In the first RET Monitor Seals and Gaskets article, we started to examine the research which Trelleborg Sealing Solutions, a leading multi-national manufacturer of gaskets and seals, has published into the interaction of sealing compounds with biofuels. This research will cause fuel system designers to rethink material selection for sealing gaskets and O-rings. In that article we focused on water contamination of bio-diesel, something which is to an extent, almost inevitable. Water...
In one of the previous articles, the discussion points were on the traditional methods of manufacture, and this month we shall look in more depth at non-circular sections in exhausts. In the article dated June 14, we mentioned pressed mends as a means of being able to produce very tight radii where space constraints require this. Of course, there are other applications of pressed parts in exhausts, especially where the space envelope is tight. As we know, the aero departments have a great...
Last month, we looked at some basic calculations regarding cyclic loading of fasteners. Engine design engineers need a good understanding of the subject in order to correctly design the optimised fasteners required, but also those whose business is in improving the performance of engines need to be able to calculate when the standard equipment just isn’t going to be good enough. We examined the concept of load coefficients and looked at a very simple example of how the load...
There is increasing evidence to suggest that the real fuel of the future, especially for motor sports, is methanol. Forget all this business about electric vehicles, these, in my opinion have no real place in mainstream motorsport. Alright, electric motors can pack a mean punch and I’m sure one could derive some kind of capricious pleasure out of racing these types of machines but for raw driving experience, not forgetting spectator appeal you simply cannot beat the sound and spectacle...
Having established that a positive displacement pump is the only practical way of supplying lubrication to our engine, the question remains as to which of these many types is most suited. And to understand this it is necessary to examine the engine’s demands on the oil. In any high performance unit the oil has two primary functions: to lubricate (obviously) and to cool. For more mundane applications we can also include things like ‘to protect against corrosion’ or ‘...