Defenition of Acceleration!!!
Thread Starter
Evolving Member
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 130
Likes: 0
From: Left Coast
Defenition of Acceleration!!!
This is a repost from another forum, but it's f**ckin awesome.
Definition of Acceleration.
* 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 and 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 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!
__________________
No Boost for you !
Definition of Acceleration.
* 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 and 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 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!
__________________
No Boost for you !
If you haven't seen, or for that matter HEARD a top fuel run with two guys side by side, you don't know what you are missing. That is why I love drag racing so much. Just raw power!
Trending Topics
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
SparkTech
Drag Racing
10
Sep 15, 2012 11:13 AM
