. Kudos to you!

[@omarfoster5763]

These kind of videos are why I first started following you. They are very helpful thanks

[@nutellabrah6718]

Nice simple explanation thank you I always vaguely wondered about the details of this.

[@Ginbaubabe]

Brilliant video! Best explanation for conservation of energy and also how the F1 hybrid system works

[@juanvillanueva7772]

I can say I finally understand how the electrics on a F1 car works, such a plane and easy explanation, thx u very much!!

[@jenshaglof8180]

I think your channel is the best KZbin channel on F1. I always feel that your videos explain things the best!

[@adityapandey1329]

Lovely video Chainbear👌👏

[@lovefrogsalot]

Man that intro music is soo damn good, and how it transitions to background music, amazing

[@abhijithraj3047]

Love these explainer videos and hoping for more

[@nvrndingsmmr]

Amazing video, thank you Chainbear!

[@tamingthejungleanallotment5486]

Great video, as usual! I bet you get lots of views right to the end. That music has a great vibe.

[@timosullivan7283]

Long time viewer, first time commenter. This video is brilliant. I teach energy transformations with my year 10 science class. I know some of them are into motor racing so they'll love this. Much more interesting than pendulums and bouncing balls.

[@glokta1]

Thank you, you're doing what I wish my teachers did when I was first taught thermodynamics

[@andre_star7776]

Next step should be a giant fan at the back of the car. Clean and smooth

[@eladrio2311]

Awesome video. As usual!

[@karki5376]

Another interesting and informative video!

[@TomasPiliponis]

That is a masterpiece of educational content. Thank you!

[@icq4ever]

Absolute Brilliant Video.

[@krisgrant4687]

Oh i cannot wait to get home and catch up lol. Love it

[@niklasxl]

i hope f1 would put the mgu-k on the front axle so that the cars could recover more energy when slowing down :D this would of course make the cars all wheel drive and the front axle a bit more complex

[@mvargass]

This will be one of the best ways to make the cars more efficient but may make them too heavy. I have to say allow the teams to use and much as they want the MGU-K as much as they want and have as big of a battery as they want. Also integrate the system into the brake pedal just like an electric car. In other words let the teams figured out how they want to use the hybrid system.

[@niklasxl]

@@mvargass yeah i also think the mgu-k should be a lot more free which could lead to some interesting new tech :D and yeah it would be interesting to see what they come up with considering the weight

[@alejogonzalez4997]

weird idea, put a generator inisde the front wheels to use as a brake

[@UncleKennysPlace]

@@alejogonzalez4997 Already been done.

[@niklasxl]

@@alejogonzalez4997 i think the unsprung mass would be to large for good performance

[@travellingtheworld7447]

Great explanation, when it comes to F1 future, I believe sustainable fuel will play a major role.

[@MarioDallaRiva]

Bravo! 👏🏻👏🏻 dude.

[@MajesticDemonLord]

I was about to comment about Mass and Energy, but then you came in with the side-note. Be still my Physics heart.

This is not a KZbin Video, it's a masterclass, it's a force of nature about nature of... force? Thank you, professor Chainbear for take our mind away from the blackhole! Peace and kers for everyone!

[@ohnonomorenames]

I can't wait to see motor/generators on the front wheels. 4WD in F1 yes please

[@TedMan55]

4WD F1 will be a tragedy, it’ll take away a lot of of the skill necessary and wet races will no longer be exciting

[@ohnonomorenames]

@@TedMan55 WRC shows that 4WD doesn't mean full traction all the time. Front/rear balance when getting on the power out of a corner. Controlling wear on the front tires. Adjusting to front wheels that are fully electric driven while the rears are a combination. How much do you push for front down force even in low speed corners so you can maximize your drive out. Oh and the fuel tank gets smaller cause during breaking most of the energy is going through the front wheels.

[@NeoJackBauer]

Nice video

[@roryoconnor4989]

Aramco has exited the chat

[@fstasfck300]

There's a new article on the f1 website mentioning some theories about the bouncing related to engine+gearbox packaging and the resulting shape of the car. It seems like there are 2 different aero philosophies. It would be nice if you could put a video further explaining the thing ..

[@iNeuker]

CB: "Im a fan of simplified models", "I'm gonna keep this simple" Me: Oh i guess hes just gonna brush over some details and round the numbers up and such CB: This is a block of energy Me: the WHAT now?

[@botecof1]

Awesome content! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

[@T_Mo271]

Nice graphical presentation.

[@50gary]

I'm all in on this concept of an internal combustion engine being the sole source of power for the F1 car of the future. Think about it, by increasing the level of ICE power unit (we'll call it the engine) by even an additional 10% the modern F1 car could eliminate the parasitic (very heavy and difficult to package) energy storage unit. (we'll call that the battery) The electric motor is also only used part time and is also heavy and again a packaging problem, thus these two major items cause the car to grow in size and weight by massive amounts. During the course of a typical F1 race as the car burns off the stored liquid energy (we'll call that gasoline) the car becomes lighter as the race progresses and therefore much faster when it counts for the win at the end of the race. (fastest laps are virtually always set towards the closing laps of the race). Now that's brilliant, The "Master of the Obvious"

[@Alex-tx9jk]

just wished school could explain things this well and this clear

[@mikebutler9332]

One small detail, it isn't the breaking of the chemical bonds that releases energy during combustion. That step actually takes energy. What it does do is it frees carbon and hydrogen, both of which want to form more stable molecules like CO2 and H20 with oxygen in the air. Before that can happen, the atoms have to get to a lower energy state, and so they release energy to do so. Hydrogen, Carbon and Oxygen shedding energy to form H20, CO2, and so on is where the the energy from combustion comes from.

[@ShoDaBrave]

He's back!!!!!!

[@wayne_vt]

I am just now realizing why each MGU has a K or H designation. Ha, great video!

[@reviresco2073]

2:24 - minor correction here from a chemistry nerd. The energy released doesn't come from the breaking of bonds (this in fact takes emergy), but from the forming of new, stronger bonds in the combustion products (mostly CO2). Love the channel and all your work ♥️

[@Ben-go1iq]

Then we can also go into delta G and more , really would love him to get experts in for 45min deep dive topics

[@rektiumstuff3245]

well it's the extra space that said separation requires that drives the increase in pressure that drives the pistons. no? or is reaction just shooting shit atoms and shit everywhere?

[@reviresco2073]

@@rektiumstuff3245 it's more elemental than that. It's an essential rule of chemistry that breaking bonds requires energy and making bonds releases it. A critical but often misunderstood aspect of chemistry.

[@rektiumstuff3245]

@@reviresco2073 well yeah I'm not disagreeing with that but don't the gases created by burning gasoline have a higher volume? Because the heat energy that gets created from forming bonds doesn't propel the car.

[@gingerninja879]

Would love these vids to be more detailed. Especially I'd love to hear how the MGU-H generates electricity efficiently as this has seen very little coverage.

[@cdjamse3944]

Please bring back the og intro it was amazing

[@hubertkam7647]

Did show up in my subscription

[@illumitabris]

Contrary to popular belief, kettles do exist in the USA and is not some foreign concept like windows that open multiple ways.

[@haxthehax]

Babe wake up new Chain Bear upload

[@benmerison2959]

@2.19 it actually takes energy to break the bonds in the hydrocarbon fuel. It's the making of new bonds in the products of carbon dioxide and water vapour that releases the energy to drive the car

[@future62]

It's crazy to me that hybrids are not the standard for road cars. Maybe my time with bikes has made me more sensitive to things like kinetic energy and momentum. But a little part of me dies every time I brake, knowing that on top of the inherent inefficiencies of my engine that I'm just throwing energy away. Hopefully F1 can continue to inform and promote tech around efficiency.

[@henrymccoy2306]

9:15 technically the battery will be effectively 100/(100-40) times larger or 66% larger. 40% of total future energy means its 40% of the "larger" battery so that 40% has more capacity than the current batteries 40%

[@mzatzk5135]

Sharp thinking!

[@keisuketakahasi4584]

2014: we need more efficency, energy recovery is the way to go! 2026: nah we ditch the mgu-h so vw can join

[@junsengjs]

Unfortunately, despite the amazing efficiency provided by the MGU-H, the MGU-H is still a very, very complex AND expensive technology that is not practical for anything that isn't a multi-million dollar race car like an F1 car. There is no practical value for the technology outside of F1(or racing in general). For the engine manufacturers(who are also car manufacturers), money and effort spent on the MGU-H is money that they pretty much just threw into F1 alone. They can't use what they learned in making the MGU-H to improve their road cars, for instance. Putting the expensive MGU-H into road cars will only bump up the cost of a regular road car. And that's on the assumption that the average 100~ horsepower road car can even get the MGU-H to work as well as it does in F1.

[@EvanLoxley]

4:30 An engineering professor in college always reminded us that a kilowatt was smaller than a horsepower because "You can't have three quarters of a horse!" Lol

[@SixxWolfZx]

Hey Chain Bear, you should consider making some videos on GT series cars.

[@JohnSmithShields]

Good to see Stuart looking after the US viewers.

[@vcp2077]

All of us people outside US have to look out for such things. After all we don't measure things in freedom units

[@narre71]

this should be used for teaching mechanics in school !

[@simplesimon755]

You lost me at "kettle". j/k Great video. I really enjoy videos that explain the inner workings of F1 machines. They add a deeper appreciation of the sport. Thanks!

[@XxRossTheGamerxX]

Thanks for the clarification. No one here in America has ever heard of this “kettle” contraption

[@StarTrekGeek47]

I'm waiting excitedly for your debrief on the chaotic confusing incredible show that was the Australian GP. The surprising DNFs and mistakes. The drama between the top three teams. Vettel's heart break. And the weird strategy from Williams.

[@yeetabix2752]

I did not know F1 cars were followed by small black holes! Explains the weird warping effect around the wings as all the air gets sucked in.

[@ThePulmentinum]

correct me if I'm wrong but MGU-H isn't essentially an electric motor connected to the turbocharger shaft? When you release the throttle it converts the kinetic energy of the rotating turbine+impeller assembly to electric energy to charge the battery, energy that would have been lost because the extra air pressure that would have met a close throttle valve and be expelled or recirculated via the blowoff valve. When you accelerate the electric motor can help the turbocharger spool up to minimize lag and act as some sort of electrically driven supercharger. Also some energy can be recovered once the turbocharger is fully spooled up and some gas would go through the wastegate valve. Also, does the MGU-H use the same battery of the MGU-K or is it another battery?

[@utetopia1620]

Your new intro reminds me of a song. I can't quite pick the song, but closest I can come to is Rammsteins Ausländer .

[@freelookmode9837]

I see new chainbear video, I click.

[@codycoyote6912]

Good graphics

[@keenheat3335]

i guess remote power transmission via tuned frequency solar cell and laser of specific wavelength could bypass the no-fuel regulation. Technically no fuel was exchange, only energy were exchange. Or race track with undercarriage induction charging road.

[@YourLoyalDeserter]

Worth mentioning mass efficiency, Joules/kg. If your aim was just producing the most power from the lowest weight, then none of the MGU-K and hybrid systems would be worth the extra weight compared to simply burning more fuel, as petrol is able to store an insane amount of power/kg compared to batteries.

[@szf4rniak367]

The saddest thing is that this video taught me more about kinetic and potential energy than 6 months of physics classes

[@ReaperUnreal]

0:45 Ah yes, an energon cube.

[@Zantrop64]

HOLY SHIT I didn't know fE will go awd this is pretty new for formula series, nice !

[@tomwallach]

The teams will only be allowed to use the front motor for braking. But there where made suggestions to do AWD drag-races, which eventually got abandoned.

[@Shadowed007]

Current F1 cars use very low energy density batteries 110 wh/kg but these batteries have high power density, since F1 plans to increase electrical output to 350kw from 2026, they would definitely need help of Solid electrolyte batteries to keep the weight down.

[@burningSHADOW42]

I hope that Formula 1 has the guts to go serial hybrid. So no mechanical connection between the combustion engine and the wheels. It would be the best way for them to use relevant in technological progess again and integrate more of their F1 tech into road going cars.

[@484berkshire]

Converting mechanical energy back to electrical then back to mechanical, when a direct mechanical route exists, is also a great way to throw energy into the "black hole". Completely defeats the point of moving towards more efficient powertrains.

[@burningSHADOW42]

@@484berkshire You forgott about the batteries. Just replacing the gearbox by a motor and generator unit would probably be a bit less efficient. (although the difference is not that high) But the ability to store energy changes the whole equation: Because now you don't need a combustion engine that can run at the maximum power you need during a lap anymore. You need an engine that can run at the average power over the whole race. The differences you make up with the batteries. This means the engine can get lighter and can run at the most efficient rpm/load. So in the end you have an engine that is lighter and more efficient. So going serial hybrid is actually going more efficient.

[@484berkshire]

@@burningSHADOW42 Except any weight savings you'd get from making the engine smaller and lighter would be more than offset by the correspondingly massive battery required to fill the power gaps. Or conversely, you could still use the same giant battery with the more powerful engine driving the wheels directly and end up with a much faster car. Plus, in a racing context, average power needed over a lap isn't much lower than peak power, since virtually all acceleration happens using peak power anyway, so any efficiency gains would be negligible, or actually negative when conversion efficiency is considered.

[@burningSHADOW42]

@@484berkshire The battery wouldn't be that much bigger, especially if what you say is true and the cars run at peak power most of the time. And bigger batteries are actually more weight efficient. For comparison: the current Formula e car have ~200MJ batteries that weigh 385kg. In Formula 1 the battery weighs between 20kg and 25kg and is allowed to store 4MJ. (The Race speculates that they have up to 5MJ battery size) Both cars weigh about the same at the start. So Formula e has about 40 times the electric energy on board. This means that the Formula E bettery has about 2 the MJ/kg that the F1 batteries have, so battery weight should not be that much of an issue. Especially since the Formula E battery is a spec part, so Formula 1 going down that road would actually help battery development. As for the engine weight: an engine that is optimised for efficiency at one specific rpm can be lighter and have reduced cooling needs. If you wanted to go completely bonkers you could allow (micro) gas turbines as power source which are much lighter and don't really require an external cooling system. Although good comparisons are hard to make as there are no good number for F1 engine power and some of the power (MGU-H) is created directly as electric energy.

[@petesam8095]

Dear ChainBear, I have a question: How are the overtaking rates for each race in the current season compare to the past?

[@shaytrueblueaussie]

Just a question about the guidelines, what do you mean by “backseating?”

[@ianbutland844]

If they are dropping the mgu-k will we not get turbo lag on the ICE again? Is the uprated energy storage supposed to offset this turbo lag?

[@djblc2201]

Regarding the F1 battery, is it fully charged manually prior to the start of the race ? Or starts from zero and then changed and used through the race like that ?

[@UncleKennysPlace]

They can charge it during the formation lap, if needed.

[@andrewroberts1526]

Physicist here - actually your original statement about energy is correct, no need for the caveat. Mass is just another form of energy. But you're right that it's 100% irrelevant for this discussion.

[@Appletank8]

Imagine a hybrid engine that uses braking energy to turn CO2 into fuel.

[@frederikbrandt424]

Your mom has a lot of mass

[@chainbear]

Yeah, physics background here too. I felt I had to say something to weed out the pedants but going into the whole mass-energy thing seemed too far even for that, and even further out of scope! Didn't even mention quantum tunneling lol

[@GuagoFruit]

Honestly formula e is gonna be pretty interesting, at least from a technological point, and also for electric 4wd racing. Their acceleration will be crazy.

[@Spike-sk7ql]

It's not just that the MGU-H is very expensive, but the manufacturers have came out and said that there is no road relevance in them. This is mostly because they are too expensive, but there's other issues in there too.

[@Ben-go1iq]

I want a F1 car powered by 300 kettles , don’t know how and the power loss would be immense but I want it

[@marcusburger1523]

More Formula e content please

[@official_.d3]

Although I knew all this, i just have to say this is the best explication video I’ve seen on this topic, great job

[@chrisjoy8398]

somewhere in near future we can see f1 use 90% e-tech and just 10% combustion engines just to produce sound and more sustainable racing

[@VirtualGobllim47]

Sound is also lost energy

[@nickkoenig8083]

What is the intro song from?

[@Kilgorio]

Wow

[@adam346]

the next major problem being solved at the highest levels is battery tech... if we cannot efficiently and repeatedly store that energy to be re-used... it is almost moot how efficient the energy becomes if we need to dig out 100 kilos of nickel to be trucked around the planet every few months per car because the battery needs replacing (this is hyperbole but you get the idea).

[@wiegraf9009]

Battery tech is definitely important but yeah the most important thing is for F1 to stop doing these ridiculously inefficient calendars with huge carbon emissions.

[@MrPoPoTe09]

Brilliant video mate, you're becoming a true scientific popularizer !

[@SIKMIKANIKO]

Mr. Chainbear, how can I contact you directly?

[@happygilmore8140]

Lol people in the US know what kettles are

[@WanJae42]

Yep. It's the thing you make kettle chips in.

[@darkstar223]

That black hole is called the earth

[@seseberre]

Why is the tire moving backwards?