Date of Award

8-2020

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Aerospace, Physics, and Space Sciences

First Advisor

Brian A. Kish

Second Advisor

Ralph D. Kimberlin

Third Advisor

Stephen K. Cusick

Fourth Advisor

David C. Fleming

Abstract

Larsen Motorsports competes in drag racing events all over the country using their jet power drag cars. These competitions are focused on getting the most performance out of the engine as possible by shaving weight off the vehicle and increasing the amount of power produced. One of the many factors in the amount of power produced by the car is the afterburner. Afterburners can increase thrust from ~3,000lb to ~5,000lb in a standard J85 engine. Due to this there is a good deal of attention paid to the efficiency and performance of the afterburner. The specific portion this thesis focused on, was the flame holder design and tooling for fabrication. The flame holder slows the stream of air coming out of the engine down to allow for proper flame development in the afterburner. Too slow and the backpressure will have negative effects on the engine, and not slow enough results in poor flame development and a lack of power. The flame holder must also be modifiable to allow for tuning to the environment. Fabricating consistency has a direct influence on the flame holders performance. Due to this I have developed tooling to allow for the flame holder to be fabricated consistently time after time. This specialty tooling considers manufacturing tolerances, not only for the flame holder, but also for the tool. My experience as a mechanical engineer allowed me to bring knowledge of standard manufacturing processes to this specific task.

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