The meaning of acceleration

[efnfast]

Very cool

#yiv1508114218 .yiv1508114218ExternalClass P { }



Here's one for you engineering guys...and a good read!

For those who love numbers, engineers, speed freaks and those who think they have gone too fast at one time or another. This puts Corvette performance in perspective. This article mentions Lingenfelter twin turbo powered Z06.


Read this thru slowly and try to comprehend the amount of force produced in just under 4 seconds! The last paragraph puts it all into perspective !


There are no rockets or airplanes built by any government in the world that can accelerate from a standing start as fast as a Top Fuel Dragster or Funny Car…..and that includes any aircraft launched by a catapult from an aircraft carrier. Nothing can compare…..






DEFINITION OF ACCELERATION

One top fuel dragster 500 cubic inch Hemi engine makes more horsepower than the first 4 rows of stock cars at the Daytona 500.

It takes just 15/100ths (0.15) of a second for all 6,000+ horsepower (some believe 8,000 HP is more realistic - there are no dynomometers capable of measuring) of an NHRA Top Fuel dragster engine to reach the rear wheels.

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 of nitro methane, the flame front temperature measures 7,050 deg F. (Oxy-acetylene on "cut" is 6,300)

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 one pass. After halfway, the engine is dieseling from compression, plus the glow of exhaust valves at 1,400 deg 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 estimate $1,000.00 per second.

The current top fuel dragster elapsed time record is 4.428 seconds for the quarter mile (11/12/06, Tony Schumacher, at Pomona , CA ). The top speed record is 336.15 mph as measured over the last 66' of the run (05/25/05 Tony Schumacher, at Hebron , OH ).

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 and blast across the starting line and pass the dragster at an honest 200 mph. The 'tree' goes green for both of you at that instant.

The dragster launches and starts after you. You keep your foot down hard, but you hear an incredibly brutal whine that sears your eardrums 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!

[MikeGolf]

They run 1000 feet now. The best part I think is they totally rebuild each engine and clutch in less than 75 minutes per round. Going to the 4 wide Nationals in 2 weeks!

[jimmy b.]

Originally Posted by MikeGolf

They run 1000 feet now. The best part I think is they totally rebuild each engine and clutch in less than 75 minutes per round. Going to the 4 wide Nationals in 2 weeks!

I saw them race on TV 4 wide last year and it looked so wild, just can't imagine
seeing it in person. You have to let us know how you liked it when you get back
and how LOUD it has to be...jimmy

[USAFPILOT]

They should have lengthened the race instead of shortening it. I wanted to see them hit 400MPH. I also think that article doesn't consider the Space Shuttle in the comparison. Later on in the flight the SS acceleration wipes the floor with the Top Fuel dragster. I wonder how fast a TF Dragster could accelerate vertically? Acceleration is also measured when changing directions. So, an F-15 pulling 9G's is out accelerating a TF dragster the moment a pilot pulls on the stick.

[efnfast]

Didn't know they shortened the run to 1000'. I was just fasinated with the article, AFR at 1.7:1, almost hydrolocking the cylinders. I didn't realize they where dieseling at the end of the run. Pretty neat stuff.

[MikeGolf]

Originally Posted by jimmy b.

I saw them race on TV 4 wide last year and it looked so wild, just can't imagine
seeing it in person. You have to let us know how you liked it when you get back
and how LOUD it has to be...jimmy

They are loud x2,the problem is getting all 4 to run at the same time. Most of the time 1 or 2 will have some sort of trouble. I'm old enough and been around too long to be one of those crazies that hang on the fence and eat Nitro. Been there done there and have the T-shirt. My seat is in the top row just behind the christmas tree where all the action is. I prefer to watch the little guys run more than the big guys,they are the heart and soul of drag racing.
The acceleration maybe great BUT they didn't say anything about the deacceleration that they go though. Like carrier pilots. It's not the fall that kills you it's the sudden stop.

[jimmy b.]

I won't lie I'm one of those crazies. I might be a little old to be hanging on the
fence but I like it all, the noise , the burnouts , the smell of nitro , stock cars
to jet cars. And Mike your right about the "little guys" being the heart and soul,
without them we wouldn't have guys like Garlits, Grumpy Jenkins, Sox and Martin
just to name a few. I know there are a ton more. Just glad they made this sport
as great as it still is. I remember watching Joe Amato racing his 40 chevy coupe
at Island Dragway, Great Meadows NJ in the early 70's and look what a "big guy"
he became.

Have a good time at Charlotte and wear your ZR-1 T-shirt I'll be watching...
...jimmy

[ZRapid-1]

Dragsters are Kings Of The Sport.

Some more fun facts:
The corvette traveling 200 MPH over the entire 1/4 mile covers it in 4.5 seconds.

Dragster times:
0-60 MPH: 0.5 sec.
0-100 MPH: 0.8 sec.
0-200 MPH: 2.5 sec.

[rhipsher]

The little guy.
http://m.wimp.com/rearview/