"rapid decompression"

[Stephen H]

hey all
Looking at this site http://www.au004a2814.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/airbike.html and at the bottem it says not to make this engine because of "rapid decompression".. what does this mean and why ?

Stephen

[Tom]

i do seem to remember this subject being touched on in the old forums, not quite sure which one however.had something to do with the air rusihing out so fast as to create a vaccumn to suck enough air back in to create i high enough internal pressure to rupture the tank i think....

Tom

[Mark]

hey all
Looking at this site http://www.au004a2814.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/airbike.html and at the bottem it says not to make this engine because of "rapid decompression".. what does this mean and why ?

Stephen

That's a good question, it must have been illustrative to see the bike fly out beneath the rider from too much thrust when first testing it. I wonder if the tank could suffer from super cooling somehow, the metal becoming brittle?
There was a death today in the paper from someone doing 95 on a motorcycle and hitting a post in a 45 mph zone. I guess for $11,000 you can buy a bike that will approach ~180 mph. The dealership who sells these says it asks prospective buyers their riding skills before selling them.
Today I was talking to an X test pilot and he rode over to the library on his Harley. We had both read the morning paper and breifly discussed the death, he brought it up. He mentioned something about breathing pure O2 in some test chamber or something as a test pilot and coming out later, lungs filled with oxygen, asking someone for a smoke. He said "well the cigarette would be gone in a second" and his commanding officer said if he "ever did that kind of stunt again, .... "
The library was busy, so I didn't really get a chance for him to recount the whole story, but it seemed rather humorous. I wonder if you took a hit of pure O2 and surreptitiously blew into the filter end, if that was how he did it? He also mentioned that he had done some testing for the Mercury astronauts.
Mark

[marksteamnz]

Sounds incorrect to me. There are quite a few tanks vessels etc that are vented rapidly I'm aware of and none appear to have imploded so far.
Examples, the air tanks on "punkin chunkin" guns, water rockets and a vague memory from eons ago that one of the plastic monomer processes actually uses explosive decompression (sigh too long ago for a fuzzy brain)
Extending the argument there are vast numbers of hydralic cylinders being raised to some serious pressures and released practiacally instantaniously in hundreds of applicarions. My garage jack being one example.

hey all
Looking at this site http://www.au004a2814.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/airbike.html and at the bottem it says not to make this engine because of "rapid decompression".. what does this mean and why ?

Stephen