[NSRCA-discussion] Fw: ~Defining Acceleration~

[rcmaster199 at aol.com]

That's what I'd surmise Jeff. Rocket science and technology exists that will accelerate a ballistic missile at least at 100g. A man subjected to 100 g is a person at freefall that hits the ground at 150 mph. Ouch!

8g of initial accel is somewhat tame by that standard. Off the top of my head, 8g of accel will bring the dragster to a speed of about 170 mph after the first second. If accel is sustained during the next second, the dragster will be going 340 mph, and so forth. Accel of 8g can't be sustained probably for more than 11/2 or 2 seconds tops. In the third second, accel has probably dropped to 4g, adding another 90 mph to the 340. So after 4 seconds of drag time the car is going close to 450 mph. That's about right for an average speed of over 300mph in 4 1/2 seconds

Or is that speed the final speed at the end of the run? Don't really know enough about dragsters and their speed trials...don't follow that sport at all

Nevertheless, Nat gave us something interesting to ponder as he often has in the past

MatK



-----Original Message-----
From: jh102649 <jh102649 at speakeasy.net>
To: General pattern discussion <nsrca-discussion at lists.nsrca.org>
Sent: Mon, Oct 24, 2011 2:00 pm
Subject: Re: [NSRCA-discussion] Fw: ~Defining Acceleration~



ts been a long time so my memory may be wrong but I think the US produced a
issile, called the Sprint, that went 0->mach 10 in a few seconds. It was a 
hort
ange, nuclear armed, anti-missile missile. If it was ever deployed it was only
or a short time because the ABM treaty outlawed them. In the movies I've seen 
f
ts launch you cannot see it once it clears the silo. If the information in
ikipedia is correct the top fuel dragster is much slower. Following is the
ikipedia article:
The Sprint was a two-stage, solid-fuel anti-ballistic missile, armed with a W66
nhanced radiation thermonuclear warhead. It was designed as the short-range
igh-speed counterpart to the longer-range LIM-49 Spartan as part of the 
entinel
rogram. Sentinel never became operational, but the technology was deployed
riefly in a downsized version called the Safeguard program. The Sprint, like 
he
partan, was in operational service for only a few months in the Safeguard
rogram, from October 1975 to early 1976. A combination of high costs,
ongressional opposition, and questionable efficacy resulted in a very short
perational period.
The Sprint accelerated at 100 g, reaching a speed of Mach 10 in 5 seconds. It 
as
esigned for close-in defense against incoming nuclear weapons. As the last line
f defense it was to intercept the reentry vehicles that had not been destroyed
y the Spartan, with which it was deployed.
The Sprint was stored in and launched from a silo. To make the launch as quick 
s
ossible, the cover was blown off the silo by explosive charges, then the 
issile
as ejected by an explosive-driven piston. As the missile cleared the silo, the
irst stage fired and the missile was tilted toward its target. The first stage
as exhausted after only 1.2 seconds, but produced 2,900 kN (650,000 lbf) of
hrust. The second stage fired within 1 - 2 seconds of launch. Interception at 
n
ltitude of 1,500 m to 30,000 m took at most 15 seconds.
The Sprint was controlled by ground-based radio command, which tracked the
ncoming reentry vehicles with phased-array radar and guided the missile to its
arget.
The Sprint was armed with an enhanced radiation nuclear warhead with a yield
eportedly of a few kilotons, though the exact number has not been declassified.
he warhead was intended to destroy the incoming reentry vehicle primarily by
eutron flux.
Perhaps we are talking about manned vehicles?
eff Hill
On Mon Oct 24  9:04 , Dennis Bodary <d_bodary at yahoo.com> sent:
>For someone who has seen a Top Fuel car in Person. Every one should see one at
east once your speakers on television do nothing for you. It can best be
escribed as violent. Not to mention your whole body hurts from the sound on
cceleration.��The cars are Brutal

--- On Mon, 10/24/11, Keith Black <tkeithblack at gmail.com> wrote:

From: Keith Black <tkeithblack at gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [NSRCA-discussion] Fw: ~Defining Acceleration~
To: "General pattern discussion" <nsrca-discussion at lists.nsrca.org>
Date: Monday, October 24, 2011, 10:59 AM

Awesome Nat, thanks for sharing!

On Monday, October 24, 2011, Nat Penton <natpenton at centurytel.net> wrote:
> ��
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Larry Smith

> To: Larry Smith
> Sent: Sunday, October 23, 2011 9:11 PM
> Subject: ~Defining Acceleration~
> For those who love numbers, engineers, speed freaks and those who think they
ave gone too fast at one time or another.��This puts Corvette performance in
erspective.�� This article mentions Lingenfelter twin turbo powered Z06.��

>
> ��Read this thru slowly and try to comprehend the amount of force produced in
ust 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
an accelerate from a standing start as fast as a Top Fuel Dragster or Funny
ar���..and that includes any aircraft launched by a catapult from an aircraft
arrier.��Nothing��can compare���..

>
> ����
>
> </mail/u/0/s/?view=att&th=13336586af337a16&attid=0.0.1&disp=emb&zw>
>
> ��
>
> ��
>
> ��
>
> DEFINITION OF ACCELERATION

>
> ��������
> One top fuel dragster 500 cubic inch Hemi engine makes more horsepower than
he 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
elieve 8,000 HP is more realistic - there are no dynomometers capable of
easuring) of an NHRA Top Fuel dragster engine to reach the rear wheels.

>
> ��
>
> Under full throttle, a dragster engine consumes 1-1/2 gallons of nitromethane
er second; a fully loaded 747 consumes jet fuel at the same rate with 25% less
nergy being produced.
>

> ��
>
> A stock Dodge Hemi V8 engine cannot produce enough power to drive the
ragster's supercharger.
>
> ��
>
> With 3,000 CFM of air being rammed in by the supercharger on overdrive, the
uel 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
uantities of reactants and products in chemical reactions are determined) 1.7:1
ir/fuel mixture of nitromethane, the flame front temperature measures 7,050 deg
.�� (Oxy-acetylene on "cut" is 6,300)

>
> ��
>
> Nitro methane burns yellow.�� The spectacular white flame seen above the 
tacks
t night is raw burning hydrogen, dissociated from atmospheric water vapor by 
he
earing exhaust gases.
>

> ��
>
> Dual magnetos supply 44 amps to each spark plug.�� This is the output of an 
rc
elder in each cylinder.
>
> ��
>
> Spark plug electrodes are totally consumed during one pass.�� After halfway,
he engine is dieseling from compression, plus the glow of exhaust valves at
,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
ffected cylinders and then explodes with sufficient force to blow cylinder 
eads
ff the block in pieces or split the block in half.

>
> ��
>
> In order to exceed 300 mph in 4.5 seconds, dragsters must accelerate
n��average��of over 4G's.�� In order to reach 200 mph well before half-track, 
he
aunch acceleration approaches 8G's.

>
> ��
>
> Dragsters reach over 300 miles per hour before you have completed reading 
his
entence.
>
> ��
>
> Top fuel engines turn approximately 540 revolutions from light to light!��
ncluding 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 
nce
OTHING 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
uarter mile (11/12/06, Tony Schumacher, at��Pomona��,��CA��).�� The top speed 
ecord
s 336.15 mph as measured over the last 66' of the run (05/25/05 Tony 
chumacher,
t��Hebron��,��OH��).

>
> ��
>
> Putting all of this into perspective:
>
> ��
>
> You are driving the average $140,000 Lingenfelter 'twin-turbo' powered
orvette Z06.�� Over a mile up the road, a top fuel dragster is staged and ready
o launch down a quarter mile strip as you pass.�� You have the advantage of a
lying start.�� You run the 'Vette hard up through the gears and blast across 
he
tarting line and pass the dragster at an honest 200 mph.�� The 'tree' goes 
reen
or both of you at that instant.

>
> ��
>
> The dragster launches and starts after you.�� You keep your foot down hard, 
ut
ou hear an incredibly brutal whine that sears your eardrums and within 3
econds, the dragster catches and passes you.�� He beats you to the finish line, 

uarter mile away from where you just passed him.

>
> ��
>
> Think about it, from a standing start, the dragster had spotted you 200 mph
nd not only caught, but nearly blasted you off the road when he passed you
ithin a mere 1,320 foot long race course.

>
> ��
>
> ...... and that my friend, is ACCELERATION!
>
>

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