- Joined
- Jun 19, 2001
- Messages
- 1,354
- Location
- Pasadena Ca.
Definition of Acceleration. This is both impressive and educational.
* One Top Fuel dragster 500 cubic inch Hemi engine makes more
horsepower than the first 4 rows of NASCARS at the Daytona 500.
* Under full throttle, a dragster engine consumes 1-1/2 gallons of
nitro methane per second; a fully loaded 747 consumes jet fuel at the
same rate with 25% less energy being produced.
* A stock Dodge Hemi V8 engine cannot produce enough power to drive
the dragster's supercharger.
* With 3,000 CFM of air being rammed in by the supercharger on
overdrive, the fuel mixture is compressed into a near-solid form
before ignition. Cylinders run on the verge of hydraulic lock at full
throttle.
* At the stoichiometric (stoichiometry: methodology and technology by
which quantities of reactants and products in chemical reactions are
determined) 1.7:1 air/fuel mixture for nitro methane, the flame front
temperature measures 7,050 deg F.
* Nitro methane burns yellow. The spectacular white flame seen above
the stacks at night is raw burning hydrogen, dissociated from
atmospheric water vapor by the searing exhaust gases.
* Dual magnetos supply 44 amps to each spark plug. This is the output
of an arc welder in each cylinder.
* Spark plug electrodes are totally consumed during a pass. After
halfway, the engine is dieseling from compression, plus the glow of
exhaust valves at 1,400 degrees F. The engine can only be shut down by
cutting the fuel flow.
* If spark momentarily fails early in the run, unburned nitro builds
up in the affected cylinders and then explodes with sufficient force to
blow cylinder heads off the block in pieces or split the block in half.
* In order to exceed 300 mph in 4.5 seconds, dragsters must accelerate
an average of over 4G's. In order to reach 200 mph (well before
half-track), the launch acceleration approaches 8G's.
* Dragsters reach over 300 miles per hour before you have completed
reading this sentence.
* Top Fuel engines turn approximately 540 revolutions from light to
light!
* Including the burnout, the engine must only survive 900 revolutions
under load.
* The redline is actually quite high at 9,500 rpm.
* Assuming all the equipment is paid off, the crew worked for free, and
for once NOTHING BLOWS UP, each run costs an estimated $1,000.00 per
second.
* The current Top Fuel dragster elapsed time record is 4.441 seconds
for the quarter mile (10/05/03, Tony Schumacher). The top speed record
is 333.00 mph. (533 km/h) as measured over the last 66' of the run
(09/28/03 Doug Kalitta).
--------------------------------------
Putting all of this into perspective:
--------------------------------------
You are driving the average $140,000 Lingenfelter "twin-turbo" powered
Corvette Z06. Over a mile up the road, a Top Fuel dragster is staged
and ready to launch down a quarter mile strip as you pass. You have
the advantage of a flying start. You run the 'Vette hard up through the
gears nd blast across the starting line and past the dragster at an
honest 200 mph. The 'tree' goes green for both of you at that moment.
The dragster launches and starts after you. You keep your foot down
hard, but you hear an incredibly brutal whine that sears youreardrums
and within 3 seconds, the dragster catches and passes you. He beats
you to the finish line, a quarter mile away from where you just passed
him.
Think about it, from a standing start, the dragster had spotted you 200
mph and not only caught, but nearly blasted you off the road when he
passed you within a mere 1,320 foot long race course.... and that my
friend, is ACCELERATION!
Joe
* One Top Fuel dragster 500 cubic inch Hemi engine makes more
horsepower than the first 4 rows of NASCARS at the Daytona 500.
* Under full throttle, a dragster engine consumes 1-1/2 gallons of
nitro methane per second; a fully loaded 747 consumes jet fuel at the
same rate with 25% less energy being produced.
* A stock Dodge Hemi V8 engine cannot produce enough power to drive
the dragster's supercharger.
* With 3,000 CFM of air being rammed in by the supercharger on
overdrive, the fuel mixture is compressed into a near-solid form
before ignition. Cylinders run on the verge of hydraulic lock at full
throttle.
* At the stoichiometric (stoichiometry: methodology and technology by
which quantities of reactants and products in chemical reactions are
determined) 1.7:1 air/fuel mixture for nitro methane, the flame front
temperature measures 7,050 deg F.
* Nitro methane burns yellow. The spectacular white flame seen above
the stacks at night is raw burning hydrogen, dissociated from
atmospheric water vapor by the searing exhaust gases.
* Dual magnetos supply 44 amps to each spark plug. This is the output
of an arc welder in each cylinder.
* Spark plug electrodes are totally consumed during a pass. After
halfway, the engine is dieseling from compression, plus the glow of
exhaust valves at 1,400 degrees F. The engine can only be shut down by
cutting the fuel flow.
* If spark momentarily fails early in the run, unburned nitro builds
up in the affected cylinders and then explodes with sufficient force to
blow cylinder heads off the block in pieces or split the block in half.
* In order to exceed 300 mph in 4.5 seconds, dragsters must accelerate
an average of over 4G's. In order to reach 200 mph (well before
half-track), the launch acceleration approaches 8G's.
* Dragsters reach over 300 miles per hour before you have completed
reading this sentence.
* Top Fuel engines turn approximately 540 revolutions from light to
light!
* Including the burnout, the engine must only survive 900 revolutions
under load.
* The redline is actually quite high at 9,500 rpm.
* Assuming all the equipment is paid off, the crew worked for free, and
for once NOTHING BLOWS UP, each run costs an estimated $1,000.00 per
second.
* The current Top Fuel dragster elapsed time record is 4.441 seconds
for the quarter mile (10/05/03, Tony Schumacher). The top speed record
is 333.00 mph. (533 km/h) as measured over the last 66' of the run
(09/28/03 Doug Kalitta).
--------------------------------------
Putting all of this into perspective:
--------------------------------------
You are driving the average $140,000 Lingenfelter "twin-turbo" powered
Corvette Z06. Over a mile up the road, a Top Fuel dragster is staged
and ready to launch down a quarter mile strip as you pass. You have
the advantage of a flying start. You run the 'Vette hard up through the
gears nd blast across the starting line and past the dragster at an
honest 200 mph. The 'tree' goes green for both of you at that moment.
The dragster launches and starts after you. You keep your foot down
hard, but you hear an incredibly brutal whine that sears youreardrums
and within 3 seconds, the dragster catches and passes you. He beats
you to the finish line, a quarter mile away from where you just passed
him.
Think about it, from a standing start, the dragster had spotted you 200
mph and not only caught, but nearly blasted you off the road when he
passed you within a mere 1,320 foot long race course.... and that my
friend, is ACCELERATION!
Joe
