Definition of acceleration
03-17-2009, 08:56 AM
#1
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Definition of acceleration
Fun Read
"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.
Under full throttle, a dragster engine consumes 1 ½ 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 degrees 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 essentially 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.
The engine’s 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 cost an estimated $1,000 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 (533km/h) as measured over the last 66’ of the run (9/28/03, Doug Kalitta).
You are driving the average $140,000 Lingerfelter “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
200mph. 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 you, but nearly blasted you off the road when he passed you within a mere 1,320 foot long race course.
THAT, FOLKS IS ACCELERATION. "
"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.
Under full throttle, a dragster engine consumes 1 ½ 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 degrees 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 essentially 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.
The engine’s 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 cost an estimated $1,000 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 (533km/h) as measured over the last 66’ of the run (9/28/03, Doug Kalitta).
You are driving the average $140,000 Lingerfelter “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
200mph. 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 you, but nearly blasted you off the road when he passed you within a mere 1,320 foot long race course.
THAT, FOLKS IS ACCELERATION. "
03-17-2009, 09:45 AM
#2
Melting Slicks
Fun read, but has a few exaggerations. It would take 4.5 seconds for the corvette to cover the 1/4 mile. 0.25 miles/200mi/hr = 4.5 seconds. Since the top fuel record is 4.441 seconds, the dragster would probably reach the finish around the same time as the vette and not pass the vette in 3 seconds. Still that is amazing 
.
.
03-17-2009, 11:37 AM
#3
Safety Car
Whenever I see this quoted I can't help but think of the only NHRA facility in MN, Brainerd Int'l. At the end of the dragstrip is turn 1 of a 3 mile roadcourse. Bet I can beat the top fueler in my stock Z06 if we continue to turn 1 and then around the roadcourse back to the starting line. 
03-17-2009, 01:02 PM
#4
Le Mans Master
Whenever I see this quoted I can't help but think of the only NHRA facility in MN, Brainerd Int'l. At the end of the dragstrip is turn 1 of a 3 mile roadcourse. Bet I can beat the top fueler in my stock Z06 if we continue to turn 1 and then around the roadcourse back to the starting line.
03-17-2009, 01:21 PM
#5
Safety Car
Hah, maybe you can beat him. He can out accelerate and out brake you by a factor of at least 4(parachutes can really slow you down). So for a purely silly hypothetical argument you could do a lap sim assuming a very low lateral g capability but his braking zones would be way shorter than yours. Brainerd doesn't look like a very tight course so he may have a chance. Of course he would need parachutes for each corner (or some way to retract them). Ok, now this is getting way too silly.
03-17-2009, 03:23 PM
#7
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I like the old definition about HP.
how can you tell if you have enough HP?
When you exit one corner, you leave two black streaks into the next corners brake zone
how can you tell if you have enough HP?
When you exit one corner, you leave two black streaks into the next corners brake zone
03-17-2009, 07:55 PM
#8
Safety Car
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In regards to Horsepower - I think that it was Don Garlitz that said to the interviewers question. Horsepower - how much do I need ? -- If more is better TOO MUCH IS JUST ENOUGH !! I follow the same principle.
03-17-2009, 08:26 PM
#9
Former Vendor
We had a nice guy show up at the shop with a customer of ours. The top fuel guys are in the middle of lay-offs and he was one of them that got cut. Super nice guy and told maybe too much info. Pushrods like tree trunks, valve springs like coilover springs. He did the clutch setups for the past few years. Very tricky to get them right, I don't know how they can predict the future. The chassis is a pretty cool thing and the prep, replacing, fixing and building is the best stuff out there. I really enjoyed talking with him.
Randy
Ps I got to stand right behide the crew guys. It was like watching a tracer round out of rifle.
Randy
Ps I got to stand right behide the crew guys. It was like watching a tracer round out of rifle.
