How Mercedes solved their rear tire issue

Not if it was just a recessed groove vs an actual slot.

 

I have to disagree. The duct on the Benz is channeled so differently than any other team, and I'm still not seeing that same rear inner wheel treatment on other teams rear rims.

 

They all have openings that feed air to the wheel, look for the vents some way, you'll see them. Same principle, different executions. Try googling it, I'm pretty sure something will come up, I'm too lazy to highlight them again...I posted them up before somewhere.

Here's Ferrari's from awhile back:
http://scarbsf1.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/scoopless_FBD.jpg

 

I'm trying to come up with a reason they would have tape on the inside of the rim.
Everything that comes to mind is a liability or patch for poor engineering in the first place.

 

Ferrari left, Sauber center, Lotus right. All rear wheels. I suppose Ferrari may have a similar idea going but on a much smaller scale. I just cannot deduce why Merc would put 'tape' or some material on the inside of the rim and not a cut out as is conjectured. Still lots of debate on this. I love F1!
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It's tape. Why are they using tape? Beats me, best guess is it might be like that heat-retardant wrap that some folks put around their exhausts, so when mounting & dismounting the wheel doesn't fuse with the drum.

I ran it by a friend, who makes forged alloy wheels, at dinner last night and he said structurally if there was such a deep slot running the full circumference of the wheel, the strength of the metal would be severely compromised and would very unlikely be able to withstand the loads and stresses of a regular car let alone an F1 race car.

 

very interesting, thank you for asking him!

 

Just finished reading new posts on F1tech and read this:

From Tobias Gruner Auto Motor und Sport :
"Teams to seal the brakes and reduce heat transfer to the tires use special band made of rubber or Teflon. The elastic element is subjected to forces acting on the wheel while driving exactly filling the space between the hub and the rim. Most teams found the band on the hub, but Mercedes, for unknown reasons, yet I decided to put it on the rim."

 

I bet Merc found they could reduce temps further by placing the band on the inner rim instead? Thus reducing a greater amount of brake disc heat transfer to the rear tire. Makes sense, especially if they're doing everything they can to keep heat out of those tires.

 

I noticed Lotus painted the inside of the wheels with matt black finish...probably to diffuse the image from photos.

So, it would make sense to be a rubber ( not tape which would block) shield which probably covers tiny vented slots for the transfer of cool air inside the tires, while trapping heat in the brake area. I wouldn't be surprised if the vented slots under the rubber band were shaped like a cheese grater for greater air flow direction.

 

Update; pretty intersting
Mercedes Cross cut wheel rims | ScarbsF1.com

 

Anything that made a wheel rim heavier than it needed to be would never be used, thus the theory of a hollow double layered section never happened.
Pete

 

What if it weren't heavier because it was a double layer of carbon fiber? (Devil's Advocate)

 

Then a single layer of carbon fibre would be lighter ... and less unsprung weight.

Of course everything is a compromise ...
Pete