FORUMula1.com - F1 Forum

[1Lemon]

Aside from the possibility of a car submarining under another one in an impact, Newey is concerned about the batteries:

"It was done on safety grounds but I am not sure why putting a battery underneath a fuel tank is safer than putting it behind the engine," said Newey.

"I think it is unchartered territory. Boeing had an absolute nightmare with the batteries on their Dreamliner and had to ground the plane for a long time while they sorted it out.

"These batteries can suffer thermal runaway through impact, through causes that are difficult to predict and once they go into that with such a big battery pack then it is very difficult to control that fire.

"It is probably push it in the pitlane and watch it burn frankly.

"I don't think it is a driver safety concern because you know about it in a reasonable amount of time, but it is still a danger.

"I think also the voltages now are very high. Large DC voltages are very dangerous, and much more dangerous than an AC voltage, so for the whole of the pitlane safety is a big challenge with these cars."

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/112318

[Jabberwocky]

As an electronics engineer I would agree with what he says. DC (Direct Current) voltages are bad, (AC or alternating current, like the mains power to yours house) if you get an electric shock from AC your muscles will contract and release so you can move away from the source. Where as DC will make you muscle a contract or release. If they contract around the electrical source you ain't going to let go. You would have to break your own fingers to release the grip (assuming you can not switch the power off)

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[cheekybru]

this is such a big worry after we have seen issues with so called "Live cars" with the old kers, it looks like a disaster waiting to happen Presume we will never see an F1 car turn a wheel in anger in the rain again either hoping im wrong and doom mongering here

[1Lemon]

:( this is such a big worry after we have seen issues with so called "Live cars" with the old kers, it looks like a disaster waiting to happen Presume we will never see an F1 car turn a wheel in anger in the rain again either hoping im wrong and doom mongering here

I don't think the cars are going to short circuit If Formula E can vent that problem, F1 can too.

[What's Burning?]

Interesting that the concern comes from the team for whom KERS has been their Achilles's heel.

[Jabberwocky]

I would imagine (I have not looked into if it is done in F1) but from working on high voltage equipment I would imagine that there is a safety system in place that if the system detects anything wrong it would discharge the batteries.

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[CookinFlat6]

Its all about the packaging and design. If you really want to make the battery safe even in the event of fire then you insulate and shield it with something substantial (heavy), same for the fuel tank.
Its when you start putting glory before the safety of your drivers by cutting corners with tight packaging and skimping on heavy protection that you start having recurring Kers issues and your cars catch fire constantly

I guess thats why Newey is worried, he knows he could electrocute his drivers this time round in his quest for glory

[Jabberwocky]

As long as they do not touch the car and ground at the same time it should be ok. The problem would be a marshal or mechanic getting a zap. The driver in the car is like a bird sitting on a power line.

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