Acceleration

[J. T. Toad]

ACCELERATION PUT INTO PERSPECTIVE



* One Top Fuel dragster 500 cubic-inch Hemi engine makes more
horsepower (8,000 HP) than the first 4 rows at the Daytona 500.

* Under full throttle, a dragster engine consumes 11.2 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
merely drive the dragster's supercharger.

* With 3000 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 1.7:1 air/fuel mixture for nitro methane
the flame front temperature measures 7050 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 the
output of an arc welder in each cylinder.

* Spark plug electrodes are totally consumed during a pass. After
1/2 way, the engine is dieseling from compression plus the glow of
exhaust valves at 1400 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.

* Dragsters reach over 300 MPH before you have completed reading
this sentence.

* In order to exceed 300 MPH in 4.5 seconds, dragsters must
accelerate an average of over 4 G's. In order to reach 200 MPH well
before half-track, the launch acceleration approaches 8 G's.

* 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 9500 RPM.

* THE BOTTOM LINE: Assuming all the equipment is paid off, the
crew worked for free, & for once, NOTHING BLOWS UP, each run costs an
estimated $1,000 per second.

0 to 100 MPH in .8 seconds (the first 60 feet of the run)
0 to 200 MPH in 2.2 seconds (the first 350 feet of the run)
6 g-forces at the starting line (nothing accelerates faster on land)

6 negative g-forces upon deployment of twin 'chutes at 300 MPH
An NHRA Top Fuel Dragster accelerates quicker than any other land
vehicle onearth . . quicker than a jet fighter plane . . . quicker
than the spaceshuttle

The current Top Fuel dragster elapsed time record is 4.420 seconds
for the quarter-mile (2004, Doug Kalitta). The top speed record is
337.58 MPH as measured over the last 66' of the run (2005, Tony
Schumacher).

Putting this all 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 & 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 & pass the
dragster at an honest 200 MPH. The 'tree' goes green for both of you
at that moment.

The dragster launches & starts after you. You keep your foot down
hard, but you hear an incredibly brutal whine that sears your
eardrums & within 3 seconds the dragster catches & 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 & not only caught, but nearly blasted you off the road
when he passed you within a mere 1320 foot long race!

That's acceleration !