Written by Kris Land
Exploratory research is being done on a number of highly efficient and Earth friendly forms of propulsion. Pulse detonation engines are one such method being studied by the crew of the Sea Bird. Pulse detonation is the detonation of fuel at high pressure to create gas flow at super-sonic speeds. This may sound similar to a car engine, but there are several key differences. Traditional combustion engines don not detonate gas, but rather burin it very rapidly, a process know as deflagration. This relatively gentle burning of fuel certainly does not produce super-sonic gas flow. Because of the extreme pressure generated by pulse detonations, traditional valves used to time fuel burning in a combustion engine would not withstand the force. Therefore, alternative forms of timing and directing the detonation must be used. One such form is a Deflagration to Detention tube (DDT) which uses a traditional combustion to create the pressure necessary to detonate a vaporized fuel. The super sonic explosion could then be used to directly propel a vehicle or turn a specialize turbine. Because the explosion is at high pressure and high heat, the resulting exhaust is very clean compare to traditional combustion engines.
We are in the process of assembling a library of documents on alternative ship propulsion. The following articles provide valuable insight to our mission:
- Electric Propulsion
- Reducing Emissions from Diesel Engines
- Combustible Engines with Extremely Low Emissions
- Waste Oil as a Fuel Source
- What Technology is Being Used to Achieve Near-Perfect Combustion
- Understanding Pyrocatalytic Cracking
- Pulse Detonation
- Closed Loop Steam
- Tesla Turbine
- Pulse Combustion Test
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Related Articles:
The History of Pulse Detonation: Science Fiction or Promising Technology?Kris Land
Pulse Detonation (pulse combustion)Kris Land
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1944: Camano Class Light Cargo Ship was laid down for the US Army as FS-289 at Wheeler Shipbuilding in Whitestone, NY.
1945: Delivered to US Army.
1950: Acquired by the US Navy on July 1, 1950 and placed in service as USNS New Bedford (T-AKL-17).
1954: The movie, Mister Roberts, was made on the USNS New Bedford (T-AKL-17).
1955 - 1963: Used as a cargo supply ship for the Texas Towers, a network of advanced radar stations located off the Eastern Seaboard. In 1957, Capt. Sixto Mangual was commander of the AKL-17 and in 1961 it was rechristened the USNS New Bedford. The New Bedford, sailing out of State Pier, was keeping vigil when Texas Tower No. 4 callapsed off the New Jersey coast during a January 1961 nor'easter.
1963: Reclassified as Miscellaneous Unclassified (IX-308).
1971: The New Bedford (IX-308) served as a Torpedo Test Firing Vessel in the Puget Sound area.
1994: Ceremony in New Bedford.
1995: The ship was struck from the Naval Register on April 4.
2004: The Sea Bird's current disposition is a tuna long liner (fishing boat) out of San Diego, CA.
2006: Design of the Tesla Turbine began on June 11, 2006. The Sea Bird was sold by Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service for commercial service.
2007: The Sea Bird was drydocked for renovations.
2008: The Sea Bird setting sail to Sea-Tac in Seattle, WA.
2009 - 2010: The Sea Bird is currently docked at Seattle Sea-Tac.
