What kind of alcohol is used in drag racing?

In Top Alcohol Dragster, the cars used supercharged ("blown") engines, burning alcohol (methanol). Top Alcohol Funny Cars look similar to Fuel Funny Cars, with about half the power of a Top Fuel car.

What kind of alcohol do race cars use?

Most race car drivers prefer fuel that is methanol- or ethanol-based, and the reason is simple, really. Overall, alcohol-based fuel has a high octane rating which increases fuel efficiency. Methanol burns cleaner and cooler, is less flammable, and less expensive than gasoline.

What kind of alcohol do Funny Cars use?

Most alcohol dragsters burn methanol, although a few burn ethanol. Injected engines with no supercharger can burn a small percentage of nitromethane. Acceleration is eye-popping in both cases. The Top Alcohol Dragster launches at 3 gs from a standing start.

Is Top Alcohol the same as Top Fuel?

Top Alcohol Dragsters may look like Top Fuelers, but they have significant differences. Whereas Top Fuelers use supercharged, nitro-burning engines, Top Alcohol Dragsters may use a supercharged methanol-burning engine or an injected nitromethane combination.

How much does a gallon of nitromethane cost?

… Nitromethane used to power the engines of NHRA Top Fuel dragsters and Funny Cars costs about $16 US per gallon!

Top Alcohol Breakdown: Driver Safety Equipment for NHRA Top Alcohol Dragster

What's the octane of methanol?

Methanol reported as having an octane rating of 133 (RON) and 105 (MON), with a combined octane rating of 119 ((R+M)/2). In contrast the combined octane rating of regular gasoline is 87 and that of premium gasoline is 93.

What fuel do drag racers use?

Rather than gassing up on regular fuel, drag cars use a mixture of high nitromethane, which vastly reduces the amount of oxygen that is running through the engine at such high speeds.

What happens if you put nitromethane in a car?

Nitromethane by itself does not burn, its only supplies more oxygen to the burn. Adding it to gasoline would be the same thing as running very high octane fuel, which involves motor knowlege and reworking to run safely.

What is the fastest 1/4 mile time ever recorded?

What's faster Top Fuel or Funny Car?

Top fuel dragsters are the fastest class of dragsters, capable of reaching speeds of up to 150 m/s. Funny cars are basically top fuel dragsters with a body over the chassis. As a result, funny cars are usually slower than top fuelers. Top fuel dragsters frequently reach speeds of 134 m/s (300 mph) during their runs.

What does 1320 mean in drag racing?

The 1320 name reflects the car's drag-racing designs, as there are 1,320 feet in a quarter-mile. Neil Vorano. My first step before I hit the start line is to test out one of those features, specifically what's called a “line lock” – basically, it shuts off the rear brakes.

What fuel do Funny Cars use?

Funny Car fuel systems are key to their immense power. During a single run (starting, burnout, backing up, staging, 1/4 mile) cars can burn as much as 15 US gallons (12 imp gal; 57 L) of fuel. The fuel mixture is usually 85–90% nitromethane (nitro, "fuel") and 10–15% methanol (alcohol, "alky").

What is race ethanol?

One Ethanol “R” is a specially formulated ethanol blend intended for ultra high performance racing engines. R was designed to be used in forced induction, nitrous, and N/A engines requiring race fuels with an octane rating of 116 or higher.

Can an engine run on pure alcohol?

Pure ethanol – 100% ethanol or E100 – could theoretically be used to power cars, but generally isn't, for numerous reasons: Ethanol is bad for cold-starting, because it doesn't burn as quickly as gasoline. (It has a higher octane, if you're interested.) Pure ethanol would be useless as fuel in the winter months.

Will methanol hurt my engine?

Both are safe to use in small amounts, but uncontrolled and unregulated mixing can result in concentrations high enough to cause additional wear and damage over time to sensitive gaskets and hoses in the fuel system. In the future, there may be a place for methanol in our fuel supply.

What can I use instead of nitro fuel?

RE: alternative rc fuel

Nitro does not lube the engine, its the oil that does. Synthetic oil does not lube as well as Castor, so a castor synthetic blend would be the best.

What fuel makes the most power?

The highest energy density fuel is hydrogen, which is also the simplest chemical component in existence. Gasoline, which is derived from refining crude oil, contains much more energy than coal (twice the lower grade bituminous) or wood (three times).

How do you get nitromethane?

Preparation. Nitromethane is produced industrially by combining propane and nitric acid in the gas phase at 350–450 °C (662–842 °F). This exothermic reaction produces the four industrially significant nitroalkanes: nitromethane, nitroethane, 1-nitropropane, and 2-nitropropane.

What is the best fuel for drag racing?

Methanol is a good choice in many NHRA classes where it is legal. It absorbs a lot of heat when it vaporizes. As a result, it tends to keep an engine cooler. This is an advantage for drag racing where many racecars do not have a cooling system.

Why is methanol a good fuel?

Methanol can be an alternative to conventional transportation fuels. The benefits of methanol include: Lower production costs—Methanol is cheap to produce relative to other alternative fuels. Improved safety—Methanol has a lower risk of flammability compared to gasoline.

What makes drag cars so fast?

The engine distributes power to the wheels in just 15/100ths of a second. Literally the blink of an eye. When they are accelerating, the drivers of Top Fuel dragsters feel G-forces that are comparable to an astronaut launching into space. These cars are so fast, traditional braking systems do little to slow them down.

Does methanol burn faster than gasoline?

Methanol is far more difficult to ignite than gasoline and burns about 60% slower. A methanol fire releases energy at around 20% of the rate of a gasoline fire, resulting in a much cooler flame.

What octane is jet fuel?

The octane ratings of AVGAS, a gasoline-based fuel, are usually either 91 or 100 (lean mixture) and 96 or 130 (rich mixture). The octane rating of jet fuel is much lower, around 15 – this is much more like automotive diesel and thus much more resistant to detonating due to sparks or compression.

Can you mix methanol with gasoline?

Extensive product research, as well as years of commercial experience, indicate that properly blended methanol in gasoline has no adverse effect on vehicle performance. In fact, methanol-gasoline blends have cleaner burning properties that generally reduce CO, HC, PM and air toxics from most gasoline engine vehicles.