Industrial Heater FWE Type II and Type III

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larry cottrill
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Industrial Heater FWE Type II and Type III

Post by larry cottrill » Mon Feb 28, 2011 11:01 pm

Finally ...

My client has gotten the latest version running, after much struggling through the winter months with poor propane pressure due to unusually cold weather. The engine shown here is called the Type II engine. The client requested a re-design to enlarge the combustion chamber for higher power, comprising a 6-inch long cylindrical extension at the front of the main chamber cone. This necessitated moving the intake forward a few inches and lengthening the tailpipe somewhat. But, hey - it runs. That is the Type III engine, which I don't have photos of (since the client did the mod in his own shop). They say it is plenty loud, and they haven't even fed it all the propane it will take.

The Type II engine and its stainless mounting dingbats were all welded up by Matt Russell of Jim Russell Design in Des Moines, Iowa USA; all design is mine. This re-design and re-build cost me right around $2500 US. It is a far nicer engine than the Type I engine I posted earlier. The only rigid mounting point is at the rear of the chamber. The front mounting ring moves effortlessly back and forth to accommodate thermal expansion while maintaining centerline and carrying half the chamber weight. The rear mount point is two rings with guides that allow the tailpipe to slide for thermal expansion; it supports almost the entire tailpipe weight at roughly the midpoint of the pipe, on a 1/2-inch stainless all-thread screw jack to allow adjustment for perfect alignment. (The engine splits at the juncture of the chamber and tailpipe, with a stainless O-ring pinched between the clamped flanges.)

I'll provide more detail photos later.

L Cottrill
Attachments
2010-10-14_07_crop1_tiny.jpg
Industrial heater FWE Type II - again about 5 ft (< 2m)
long, about 20 lb (~ 10 kg) without mounting rail.
Photo Copyright 2010 Larry Cottrill
2010-10-14_10_small.jpg
Type II heater engine, on mounting rail & bolted down for
testing. Photo Copyright 2010 Larry Cottrill
heater_in_space_logo_small.JPG
Heater In Space w/ logo (small jetZILLA promotional piece).
Graphic Copyright 2011 Larry Cottrill

larry cottrill
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Mounting Rail & Mounts

Post by larry cottrill » Tue Mar 01, 2011 11:22 pm

Some photos of the mounting rail and mountings. The rail is a 4 x 4 inch mild steel tube, with holes CDC cut for me by a fine outfit called DeeZee Manufacturing. Precise lengths of steel bushing stock were then welded through the holes. All the stainless mounting assemblies were welded up for me (TIG) by Matt Russell of Jim Russell Design. I cut and ground most of the parts, all out of 3/4-inch square stainless tubing, in Jim's well-equipped shop.

L Cottrill
Attachments
2010-10-01_0001_small.jpg
Mounting rail before attaching anything. The small
item is the main screw jack assembly.
Photo Copyright 2010 Larry Cottrill
2010-10-01_0002_small.jpg
Mounting rail rear end, showing the screw jack in
more detail.
Photo Copyright 2010 Larry Cottrill
2010-10-01_003_small.jpg
Rear mounting in which the tailpipe slides. It is supported
by the threaded screw jack just visible coming up
through the slotted hole in the aluminum heat shield.
Photo Copyright 2010 Larry Cottrill
2010-10-01_004_small.jpg
Main mounting (chamber rear end). This is the only rigid
mounting point, taking the entire engine thrust.
Photo Copyright 2010 Larry Cottrill
2010-10-01_005_small.jpg
Front mounting. Note fore and aft stops limiting movement.
Photo Copyright 2010 Larry Cottrill
2010-10-01_007_small.jpg
Fully assembled mounting rail (high right side view).
Photo Copyright 2010 Larry Cottrill
2010-10-01_008_small.jpg
Fully assembled mounting rail (top left view).
Photo Copyright 2010 Larry Cottrill

Jutte
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Re: Industrial Heater FWE Type II and Type III

Post by Jutte » Thu Mar 03, 2011 2:02 am

Awesome stuff!

PyroJoe
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Re: Industrial Heater FWE Type II and Type III

Post by PyroJoe » Thu Mar 03, 2011 4:19 pm

Nice work Larry,
Are you able to disclose what the application is?

larry cottrill
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Re: Industrial Heater FWE Type II and Type III

Post by larry cottrill » Thu Mar 03, 2011 4:41 pm

Jutte wrote:Awesome stuff!
Thank you, sir! This is undoubtedly the most real design work I've ever done on a pulsejet. Of course, only time and testing will tell whether the heat warpage problem is really conquered. We'll see.
PyroJoe wrote:Nice work Larry,
Are you able to disclose what the application is?
No - not until the client has his patent published in the Digest. Someday ... someday ...

L Cottrill

Viv
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Re: Industrial Heater FWE Type II and Type III

Post by Viv » Thu Mar 03, 2011 5:07 pm

Hi Larry

looking good my friend, wish you the best of luck with it,

Viv
"Sometimes the lies you tell are less frightening than the loneliness you might feel if you stopped telling them" Brock Clarke

Viv's blog

Monsieur le commentaire

larry cottrill
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FIRE IN THE PIPE! Type III Heater Now Operational

Post by larry cottrill » Thu Mar 17, 2011 11:48 pm

Thanks, Viv!

Just got a call from the client early afternoon. It sounded like the noise was tearing his cell phone to shreds. Then he shielded the phone and yelled that he was standing 35 or 40 feet from it. He seemed to be pleased, for the moment. This is the Type III, of course.

I'll see if I can get him to cajole his wife into getting us another movie for YouTube.

L Cottrill

larry cottrill
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Industrial Heater FWE Evolution

Post by larry cottrill » Tue Mar 22, 2011 5:00 pm

Here's a little "almost to scale" sketch I did comparing the three engine models. These are very simple sketches; I have ignored minor variations in the tailpipe length and left out many mounting details. On Models II and III, the intake would normally be on the far side of the chamber, but I show it rotated up to the top for clarity. Note how the intake was moved forward significantly and shortened a little on the Model III engine. The engine is not as "front loaded" as it may appear (especially in the Model II form) because of the large front dome.

The client is sending me a DVD of the latest video he shot. I'll probably edit it some, then submit it to YouTube.

L Cottrill
Attachments
Heater_FWE_Type_comparison.png
FWE Industrial Heater Engine development, from late 2009 to the present.
Drawing Copyright 2011 Larry Cottrill

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