After a few conversations with Will @ M7 Tuning, he enlightened me on how to improve the already exceptional air flow through the DFIC.
If you look inside the inlet of the DFIC, you see a very flat "wall" the air from the SC smacks into...

After talking to Will, I learned that if the tubes had a radius for the air to hit before entering the core, the flow would be improved.
Makes sense to me, so I milled some 1/4" round rod in half and placed a piece on each tube on the inlet side...

On my way home from the shop, I noticed that the car felt smoother while under boost.

I also placed the half-round rod on the front face of the core as well...

 

Cool mod, how'd u attach them?

 

You're the man - I love how you figure this stuff out and make everything exactly how YOU want it. Would you say it helped HP or efficiency, or both?

mb

 

Thanks. I attached them with J-B Kwik Weld.

 

Very nice! I recall, I think, Dr O talking about doing this...

Probably a question for Will, but would this help upon exit (charged and ambient air) also?

Thanks for sharing.

Ah, with J-B, it ain't going anywhere!

 

Thanks Marc, we have to get a run going, man.

If anything, I think it definitely helped the efficiency. Having the air flow around a radius and into the core is definitely better for both the charge air as well as the ambient flow from the scoop.

 

Thanks Tony.
I spoke with Will about the outlet side, he told me that ideally you want something that would be similar to the back of an airplane wing. I haven't found anything like that yet.

 

Check with hobby shops that deal with R/C airplanes. May be able to find some teardrop shaped alluminum wing strut tubing. Cut off the round edge, and voila!

 

Excellent suggestion! Thanks. I'll check that out.

 

Great idea This would work for the top of the stock IC as well !!

 

For a traditional top-mount, not really, I would think. This is beneficial for direct, fast moving air ramming into a blunt surface. With a stock, or stock-like IC, the air builds pressure above, and gets forced downward through the core. I can't imagine these helping that much, if at all with that style IC...

 

ARRRRRGGGG!!!!...you beat me to it

Brilliant

 

so what you waiting for Sid? you still have some time before tomorrow comes!! lol J/K we are up late on the 16 deg MI night...brrrrrr. i should go for a drive...feel the power.

 

Joaquin......

Call me in the morning...OK

And as we don't have the best intercooler already.

I have another card up my sleeve, to cool this baby even more and it's a dusey. Let you all know very soon

Peter
M7 Tuning
562-608-8123

 

Strictly out of curiosity, seeing as I'm a cooper owner, but is round better than a wedge?

 

I think Will would be able to elaborate on that better than me. As I understand it, what I am trying to do is simulate the shape of an airplane wing. Smooth and round in the front, coming down to a point in the rear.

 

I felt the power this morning on the way to work...14 degrees.

 

Actually you want something like this for a horizontal mount IC. While the pic is poor - rather than smooth the edge is sharp cutting incoming air and directing down. Instead of 1 large diverter I added a series of small mini diverters when i was running a horizontal IC.

 

here is a better pic - i did a post a whiole back on my mini diverters

 

I remember that, very nice.
That would definitely work better than half-rounds for a factory style top mount.

 

Maybe a wedge shape here. Take a piece of sq. stock and split from opposite corners? Don't think you'll need much of a run off for air to merge together without the turbulances from the flat edge.
BTW. nice work.

 

I think the question really revolves around how much heat transfer occurs from the flat, upstream "bar" section of the IC relative to heat transfer from the fins and the other parts of the IC. In the case of the DFIC, it seems obvious that the upstream "bar" is a small amount of the overall surface area exposed to cold air, and therefore it is probably well worth decreasing heat transfer a bit on the bars by glueing on metal half-round to gain some flow thru the core.

For a traditional IC that has a larger surface area of "bar" facing the air flow, the improvement would admittedly be less than for the DFIC, since the bar-top plays a larger role in heat transfer. However, the fin surface area in the traditional IC probably still far outweighs the bar-top surface area, and so gaining flow thru the core will likely improve overall IC heat transfer.

Air flow thru either the DFIC or top-mount depends on the same things: delta P across the IC, and resistance to flow thru the IC. These are often discussed for the internal flow, buth they apply equally well to the outside flow. Adding half-round to the bars falls into the category of lowering resistance to ambient air flow thru the IC (for either type), whereas increasing the scoop size would be an example on increasing the pressure drop (for either type).

 

Thanks Joel. After a little thought, you're saying split the square in half diagonally, right? Unfortunately, I don't have the means to do that. I would have to mill it off like I did the round rod.

 

Yes Jaoquin, cut a square diagonally. Or maybe take your half rounds and mill some flats to aproximate desired shape. I don't think you actually need a true sharpe point, just relaxing the edge should help. You're just trying to break up the turbulence there.

 

Jaochin: Darn it--I sketched this mod when I got my DFIC last year--but the kudos always goes to he/she who brings it market first (no Alta-nertive for me!)
ANyway--better to be second cab off the rank than third, or fourth, so I got the airfoil sections from the hobby store this morning, and will put them on my DFIC when I remove it to install the thermal blanket.
Good one, my man!! Nice work--since I will be using different material, we can compare notes.
btw, my IC efficiency measurements are coming along really nicely. I've finally got 4 probes now, and really, it's the delta between the air in the airbox and the air in the intake manifold that really counts. Pretty constant +20 in traffic and +10 on the freeway. Airbox temps are never more than +2F of ambient thanks to the FAD!

cheers,